Date: 17 April 1999
Location: Xian Sheng’s house, Taman Melawati
(A) Parents are sinful if they do not raise, teach and guide their children.
When people talk about getting married, it seems like a pretty simple decision. But what comes after marriage is definitely not an easy task. Xian Sheng broke down the reasons why, starting with the first major challenge: figuring out how to be a good parent to your children, because that is what really matters.
He brought up that famous old saying that people always quote once couples have children: “养不教，父之过.” From the Three Character Classic, it basically translates to: “To raise a child but fail to educate them is the father’s fault.”
Getting married is as simple as signing your name on a marriage certificate. But if you go and sign another marriage certificate — meaning you enter a second marriage while your first one is still legally active — that is bigamy, and it is a criminal offence. This is completely illegal under Malaysia’s Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976, also known as Act 164. Xian Sheng pointed out that married couples really need to be aware of this law.
Xian Sheng serves as an Assistant Registrar of Marriages for the government, which gives him the official authority to solemnise and register marriages while making sure all the legal paperwork is in order. While other places charge a fee for this service, Xian Sheng does it completely for free. If a couple decides to register their marriage at the National Registration Department or a Chinese temple, they always have to pay a registration fee. But in Baitiangong, the whole thing is handled completely free of charge.
Xian Sheng issued a stern warning, stating that if married couples feel incapable of handling parental responsibilities, they should refrain from having children. If they go ahead and have children but don’t bother to raise and guide them properly—which is exactly what “养不教” means—then it’s completely the parents’ fault, or “父之过.” He pointed out that this isn’t just something he made up; it’s a saying that has been around for thousands of years, and it basically shows that doing this means you are committing a sin.
(B) Marriages Ensure the Continuity of Baitiangong.
Xian Sheng pointed out that Baitiangong isn’t just some religion that started up recently.1 He added that praying to the CREATOR is definitely not a recent phenomenon.
In ancient Chinese writings, the character for praying and worship comes from a pictograph of a person kneeling down with their arms stretched upwards to pray.
When the king declared himself the “Son of Heaven,” it caused the people to start praying to kings and emperors, even while they continued to pray to TIAN.2 The emperors had effectively turned the Chinese people into fools who only pray to them, while making sure they were the only smart ones who got to pray to TIAN.
Irrespective of past events, Xian Sheng hopes that the husband, who is a Baitiangong follower, will explain Baitiangong to his wife so that both of them can continue to pray to the CREATOR.
(C) Baitiangong changes a person for the better.
Xian Sheng pointed out that praying to the CREATOR earnestly and consistently can completely change a person, and he used himself as an example. Back in the day, his daily routine pretty much revolved around gambling, smoking, and drinking. Xian Sheng liked to use the common Cantonese phrase “嫖赌饮荡吹” to describe his bad habits. But all of that ceased completely after he underwent his Spiritual Revelations, which showed him that the CREATOR exists and reminded him of his true spiritual origins. After that, none of his bad habits mattered to him at all anymore.
At the end of the day, what really matters is just letting people know that the CREATOR exists and that our souls can be saved. Baitiangong is fundamentally as simple as that.
A lot of people have heard and read about the malicious libel directed against Baitiangong during its formative days, but today, Xian Sheng said that we—or more specifically, he—have won every single court case against the people spreading those lies. He was actually paid hundreds of thousands in damages by them.
(D) Be humble to learn Baitiangong.
Xian Sheng said he didn’t want to prolong his sermon, and he hoped that once the marriage certificate was signed, the husband’s mother, Sister Yoke, could gradually guide the wife and show her the good and benefits of Baitiangong.
Recently, a woman returned home to China after spending a few days in Kuala Lumpur to learn all about Baitiangong, aiming to preach Baitiangong back in China. She’s not just any ordinary citizen, either—she is actually an officer in the People’s Police of the PRC, which is similar to being a police inspector here in Malaysia.
She humbly pointed out that back in China, she is usually the one directing others, but while she was in Malaysia, she was the one being directed in the Baitiangong teachings. She was completely willing to learn so that she could preach Baitiangong back home in China.
(E) Billions of husbands or wives, but one CREATOR. Choose wisely.
Xian Sheng officially announced Brother Cheong Chee Keong and Sister Ng Yoke Cheng getting married through the Baitiangong way of marriage. Xian Sheng’s only wish is that his wife will also pray to the CREATOR.
Xian Sheng congratulated the couple and stressed that praying to the CREATOR is by far the most important thing, and it completely transcends everything else.
Marriage is as simple as putting your signature down on a piece of paper. With this, Xian Sheng wanted to emphasise that if a man is looking for a wife, there are plenty of women out there, and if a woman is looking for a husband, there are plenty of men out there too. That’s just a simple fact. But Xian Sheng pointed out that if you’re looking for the CREATOR, there’s only one, not two. Muslims, Christians, and Baitiangong followers are all praying to the same GOD. He gave a final reminder that there is only one GOD, before asking everyone to go ahead and pray to the CREATOR before signing their marriage certificates.
- Baitiangong is not considered a religion, but a movement of people seeking to increase their spiritual realisations
- In the 10th century BCE, King Wu of the Zhou Dynasty overthrew the Shang Dynasty and introduced the Mandate of Heaven, where TIAN (天) chose him as the Son of Heaven (天子) to rule over the people. Only the emperor had the supreme right to worship and make sacrifices directly to TIAN. Ordinary citizens weren't allowed to pray directly to TIAN at all—they had to pray to deceased emperors who acted as intermediaries to pass their prayers up to Heaven on their behalf.