Individual Responsibility

Responsibility is central to what it means to be human. Other creatures have life, consciousness, and even intelligence, but only human beings are responsible for choosing their manner of life and hence their destiny. Individual responsibility implies an attitude of self-criticism.

We should not blame others for our own difficulties, but rather look for the cause within ourselves. All the religions of the world emphasize, in one way or another, individual responsibility in matters of faith and practice, although the definition and limits differ.

Buddhism and other nontheistic traditions regard the journey on the path to liberation as entirely the responsibility of the individual. Each individual is “a lamp unto himself”; each works out his own salvation alone and by himself.

There is explicit rejection of reliance upon a savior from without, as both Buddha and Muhammad rejected characterizations of themselves as saviors.

On the other hand, in the monotheistic faiths, the context of individual responsibility is prevenient grace. As a person works out his own salvation, at the same time God is at work within.

Salvation is a gift, yet it is our responsibility to receive it and not reject it. Father Moon characterizes this joint responsibility in numerical terms: 95 percent is God’s responsibility and 5 percent is the human portion.

In this view, responsibility ennobles human beings. It means that each of us has a role to play in our own perfection, and even an indispensable role in completing God’s work of creation.

This responsibility contains the gift of freedom. Several passages explore this teaching in light of the Human Fall and divine forbearance in not intervening to prevent it.

Many religions hold that an individual’s destiny is at least partly determined by factors beyond his or her control: God’s predestination, past karma, or the burden of inherited sin.

Nevertheless, several texts reject the notion that such conditions impinge in any way on one’s individual responsibility. Arguing against fatalism, they maintain that with every situation comes the opportunity to improve our lot by the exercise of responsibility.

Father Moon goes one step further: he teaches that inasmuch as our individual selves are the results of many generations, fulfilling our responsibility benefits not only ourselves but countless ancestors as well.

O ye who believe! You have charge over your own souls. Qur’an 5.105

If I am not for myself, who is for me? And when I am for myself, what am I? And if not now, when? Mishnah, Avot 1.14 (Judaism)

By self do you censure yourself. By self do you examine yourself. Self-guarded and mindful, O bhikkhu, you will live happily. Self, indeed, is the protector of self. Self, indeed, is one’s refuge. Control, therefore, your own self as a merchant controls a noble steed. Dhammapada 379-80 (Buddhism)

Whoever works righteousness benefits his own soul; whoever works evil, it is against his own soul: Your Lord is never unjust to His servants. Qur’an 41.46

Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Philippians 2.12

You must be lamps unto yourselves. Rely on yourselves, and do not rely on external help. Hold firm to the truth as a lamp and a refuge, and do not look for refuge to anything besides yourselves. A brother becomes his own lamp and refuge by continually looking on his body, feelings, perceptions, moods, and ideas in such a manner that he conquers the cravings and depressions of ordinary men and is always strenuous, self-possessed, and collected in mind. Whoever among my disciples does this, either now or when I am dead, if he is anxious to learn, will reach the summit. Digha Nikaya 2.99-100 (Buddhism)

The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. Not with our fathers did the Lord make this covenant, but with us, who are all of us here alive this day. Deuteronomy 5.2-3

Oneself, indeed, is one’s savior, for what other savior could there be? With oneself well controlled one obtains a savior difficult to find. Dhammapada 160 (Buddhism)

“Please, Man of Shakya,” said Dhotaka, “free me from confusion!” “It is not in my practice to free anyone from confusion,” said the Buddha. “When you have understood the most valuable teachings, then you yourself will cross the ocean.” Sutta Nipata 1063-64 (Buddhism)

Not by traveling to the end of the world can one accomplish the end of ill. It is in this fathom-long carcass, friend, with its impressions and its ideas that, I declare, lies the world, and the cause of the world, and the cessation of the world, and the course of action that leads to the cessation of the world. Samyutta Nikaya 1.62 (Buddhism)

[God to Adam]: “Adam, We give you no fixed place to live, no form that is peculiar to you, nor any function that is yours alone. According to your desires and judgment, you will have and possess whatever place to live, whatever form, and whatever functions you yourself choose. All other things have a limited and fixed nature… To you is granted the power of degrading yourself into the lower forms of life, the beasts, and to you is granted the power, contained in your intellect and judgment, to be reborn into the higher forms, the divine.” Pico della Mirandola6 (Humanism)

Man’s main task in life is to give birth to himself, to become what he potentially is. The most important product of his effort is his own personality. Erich Fromm (Humanism)

Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
In the life of faith, you absolutely cannot remain a bystander. You think you can follow me, Reverend Moon, but you cannot lead your life of faith through me; you must find it in yourself. Regardless of what others do, you have to keep on the path of faith by your own will. (153:136, November 15, 1963)

Even in the midst of the wilderness, you can build your dwelling. You must build it by yourself. No one can help you. Therefore, be self-sufficient, so you can help others.

No matter how hard things may be, add something good to your daily life. Invest step by step. God also has been investing Himself and forgetting what He had invested: that is His tradition. (248:133, August 1, 1993)

You know what to do. You know better than I what needs to be done. This course is yours, not mine. (36:31, November 8, 1970) Unless you develop yourself and arrive at maturity—the realm of God’s direct dominion—you will not understand what love is. (137:100, December 24, 1985)

All things reach perfection after passing through the growing period (the realm of indirect dominion) by virtue of the autonomy and governance given by God’s Principle.

Human beings, however, are created in such a way that their growth requires the fulfillment of their own portion of responsibility, in addition to the guidance provided by the Principle.

They must exercise this responsibility in order to pass successfully through the growing period and reach perfection. We can deduce from God’s commandment to Adam and Eve (Gen. 2.17) that the first human ancestors were responsible to believe in the Word of God and not eat of the fruit.

Whether or not they disobeyed God and fell depended not on God, but on them. Hence, whether or not human beings attain perfection does not depend only on God’s power of creation; it also requires the fulfillment of human responsibility.

In His capacity as the Creator, God created human beings in such a manner that they can pass through the growing period (the realm of indirect dominion) and attain perfection only when they have completed their own portion of responsibility.

Because God Himself created human beings in this way, He does not interfere with human responsibility. God endowed human beings with a portion of responsibility for the following reason.

By fulfilling their given portion of responsibility—with which even God does not interfere—human beings are meant to inherit the creative nature of God and participate in God’s great work of creation.

God intends human beings to earn ownership and become worthy to rule over the creation as creators in their own right (Gen. 1.28), just as God governs over them as their Creator. This is the principal difference between human beings and the rest of creation. (Exposition of the Divine Principle, Creation 5.2.2)

The path of life is not a way I go at another’s urging, nor because someone leads me; I realize I can only walk this path if I cope with it by myself. It is a principle of nature: I feed myself when I am hungry and drink for myself when I am thirsty. (42:90, February 28, 1971)

The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to till it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.” Genesis 2.15-17

For of course, no one would dare to believe or declare that it was beyond God’s power to prevent the fall of either angel or man. But God preferred not to use His own power, but to leave success or failure to the creature’s choice. Saint Augustine, City of God 14.27 (Christianity)

Rabbi Akiba said: Beloved is man, for he was created in the image of God. But it was by a special love that it was made known to him that he was created in the image of God; as it is taught, “For in the image of God made He man.” (Gen. 9.6)8 Mishnah, Avot 3.18 (Judaism)

Everything is in the hand of Heaven except the fear of Heaven. Talmud, Berakot 33b (Judaism)

Satan… came before me, saying, “Behold, here am I; send me, I will be Thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that not one soul shall be lost. Surely I will do it; therefore, give me my honor.” But my Beloved Son, who was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said to me, “Father, Thy will be done, and the glory be Thine forever.” Therefore, because Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him… I caused that he should be cast down; and he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice.9 Pearl of Great Price, Moses 4.1-4 (Latter-day Saints)

Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
To bring about the perfection of humankind in true love, God required that human beings accomplish a condition of responsibility in order to reach unity with Him.

For this purpose, God gave the Commandment to the first ancestors. God knew that they were in the growth period, as yet imperfect, so He established the Commandment as the condition for His children to inherit the most precious thing—true love. (277:197, April 16, 1996)

God gave human beings a portion of responsibility as a condition, based on which He could love them more than any other being in creation. God’s intention in giving this condition was to make them worthy to be the lords of creation by having them take after His creative nature. (Exposition of the Divine Principle, Predestination 4)

Because human beings have a portion of responsibility, they have supreme value, greater than any other creation. If Adam and Eve fulfilled their portion of responsibility, then there would be no such thing as bitterness in human life.

Had they fulfilled their portion of responsibility, then the human world, the angelic world, and the entire creation would have received God’s governance with rejoicing and glory. That is the Principle. (63:320, October 22, 1972)

Why did God establish a portion of responsibility in our lives?

As the omniscient and omnipotent Creator, God wanted to bequeath His omniscient and omnipotent creativity to us. As the Subject Partner of eternal and unchanging love, God wanted to establish us in a position where we could resemble Him as the Subject Partner of love. For these reasons, God gave us a portion of responsibility.

Hence, the human portion of responsibility is a condition for God’s blessing. It is like the key to a treasure chest which, when opened, gives us possession of everything. Yet it was this portion of responsibility that became an issue in bringing about the Human Fall. (20:210, June 9, 1968)

If God were to interfere with human actions during their growing period, it would be tantamount to ignoring the human portion of responsibility. In that case, God would be disregarding His own Principle of Creation… [For this reason,] God did not intervene in the acts that led the human beings to fall. (Exposition of the Divine Principle, Fall 6.1)

He who knows himself well never complains against others. He who knows his fate well never complains against Heaven. He who complains against others will find no way out. He who complains against Heaven will lose his will. The failure is caused by himself, yet he shifts the blame to others. Is not such a man? Hsün Tzu (Confucianism)

Ambrosia can be extracted even from poison; elegant speech even from a child; good conduct even from an enemy, gold even from impurity. Laws of Manu 2.239 (Hinduism)

The word of the Lord came to me again, “What do you mean by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’? As I live, says the Lord God, this proverb shall no more be used by you in Israel. Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine, the soul that sins shall die…” Yet you say, “Why should not the son suffer for the iniquity of the father?” When the son has done what is lawful and right, and has been careful to observe all my statutes, he shall surely live. The soul that sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son; the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself… Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, says the Lord God. 11 Ezekiel 18.1-30

There are certain recluses and brahmins who teach thus: Whatsoever weal or woe or neutral feeling is experienced, all is due to some previous action… Then I say to them, “So then, owing to a previous action, men will become murderers, thieves, unchaste, liars, slanderers, abusive, babblers, covetous, malicious, and perverse in view. Those who fall back on a former deed as the essential reason [for their behavior] there is neither desire nor effort nor necessity to do this deed or abstain from that deed. So then, the necessity for action or inaction not being found to exist in truth and verity, the term ‘recluse’ cannot reasonably be applied to yourselves, since you live in a state of bewilderment with faculties unguarded.

Others teach thus: Whatsoever weal or woe or neutral feeling is experienced, all that is due to the creation [predestination] of a Supreme Deity… Then I say to them, “So then, owing to the creation of a Supreme Deity, men will become murderers, thieves, unchaste… Those who fall back on the creation of a Supreme Deity as the essential reason [for their behavior] there is neither desire nor effort nor necessity to do this deed or abstain from that deed. So then, the necessity for action or inaction not being found to exist in truth and verity, the term ‘recluse’ cannot reasonably be applied to yourselves, since you live in a state of bewilderment with faculties unguarded.12 Anguttara Nikaya 1.173-74 (Buddhism)

Confucius remarked, “In the practice of archery we have something resembling the principle in a moral man’s life. When the archer misses the center of the target, he turns round and seeks for the cause of his failure within himself.” Doctrine of the Mean 14 (Confucianism)

An individual natively desires to be cause.13 He tries not to become a bad effect. You try to help people and people try to help you because you and they want to be cause. When something bad happens, neither one wishes to be cause. You want to be an effect. Then you find the effect bad. You try not to be an effect. And then you blame something or somebody. Handbook for Preclears (Scientology)

Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
The problem here is myself, not anything else. Nevertheless, you complain about the world. When you say, “The world is going to ruin,” it means you think, “I am not in trouble, but the world in which I live is in trouble.”

You blame the world for every problem while commending yourself for every good thing. This way of thinking is the problem. You do not understand what is wrong with you, yet you complain about what is wrong with the world. (140:25, February 1, 1986)

Regardless of whether a problem stemmed from your father or your grandfather, put them all on your list. Then, put your life on the line to save your ancestors, for it is Heaven’s will that their problems have come to you. With that, get rid of all the blemishes from the past and build a bridge to the new heaven and earth. (310:126, June 15, 1999)

Hundreds of thousands of years of history are coalesced in you. You exist on the foundation of many countries and the sacrifices of billions of people. You are composed of all their resurrected cells; they exist in you. Therefore, if you fail to fulfill your responsibility, your ancestors and the world will suffer on your account. (124:78, January 23, 1983)

However, when you overcome all difficulties and become a victor, it polishes a glorious path for your descendants to follow because you, their ancestor, once walked it. (98:213, August 1, 1978)

As an individual, each one of us is a product of the history of the providence of restoration. Hence, the person who is to accomplish the purpose of history is none other than I, myself. I must take up the cross of history and accept responsibility to fulfill its calling.

To this end, I must fulfill in my lifetime (horizontally), through my efforts, the indemnity conditions which have accumulated through the long course of the providence of restoration (vertically).

Only by doing this can I stand proudly as the fruit of history, the one whom God has eagerly sought throughout His providence. (Exposition of the Divine Principle, Restoration 3)

If anyone sincerely considers the affairs of the world as their own personal responsibilities, they should start by righting the wrongs of the ruler’s mind. If they wish to right the ruler’s mind they should start with themselves. Chu Hsi (Confucianism)

The ancients who wished to manifest their clear character to the world would first bring order to their states. Those who wished to bring order to their states would first regulate their families. Those who wished to regulate their families would first cultivate their personal lives. Those who wished to cultivate their personal lives would first rectify their minds. Those who wished to rectify their minds would first make their wills sincere…From the Emperor down to the common people, all must regard cultivation of the personal life as the root or foundation. There is never a case when the root is in disorder and yet the branches are in order. The Great Learning (Confucianism)

Now a bishop must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, sensible, dignified, hospitable, an apt teacher, no drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, and no lover of money. He must manage his own household well, keeping his children submissive and respectful in every way; for if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how can he care for God’s church? 1 Timothy 3.2-5

Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
People who do not love their nation cannot love God. Those who do not love their parents cannot love their nation. Further, those who do not love themselves cannot love their parents.

Therefore, to be able to love your parents, love your nation, love the world, and love God, you must first love yourself. That is why I teach, “Before you desire to have dominion over the universe, you must first have dominion over yourself.” You have to first establish that foundation in yourself to be a subject partner who can embody and give boundless love.

Otherwise, you are inadequate to love your family, your nation or the world; neither can you love perfectly God. That is what is meant by fully loving yourself. (22:97-98, January 26, 1969)

If you become responsible for an area, then you have to believe that all the hardship and struggle are your own, and without you, matters would not be resolved. You must be responsible for it all by yourself. (14:259, January 1, 1965)

Be a man who can respect his character. You should be able to hold your head high before all things, knowing that they respect you. Then you can say, “Follow my example.” (Way of God’s Will 2.2)