Contributed by Luc Jean
“Principles to Live By” began as a six-week virtual seminar during 2020, when a group of pastors and young people wished to present the first chapter of the Divine Principle through presentations and discussion groups. Pastors Catherine Ono, Heather Thalheimer, Joe Young, Sunhyun Miller and his dad Professor Wayne Miller, and CARP Boston President Luc Jean all wished to present the Divine Principle through practical, daily applications. Through the six weeks, participants consistently attended, had profound realizations, and came out with a desire to apply the Divine Principle. With such great results, CARP Boston and the Boston Family Church wished to follow a similar format, this time through in-person meetings.
On Saturday October 22nd, fourteen people, including two new participants, gathered at the Boston Family Church to hold the first session of “Principles to Live By,” a Divine Principle Seminar put on for people new to the content. The seminar presented the first three sections of the Divine Principle’s first chapter. The seminar began with two presentations given by Pastor Heather Thalheimer and Assistant Pastor Sunhyun Miller. Afterward, participants were given an opportunity to discuss the content and ask questions. After lunch and the final presentations, participants gathered in two groups to share their “genius” and give appreciation to each other, allowing everyone to grow closer as brothers and sisters.
One participant reflected: “It was a very warm environment. Even though we initially didn’t know each other very well, by the end of the day we truly felt like a family. We really not only presented the Principle, but practiced it.”
Another participant shared how “it was really good…seeing Give and Take Action, wow.” Even after the main event, most participants stayed to play board games and share about the content. Truly, one family under God was gathered in Boston.
CARP Boston and the Boston Family Church plan to hold monthly Principles to Live By Seminars, with the next one on November 19th. We hope to continue the momentum of the past few months and will continue to grow each day!
Share your story to ryota@carplife.org.