Opinion: A glimpse of this world

The film, The Independence Day, was a blockbuster. The plot and the graphics of the film was incomparable to other action films in the past. I heard that a sequel to the film is in the progress of filming. The film was about an alien invasion and of course it followed a typical plot line of an invasion, but the film also showed the reaction of the global community against a stronger force.

People combined their effort against the aliens to keep the peace in their world. I wonder, how the relationship between each nations were before the invasion in the film? We see this from nations to individual households that we do not want to disturbed by others, but also have internal conflicts ourselves. We fight with our siblings or parents, but whenever others interfere with our family, then we unite together against whoever that person is.

Sometimes, I imagine what would the alien's perspective be, if they see the world that they are about the invade is full of conflicts.

Today as a world, we have conflicts in between nations and religions. I think we have to start recognize that this must reach to a resolution. Today the stronger force that we need to overcome is ourselves. We must overcome the differences that we have, these differences have been invading our soul little by little since the beginning.

Taking a glimpse of this world. The world that we live today is filled with conflicts that begins with inside one's heart to an international level. Every day we fight with ourselves to become better and strive for success in the world. We are challenged by the society to fit in and follow its rules. This internal conflict and social conflicts that we face extend and are joined by other conflicts of larger scale. 

For what do we live our lives? What cause do we live for? Is there something that we should stand for as human beings? If there is a cause that will benefit everyone, then does this become our obligation to stand up for that cause? Unfortunately, the basic obligation is covered by materialistic needs and for success. We need to understand that these materials and success are not possible if there isn't a world to provide it.

This issue is challenged by HWPL. The organization recognizes what the world needs. This is why Chairman Man Hee Lee has been travelling around the world 21 times to promote this basic obligation. The basic obligation is building a world of peace. When we take a glimpse of this world today, we see conflicts and disagreements. I hope in one year, when we take another glimpse, I hope we take another glimpse of the world and even in the smallest societies that create the world become a place without disagreement.

Quote: Bailian and Godfrey from the film, The Kingdom of Heaven

Unlike his previous films, Ridley Scott's The Kingdom of Heaven has many quotes that suggest a thought on peace and harmony. 

"A better world than has ever been seen. A kingdom of conscience. A kingdom of heaven. There is peace between Christian and Muslim. We live together, or between Saladin and the king, we try. Did you think that lay at the end of a Crusade?"

It is slightly ironic that the speaker of this quote is a soldier and the picture of this character from the film includes himself holding a sword. Perhaps, this sword was used to protect the peace, so that nothing would break the pre-established peace. It may not be the optimal way, but the viewers are able to see in the film that this power was necessary so that he would be able to protect the peace from the threatening force. What is the most optimal method for peace to be achieved? Is it through force? The blood shed will bring more blood. However, achieving peace through persuasion and unification will not bring side effect. This is what HWPL believes in. Although HWPL is not capable of gathering firearms, they advocate harmony through talks and dialogue.

"What man is a man who does not make the world better?"

(Nemo vir est qui mundum non reddate meliorem)

This Latin phrase is said by Bailian of Ibelin, who is the son of Godfrey. Bailian is able to demonstrate this quote through the actions that he showed in the film. Despite his accomplishment, in the end of the film, he only responds by instroducing himself as a blacksmith to the question of the King of England, who was looking for Bailian, who was the last defender of Jerusalem. After the achievement of saving the people of Jerusalem and re-bringing some form of harmony between the Christians and the Muslim, he humbles himself only as a blacksmith. It is true that his achievement required many sacrifice, but in the bigger picture, he was able to save more lives and earned the respect of his adversaries. The quote below is the speech he gave to motivate the men, who chose to defend Jerusalem after their main army's defeat. It is important that we work to make this world better. People say success in life through a good occupation or wealth is valuable, but to him and to some of us today, making this world is even more valuable in building our identity as man, because it is the world that we live. We clean our house and take care of our house for guests and also because it is our responsibility. The world is our great home that we must take care of. This world however, is being destroyed through the conflict and disagreement. We must find agreement and create harmony to protect the world from being destroyed.

"It has fallen to us to defend Jerusalem, and we have made our preparations as well as they can be made. None of us took this city from Muslims. No Muslims of the great army now coming against us was born when this city was lost. We fight over an offense we did not give, against those who were not alive to be offended. What is Jerusalem? your holy places lie over the Jewish temple that the Romans pulled down. The Muslim places of worship lie over yours. Which is more holy? The Wall? The Mosque? The Sepulchre? Who has claim? No one has claim. All have claim. We defend this city, not to protect these stones, but the people living within these walls."

Film: The Kingdom of Heaven

The name "Jerusalem" means "The City of Peace". However, we are not able to see peace in Jerusalem. Instead we see conflict and division in Jerusalem. The film, "The Kingdom of Heaven" centers in Jerusalem. Balian, a blacksmith in France, follows his father's footsteps to travel to Jerusalem during the Crusades.

The City of Jerusalem in the beginning of the film, when it was reigned by King Baldwin IV, is shared by Jews, Christians, and Muslims. They are able to live in harmony because of the King and the Sultan. Some minor quarrels may happen, but these dispute eventually found justice according to agreement of these two parties. This somewhat peace between the Christians and the Muslim changes as the King dies and he is succeeded by a man, who is greedy for power and authority. Eventually Christians and Muslims face each other in the battle with each party firmly believing that God or Allah will bring victory to their side.

At that time, Jerusalem has many meanings to individuals. Many people traveled to Jerusalem with The Crusades to find a new life. However, they only found the same world in their Holy Land. This is no different than Jerusalem of today. In addition to the battle scenes, the film left its viewers with many different quotes that discussed one's being and his relation to God and the relationship between the two religions. The message that the film carried was deeper in comparison with other films produced by the director, Ridley Scott.

The protagonist of the film travels to Jerusalem and he struggles to find peace within himself through his reconciliation with God and his obligation to his duty in the setting, where religious harmony was at risk. As different characters starting with his father, the Muslim general that he spared, and the royalties shared their insights of faith and knowledge, we see the hero, who is reluctant to be treated as such, start to find his own place and destiny in the crisis between the two religions.

The film seems to question and show, "what can a man do in the midst of these conflict?". This question especially applies to the world that we live in today. The question is not limited to those in Jerusalem today, but to the people who live in the area where conflicts exist. We ask ourselves, "What can a man or a woman like me do against this mass conflict?" This was the same question that the Bishop of Jerusalem asked as he saw Bailian knighted each solider before the battle to defend Jerusalem against the Saracens.

"Who do you think you are? Will you alter the world? Does making a man a knight make him a better fighter?"

These men and soldiers of Jerusalem, who were considered as peasants with no influence, eventually succeeds defending Jerusalem and fulfilling their duty. They were ordinary men, who ended up defending the city because all the soldiers died in the initial battle with the Saracens. Most of us in the world are regular and ordinary citizens of the nation we live in. However, with the right heart, we are able to alter the world. It will make us a better fighter, an advocate for peace. One may say world peace is impossible, but it would only take one step away from being possible as each individual doubts its possibility. One of the quotes that Bailian's father, Godfrey talks about one's destiny.

"You are not what you were born, but what you have it in yourself to be."

Our destiny does not depend on where we are born into, but what we are able to bring out from ourselves. It depends on our ability to push our limit. This idea is exemplified by Chairman Man Hee Lee, who has been working as a peace advocate internationally. He is the example of what a single man can do in the midst of multiple conflicts in the world. I hope that the world will start to recognize the effort of Chairman Man Hee Lee and HWPL and join to cooperate and fulfill world peace together.

Film: The Front Line

The war film, "The Front Line" is based during the Korean War. (In Korean, the title is loosely translated to "The Battle of Highland".) It is starred by famous lead and supporting actors of South Korea and it captures the disastrous nature of war and the unfortunate fate between the South and North Korean soldiers at last minute of the Korean War before the Armistice Agreement.

The film begins with one officer named Eun-Pyo, who is transferred to a company with the nickname, "alligator". This company has fought and won many battles, especially in the dispute over one hill called "Aerok" Hill (also known as K-Hill). He is sent to investigate a case, in which a letter of a North Korean solider was sent from the Alligator Company to his mother, who lives in South Korea, and this may be the case that there might be a spy in the company. The plot continues as Eun-Pyo seeks the answer behind this strange incident and his reconciliation with a friend thought to be dead, Soo-Hyuk.

The Aerok Hill is captured repeatedly by both sides and it is an important hill in the negotiation between the two Koreas, as it would bring more lands to the owning side. This causes continuous change in its owner as each side attempts to capture the hill. At the end of the film, the Armistice Agreement is negotiated, but there are gap hours before the agreement becomes official.

The last scenes of the film depict the unfortunate fate of the reluctant soldiers, who have to fight for a land that has been covered by the corpse of their fallen comrades. What is the meaning of this hill to each of the individual soldiers? Yes, it may be important to the officials, when drawing the boundary in the peninsula, but to the soldiers, the hill represents the death and life to these soldiers, because the hill may become their grave or successful capture of the hill would extend their life. I do not think that the hill was looked a territory to them. This is why, few of the soldiers decided to hide and leave their belongings, because in the end they would return to the exact hill. The repeated captures in the end become pointless and meaningless as soldiers would have to die for a hill that they would later lose.

At the very last battle before the agreement becomes official, the soldiers of each side sing together a song to show their reluctant heart to fight. The fight between these two sides shows us a message. We fight today and we have fought in the past. These conflicts were small and big, but it was always the same argument and mostly for the same reason. It is the same hill that is needed to be overcome. It is in some way pointless to fight over. What is the better solution? What is the purpose of having a boundary, when we all live in the same world, when we breath the same air? We are in the frontline of the hill that we must overcome. It no longer talks about a boundary against each other, but a boundary of war that we must overcome to achieve peace.

Film: Angels & Demons (Can a religion be flawless?)

"When you write of us and you will write of us. May I ask one thing? Do so gently. Religion is flawed, but only because man is flawed. All men. Including this one." 

This line is said by Cardinal Strauss from the film, "Angels & Demons". The fictional film suggests the conspiracy in the oldest Christian denomination, however, it also shows the humanistic side of the Church, which constitutes faith and theology. It shows the comprise between the religion and science. 

On the other hand, Cardinal Strauss' last word to Professor Langdon, who is portrayed by Tom Hanks, does not demote the meaning of religion, but promote its humility. It is definite that religion is the source to our communication with a god. People believe that religion is given and provided by the god, so that the creation can connect with god through rituals and doctrines. This religion, of course, is flawless when created by the Creator, who created this world. However, can a religion be corrupted? As we saw a different side of religion in the film, we also see that religion can be corrupted. It is not because the Creator is corrupted, but we, who participate in the religion, are flawless.

This is why scriptures were given to us, so that we may follow the will of the god, who we believe in. Currently, HWPL is establishing WARP Offices all over the world, so that representatives from different religions can participate in discussion to compare the scriptures to see the similarity inside these scriptures. This is the practical solution that Chairman Man Hee Lee offered, in order to see how much we know about the religious scripture. Then, we will be able to truly understand the will of the heaven and the Creator. Anything can be corrupted. This is why there is a proverb in Asia that one has to empty his or her cup. Anything that stays inside the cup will become corrupted eventually and this is why we need to fill in the new. The wave of HWPL and the peace movement led by Chairman Man Hee Lee will become that the new water that will clear the flaws in the religions to answer the questions, can religions be flawless?

Building a New World

Heath Ledger's performance of the Joker in the film, "The Dark Knight" was breath-taking. I have never seen an antagonist as the Joker played by Heath Ledger. His death after the film was an unfortunate tragedy. I first saw Heath Ledge on film in "The Patriot" that also starred Mel Gibson. On the screen, Heath Ledger played the son of Mel Gibson, who played a colonel fighting for independence. In the film, Gabriel Martin (played by Heath Ledge) speaks about a new world.

"They call this the new world. It's not. It's the same as the old. But, we will have a chance to build a new world. A world where all men are created equal under God."

America was considered to be a new world, as everyone was given the chance to start anew. However, it was only a new world with the same mentality and culture. There were still inequality between the race and the same system existed as the previous world. This applies to our world as well. What is the purpose of looking for a new world, if our mentality and culture continue to stay the same? This is why we need a different culture. This is heavenly culture. It is different than other cultures that we have seen so far in the history because it transcends other cultures. When we build this new world, we must lose the thoughts of the old and look forward to something new, where we are able to create equality in every part of the world.

A quote from the film, X-Men: Days of Future Past

In the film, X-Men: Days of Future Past, Dr. Trask, one of the main antagonist, talks about the history of the world. Although he talks in the manner to bring the mutants into extinction, he makes a point about the history of mankind.

"And how many of our sons and brothers did we just ship home in body bags? Maybe 50, 55,000? And how many more on the other side? Never before in all of human history has there been a cause, which could unite us as a species until now."

The intention of Dr. Trask is clear: to create a humanoid that will keep peace. His method turns out to be ineffective, because it becomes out of control. However, his quote implies that the ultimate enemy is extinction. And in the past we have been fighting against one another, which resulted the deaths of many youths. It is also true that there has not been a cause, which all people united to achieve.

I hope that this cause that would unite all of us is the peace movement. This movement started by Mr. Man Hee Lee and HWPL has been catching the attention of the world. And people around the world have been joining the movement as a peace advocate. This would open a new era of genuine and long lasting peace

Film: Children of Men

Film: Children of Men

The film, "Children of Men", directed by Alfonso Cuarón is based in future, when infertility was a global issue. The life expectancy of an infant was low and were scarce. In the beginning of the film, it was displayed that the youngest man alive was an international celebrity. In the midst of these catastrophe, United Kingdom managed to sustain their government through martial law and control of illegal immigrants. One of the scene at the climax of the film stood out powerfully to me, as I was watching the film.

(Theo, who is escorting Kee and the new-born baby outside the apartment)

Theo was given the mission to protect and escort Kee, the only woman, who was pregnant with a child, to a safe location, so that she may receive protection. In the climax of the film, the two attempts to escape the apartment, where Kee was previously captured, in the middle of a battle between the rioters, which include illegal immigrants and rebel group members, and the military. 

In the middle of ensuing battle as people and soldiers of both side encounter the two and notice the new-born baby, they suddenly stop. As the crying new-born baby held by Kee pass by them, the illegal immigrants taking refugee inside the apartment sing songs in their own language and reach out their hand, as a sign of respect. They share encouragement. The original soundtrack written by John Tavener added a sad, but peaceful mood in the ambiance. The rebel soldier with weapon, who in the beginning pointed his gun at Theo and Kee, slowly dropped his gun to touch the crying infant. The government solider shouts out "Cease Fire" suddenly as soon as sees the infant. The viewers see people of different ethnic background and religion, who welcome the new-born baby and rejoicing at her birth. At that moment, everyone was thinking the same thing: to guarantee the safety of the baby. Perhaps, god was truly watching over them. And I found it interesting that the name Theo origins from "theos" in Greek. 

No one asked them to stop, but they willingly stopped. Despite the ideological and religious differences, they all rejoiced and joined the happiness of a new soul born on this earth. In the short silence of peace that broke out in the midst of a terrible battle, all mankind felt the same compassion and the same joy. Then, could this be possible in our generation? Just as the people rejoiced at the birth of their next generation and allowed their first descendant to be escorted outside the perimeter, can we reach to an agreement for the sake of our next generation? Just as all religion and ethnic backgrounds stopped and rejoiced, I think it would be possible in the reality, if it was possible in our fantasy. Only thing we must do is to convert our fantasy into reality. Although the setting is different in the film than reality, the birth of a new soul into this earth must be joyful. I believe it is our responsibility to prevent the death of our future generation in this world. And then maybe, if we work together, it will inspire the divine creator to help and make this peace possible. I hope that the works of HWPL and IPYG will inspire and plant a passion into the hearts of the many people.

Film: We were Soldiers

The title of the film, "We were soldiers" seems to be a reflective statement. The title is written past tense. The film is set during the war in Vietnam and the Americans attempts a new method of utilizing helicopters to bring the soldiers in and out from the battlefield. The leader of this new cavalry is Lt. Colonel Hal Moore (Mel Gibson). One of the lines that I found remarkable in this film was the statement made by the colonel of the Vietnamese Army, which suffered a great loss.

"Such a tragedy. They will think this was their victory. So this will become an American war. And the end will be the same, except for the numbers who will die before we get there."

The colonel, who had just been in the battlefield, calls it a tragedy. And although this will eventually be noted as an American war, he says the end will be the same. Why? Because death and suffering will result from wars no matter what the results are. It is true. It does not matter who won or lost, the numbers of casualty will be high. It does not matter, in whose history book one war becomes recorded in, it matters on who suffered lost. War does not only bring suffering and death to the soldiers, but it extends its limit, as we enter the modern era, to the families and people. This is why war is a tragedy. Although he was only a character in film, the Lt. Colonel leaves a great legacy behind through the last lines he gave.

The lines of the Lt. Colonel reflects the message the chairman speaks in regards to peace. The chairman is a veteran of the Korean War and lived in the period of history, when the most physical and deadly wars happened. And he speaks, no one really benefits from war. War does not bring any benefit to the people. And just like Carl von Clausewitz writes in one of his famous aphorism, "war is a continuation of politics by other means." It is only a tool to political gains and economical gains. And the same time, its heavy support cost lowers the fund for something else that could be beneficial. If we could only focus on living and working together as one under one Creator, then there is no need for war. This is why HWPL's method is so simple, yet impacting. It extends its focus groups to politicians, religious leaders, youth leaders, women leaders, and press in order to have representation from different groups that contribute to building peace. We hope that more groups will work with HWPL and the chairman, so that peace can be fulfilled quicker.

The film ends with monologue of reflection. If this film focused on the strong pride of the soldiers and the importance of winning, it would label its title as "We are Soldiers". Instead it writes it title as past tense. I do not wish to underestimate the courage and the bravery that the soldiers, who fought in the war for their nations, but perhaps we must start thinking what did we gain from the war, other than win or lose? Perhaps, the title of the film is labeled in such way after some kind of transformation of the soldiers in the last monologue.

Film: Disney's Tarzan

A Reflection on Disney's Tarzan
Now, you may be wondering what does Tarzan have to do with peace. I was able to watch Disney's Tarzan (1999) accidentally and as I was watching the film, one of the lines stood out to me. The scene was right after Tarzan almost had his gorilla family killed, when he accidentally appeared in front of few elephants, who thought he was a piranha. Tarzan, to some gorillas, was an outcast, because he was not one of them. And in order to prove himself, he took on the challenge that almost killed the others. The line belongs to Tarzan's mother.

C "Tarzan, what are you doing?"
T "Why am I so different?"
C "Because you are covered with mud, that's why."
T "No, Kerchak said I didn't belong in the..."
C "Close your mouth."
T "Kerchak said I didn't belong in the family."
C "Never mind what Kerchak said. Now, hold still."
T "Look at me."
C "I am, Tarzan. And do you know what I see? I see two eyes. Like mine. And a nose. Somewhere, ah! Here! Two ears. And let's see, what else?"
T "Two hands?"
C "That's right. Close your eyes. And now forget what you see. What do you feel?"
T "My heart."
C "Come here. Your heart. See, they are exactly the same."

The animation film, Tarzan is about a boy who grew up with gorillas and has difficulty fitting in, because of his appearance. Now how does this fit in with peace? We fight and argue because of how different we are. We have conflicts from the different flag colors we have or different religion we have. However, in the end, we are all the same. We are same humans, who live in the same planet provided by one Creator. Instead of noticing how different we are, just as Tarzan and his mother did, we need to start looking for the common things that we share. In the end, we are more similar to each other than different. We are able to see that through our love and hope for peace. The WARP Summit testifies that love and hope.

Another importance of this scene is the role of Tarzan's mother. She was able to guide Tarzan to think positively and to show him a different way to fit him. Through this scene, she changed him. And after the conversation, Tarzan begins to change himself. This is the role of mothers. And that is why HWPL has a sub-organization called IWPG, for all women in the world to gather under one banner to represent their role as mothers. Their duty is to protect and educate their children into a correct decision. Although I am not diminishing the paternal role, mothers have their own unique role and influence in their children. Tarzan's mother was able to convince Tarzan to see things in a different way. And we believe that along with the power of the youth, power of all mothers in the world will change the world into a world of peace.

Film: Interstellar

Last December, I saw Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar”, a science fiction film about the search for a new planet. It is a film that extended our limits on space exploration. It triggered the thought that we can rather navigate and colonize a different new planet. As mentioned in the previous post, it is our responsibility to take care of earth, our home. However, in the film, we notice a perishing earth and mankind only relies on certain crop to sustain their living. What could be the cause of this? It would be due to the lack of care we provided to earth. And mankind are forced to send a space expedition to explore and discover a new home. Say, mankind survives just as it is shown at the end of the film. But, what if the concept of peace is not completely present in the minds of the new generation? Wars, conflicts, and struggles will continue despite the new generation. These struggles that happen through religious and political differences must be resolved, in order for the survival of mankind. The term “Interstellar” can be translated as “between and among stars.” Shouldn't we reflect how the stars are organized in the universe? Even in our solar systems, the planets do not clash with one another, but stays at its course with the sun as the center. The presence of a peace organization like HWPL, a sole organization that is created for one purpose, is truly needed at this time. As the world surely was created by one divine being, we must unite under one being.