Empowering Families: A Mission and Vision

A consolidated outline of the 2022 mission, vision, objectives, goals and strategies of FFWPU USA were presented in a special report by President Rev. Naokimi Ushiroda on Sept. 20. “Our mission is to advance world peace by empowering families to develop their four realms of heart and establish the blessed family culture through True Parents’ teachings,” he said.

Focusing on the four realms of heart — children, sibling, conjugal, and parental — has helped clarify all the different types of education provided by the U.S. movement, Rev. Naokimi said, and underscores the primary mission to empower families. “When we fulfill our mission, we will see our vision emerge of a peaceful world where every family embodies God’s true love,” he said. “This is something that True Parents brought to us that we are still responsible to manifest in our own families and in all families throughout the world.”

Rev. Naokimi identified in his report four main objectives, or ‘long term pillars,’ that circle back to relationships: Empowering individuals to develop a personal relationship with God and True Parents and fulfill the three great Blessings; empowering couples to create a God-centered marriage through the holy Marriage Blessing; empowering parents to raise their children with love and the Divine Principle; and lastly, empowering tribal messiahs and community leaders to expand the blessed family culture and create a unified, peaceful world through community service.

“All of our activities related to [FFWPU USA] should fall under these four categories,” he said. “We also have short-term goals that fall under our immediate providential focus.” By April 2023, Rev. Naokimi said U.S. leaders aim to go to Korea with the substantial offering of a breakthrough in church growth. “This is something that has really been on True Mother’s heart, and she has guided us since May of this year to focus on our local church development. We’re focusing all of our resources toward breaking through in this particular area.”

Over the next seven months, leaders aim to have at least 3,000 members regularly attend Sunday service nationally, read the Divine Principle one-hour manual a hundred times each, have at least 400 new FFWPU USA members, increase tithing by 50 percent, and prepare 210 singles from America for the next Cosmic Blessing.

“Each of our subregions have committed to a certain portion of the goals,” said Rev. Naokimi before explaining that, aside from California — which has the Bay Area and Los Angeles — the major city in each region would be responsible for their results. He said past outreach campaigns, like the Online Holy Communities (OHCs), have been successfully evolving and will continue on that trend.

“We actually achieved more than 120 new signed memberships during the New Life Campaign that was started earlier this year,” said Rev. Naokimi. This goal was slated for the August anniversary of True Father’s seonghwa. “That was a great victory,” he said. “By April 2023, we can get to 400 or more.”

The Clifton Family Church in New Jersey, where Rev. Naokimi and Dr. Chung Sik Yong pastor, was highlighted as an example community where “small group care training” — through the Dare to Care workshop and Achieve program — has been used to increase Sunday service attendance. “We had more than a hundred people come and receive training and education, with a newfound commitment to invest in a handful of other people ... and really invite them to participate in our community,” he said.

Large quarterly services akin to a ‘friends and family day’ have also proved successful. And new programs celebrating eternal love and married couples, as well as a “clear track” to FFWPU USA membership have created an uptick in community participation, too. Rev. Naokimi concluded by emphasizing the importance of clarifying a new member’s commitment and what that entails. 

“These are the things we have developed to focus on growth in our local churches,” he said. “This is what we’re working on in Clifton, and it can be implemented by all the other regions across the country.”

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