The Power of Love and the Power of the Principle

Chapter The Fall of Man

Section III

The Power of Love, the Power of the Principle, and God's Commandment

1. The human Fall seen from the viewpoint of the Power of Love and the Power of the Principle

Man was created to live in accordance with the Principle. Therefore, it cannot be that the power of the Principle would cause the fall, and throw man off the track. We can compare this to a train which cannot run off the track by itself. For a train to run off the track, there must be a breakdown in the engine or the rail, or an external force stronger than its own running force must collide with it, coming from a different direction. Likewise, man can fall when a certain power, stronger than that of the Principle which makes him grow, and with a different purpose, collides with him. The power which is stronger than that of the Principle is nothing else but the power of love. Therefore, man, in an immature state, could fall because of the power of love, if it was not centered on the Principle.

Why, then, was the power of love stronger than the power of the Principle, such that man fell when he met with love headed for a different purpose?

According to the principle of creation, God's love is the subjective love, manifested through the four position foundation, which is established by having perfected the three objective purposes through the three objective loves. Therefore, love is the source of man's life and happiness, because without God's love, the four position foundation, which is the purpose of man's creation, could never be established. God, through love, should have dominion over man, who is created through the Principle. Therefore, in order that love may have the greater value, the power of love must be stronger than that of the Principle. If the power of love were weaker than that of the Principle, God's love would not be able to dominate man, who was created through the Principle. Rather, man would be concerned with the Principle more than with God's love. This was the reason that Jesus wanted to raise his disciples with the truth and save them with love.

2. The purpose of God's giving Man the Commandment

What could have been the purpose God's giving Adam and Eve the commandment not to eat the fruit? If Adam and Eve, who were not in God's direct dominion of love due to their immaturity, should enter into a reciprocal relationship with the archangel based on unprincipled love, they could fall, since the power of love was stronger than that of the Principle. But, however strong the power of the archangel's love was, if they had followed God's commandment without responding to the angel, performing the action of give and take with God alone, they could not have fallen. In that case, the power of unprincipled love could not have any effect. Since they formed a reciprocal base with the archangel and performed give and take action with him, against God's commandment, the power of illicit love made them deviate from the Principle.

It was not simply because He wanted to prevent him from falling that God gave such a commandment to man while he was yet immature. God also wanted man to enjoy dominion over all creation by having him inherit His creative nature. Thus, Adam and Eve should have perfected themselves through their faith in the Word, as their own portion of responsibility (cf. Part I, Ch. 1, Sec. V, 2.2--55).

God gave this commandment not to the archangel but to man; He sought to exalt man's dignity and qualification in the principle of creation so that man might dominate even the archangel from the position of God's son.

3. The Period necessitating the Commandment

Would God's commandment not to eat of the fruit have been necessary forever? Seen from the viewpoint of love, the fulfillment of God's second blessing is that Adam and Eve enter into God's direct dominion through His love by becoming husband and wife, centering on God's love, and multiplying their children (Gen. 1:28). Therefore, man was created to be allowed, by the Principle, to eat the fruit after his perfection.

Since the power of love is stronger than that of the Principle, Adam and Eve could not have fallen if they had become husband and wife after their perfection, and entered into God's direct dominion through their absolute love. (In this case, no man nor any other power could break the power of the absolute conjugal love. Moreover, the power of the archangel's love, which is supposed to be lesser and weaker than man's could by no means have severed their reciprocal love centered on God. Therefore, God's commandment not to eat of the fruit would have been necessary for Adam and Eve only in the period of their immaturity.