Unification movement

Background and origins

Unification movement founder Sun Myung Moon giving a public speech in the Las Vegas Valley in 2010

On February 25, 1920, Sun Myung Moon was born Mun Yong-myeong in modern-day Sangsa-ri (上思里), Deogun-myon, Jeongju-gun, North P'yŏng'an Province, at a time when Korea was under Japanese rule. Moon's birthday was recorded as January 6 by the traditional lunar calendar (February 25, 1920, according to the Gregorian Calendar).^[29][30] Around 1930 Moon's family, who followed traditional Confucianist beliefs, converted to Christianity and joined the Presbyterian Church, where he later taught Sunday school.^[31]

Unification Church members believe that Jesus appeared to Mun Yong-myong (his birth name) when Moon was 15 on April 17, 1935, and asked him to accomplish the work left unfinished after his crucifixion. After a period of prayer and consideration, Moon accepted the mission, later changing his name to Mun Son-myong (Moon Sun-myung or Sun Myung Moon).^[32]

In November 1943, Moon married Sun Kil Choi.^[33]

In 1943, Hak Ja Han, Moon's future wife, was born in North Korea.^[34][35]

After World War II and the Japanese occupation ended in 1945, Moon began preaching his message.^[31] In 1946, Moon traveled alone to Pyongyang in Communist-ruled North Korea.^[36] Moon was arrested on allegations of spying for South Korea and given a five-year sentence to the Hŭngnam labor camp.^[37]

In 1950, after serving 34 months of his sentence, Moon was released from North Korea during the Korean War when United Nations troops advanced on the camp and the guards fled.^[38] In 1953, Moon divorced Choi.^[33] It is also reported that he had a child with a different woman in 1954.^[39][40][41]

Moon's teachings, called the Divine Principle, were first published as Wonli Wonbon (원리 원본, "Original Text of the Divine Principle") in 1945. The earliest manuscript was lost in North Korea during the Korean War. A second, expanded version, Wonli Hesol (원리 해설), or Explanation of the Divine Principle, was published in 1957. Its most propagated text, Exposition of the Divine Principle, was published in 1966. Moon built his first church as a refugee in Pusan.^[38]

Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (1954 - 1994)

Moon founded the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (HSA-UWC) in Seoul on May 1, 1954. It expanded rapidly in South Korea and by the end of 1955 had 30 centers throughout the nation.^[1] The HSA-UWC expanded throughout the world with most members living in South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, and other nations in East Asia.^[42][1]

In 1958, Moon sent missionaries to Japan, and in 1959, to America. Missionary work took place in Washington, DC, New York, and California. It found success in the San Francisco Bay Area, where the HSA-UWC expanded in Oakland, Berkeley, and San Francisco. By 1971, the HSA-UWC in the US had about 500 members. By 1973, it had some presence in all 50 states and a few thousand members.^[38] In the 1970s, American HSA-UWC members were noted for their enthusiasm and dedication, which often included raising money for UC projects on so-called "mobile fundraising teams".^[43][44]

The HSA-UWC also sent missionaries to Europe. They entered Czechoslovakia in 1968 and remained underground until the 1990s.^[45] Unification Church activity in South America began in the 1970s with missionary work. Later, the HSA-UWC made large investments in civic organizations and business projects, including an international newspaper.^[46] Starting in the 1990s, the HSA-UWC expanded in Russia and other former communist nations. Hak Ja Han, Moon's wife made a radio broadcast to the nation from the State Kremlin Palace.^[47] As of 1994, the HSA-UWC had about 5,000 members in Russia.^[48] About 500 Russian students had been sent to USA to participate in 40-day workshops.^[49]

Moon moved to the United States in 1971, although he remained a citizen of the Republic of Korea. In the 1970s, he gave a series of public speeches in the United States, including one in Madison Square Garden in New York City in 1974; two in 1976 in Yankee Stadium in New York City; and one on the grounds of the Washington Monument in Washington, DC, where he spoke on "God's Hope for America" to 300,000 people. In 1975, the HSA-UWC held one of the largest peaceful gatherings in history, with 1.2 million people in Yeouido, South Korea.^[50]

In the 1970s the Unification church, along with some other new religious movements, became a target of the anti-cult movement. On the basis of theories that have not gained acceptance in mainline social science,^[51] "anti-cult" activists accused the church of having "brainwashed" its members.^[52] At the same time, members of the Unification Church reported that they were kidnapped and forcibly "deprogrammed" by those who wanted to pull them out of the Unification Church.^[53]

In 1982, Moon was convicted in the United States of filing false federal income tax returns and conspiracy: see United States v. Sun Myung Moon. He served 13 months of the sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution, Danbury.^[54][55] The case was protested as a case of selective prosecution and a threat to religious freedom by, among others, Jerry Falwell, head of Moral Majority, Joseph Lowery, head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Harvey Cox a Professor of Divinity at Harvard, and Eugene McCarthy, United States Senator and former Democratic Party presidential candidate.^[56][57]

Starting in the 1980s Moon instructed HSA-UWC members to take part in a program called "Home Church" in which they reached out to neighbors and community members through public service.^[58] In 1991 Moon announced that Um members should return to their hometowns and undertake apostolic work there. Massimo Introvigne, who studied the Unification Church and other new religious movements, said that this confirmed that full-time membership is no longer considered crucial to Um members.^[38]

Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (1994 - )

FFWPU logo

On May 1, 1994 (the 40th anniversary of the founding of the HSA-UWC), Moon declared that the era of the Unification Church had ended and inaugurated a new organization: the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU) would include Unification Church members and members of other religious organizations working toward common goals, especially on issues of sexual morality and reconciliation between people of different religions, nations, and races. The FFWPU co-sponsored Blessing ceremonies in which thousands of non–Unification Church married couples were given the marriage blessing previously given only to Unification Church members.^[59][60]

In 2000 the FFWPU co-sponsored the Million Family March, a rally in Washington D.C. to celebrate family unity and racial and religious harmony, along with the Nation of Islam.^[61]Louis Farrakhan was the main speaker at the event which was held on October 16, 2000; the fifth anniversary of the Million Man March, which was also organized by Farrakhan.^[62] FFWPU leader Dan Fefferman wrote to his colleagues acknowledging that Farrakhan’s and Moon’s views differed on multiple issues but shared a view of a "God-centered family".^[63]

In 2003, Korean FFWPU members started a political party in South Korea, "The Party for God, Peace, Unification, and Home." An inauguration declaration stated the new party would focus on preparing for Korean reunification by educating the public about God and peace. A FFWPU official said that similar political parties would be started in Japan and the United States.^[64] Since 2003, the FFWPU-related Universal Peace Federation's Middle East Peace Initiative has been organizing group tours of Israel and Palestine to promote understanding, respect, and reconciliation among Jews, Muslims, and Christians.^[65][66]

In 2004, at a ceremony on March 23 in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, in Washington, D.C., Moon crowned himself with what was called the "Crown of Peace."^[67][68] Lawmakers who attended included Senator Mark Dayton (D-Minn.), Representatives Roscoe Bartlett (R-Md.) and Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), as well as former Representative Walter Fauntroy (D-D.C.) . Key organizers of the event included George Augustus Stallings, Jr., a former Roman Catholic priest who had been married by Moon, and Michael Jenkins, the president of the Unification Church of the United States at that time.^[67] Rep. Danny K. Davis played an active role in the ceremony.^[68]

On August 15, 2012, Moon was reported to be gravely ill and was put on a respirator at the intensive care unit of St. Mary’s Hospital at The Catholic University of Korea in Seoul. He was admitted on August 14, 2012, after suffering from pneumonia earlier in the month.^[69] He died there on September 2.^[70]

View of Jesus

Jesus has a great importance in the teachings of the Unification movement, although its view of him differs from that of Nicene Christianity. Central to Unification teachings is the concept that fallen humanity can be restored to God only through Jesus the Messiah, who comes as a new Adam to become the new head of the human race, replacing the sinful parents, through whom mankind can be reborn into God's family. According to the Divine Principle, Jesus of Nazareth is this Christ.^[6]

In 1980 Unification theologian Young Oon Kim wrote:

Unification theology teaches that Jesus came to establish the kingdom of heaven on earth. As St. Paul wrote, Jesus was to be the new Adam restoring the lost garden of Eden. For this purpose he chose twelve apostles, symbolizing the original twelve tribes of Israel, and sent out seventy disciples, symbolizing all the nations of the world. Like John the Baptist, Jesus proclaimed that the long-awaited kingdom of heaven was at hand (Matt. 4:17). Jesus was appointed God's earthly representative in order to subjugate Satan, cleanse men of original sin and free them from the power of evil. Christ's mission involved liberation from sin and raising mankind to the perfection stage. His purpose was to bring about the kingdom of heaven in our world with the help of men filled with divine truth and love. Jesus' goal was to restore the garden of Eden, a place of joy and beauty in which true families of perfected parents would dwell with God in a full relationship of reciprocal love.^[73]

The Unification movement view of Jesus has been criticized by mainstream Christian authors and theologians. In their influential book The Kingdom of the Cults (first published in 1965), Walter Ralston Martin and Ravi K. Zacharias disagreed with the Divine Principle on the issues of the divinity of Christ, the virgin birth of Jesus, the Unification Church's belief that Jesus should have married, the necessity of the crucifixion of Jesus, and a literal resurrection of Jesus as well as a literal Second Coming. They add: "Moon makes all men equal in 'divinity' to Jesus, thereby striking a blow at the uniqueness of Christ." ^[74]

The Divine Principle responds to this criticism by saying:

There is no greater value than that of a person who has realized the ideal of creation. This is the value of Jesus, who surely attained the highest imaginable value. The conventional Christian belief in Jesus' divinity is well founded because, as a perfect human being, Jesus is totally one with God. To assert that Jesus is none other than a man who has completed the purpose of creation does not degrade the value of Jesus in the least.^[75]

Unificationist theologian Young Oon Kim wrote and some members of the Unification movement believe that Zechariah was the father of Jesus based on the work of, English Christian theologian in the liberal Protestant tradition, Leslie Weatherhead.^{[76][6][77][78]}

Indemnity

Indemnity, in the context of Unification theology, is a part of the process by which human beings and the world are restored to God's ideal.^{[79][80][81][82]} The concept of indemnity is explained at the start of the second half of the Divine Principle (the main text of Unification Church beliefs), "Introduction to Restoration":

What, then, is the meaning of restoration through indemnity? When someone has lost his original position or state, he must make some condition to be restored to it. The making of such conditions of restitution is called indemnity. .... God's work to restore people to their true, unfallen state by having them fulfill indemnity conditions is called the providence of restoration through indemnity.^[83]

The Divine Principle goes on to explain three types of indemnity conditions. Equal conditions of indemnity pay back the full value of what was lost. The biblical verse "life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth" (Exod.21:23-24) is quoted as an example of an equal indemnity condition. Lesser conditions of indemnity provide a benefit greater than the price that is paid. Faith, baptism, and the eucharist are mentioned as examples of lesser indemnity conditions. Greater conditions of indemnity come about when a person fails in a lesser condition. In that case a greater price must be paid to make up for the earlier failure. Abraham's attempted sacrifice of his son Isaac (Gen. 22:1-18) and the Israelites' 40 years of wandering in the wilderness under Moses (Num.14:34) are mentioned as examples of greater indemnity conditions.^[83] The Divine Principle then explains that an indemnity condition must reverse the course by which the mistake or loss came about. Indemnity, at its core, is required of humans because God is pure, and purity cannot relate directly with impurity. Indemnification is the vehicle that allows a "just and righteous" God to work through mankind. Jesus' statement that God had forsaken him (Matt.27:46) and Christianity's history of martyrdom are mentioned as examples of this.^[83] The Divine Principle then states that human beings, not God or the angels, are the ones responsible for making indemnity conditions.^[84][83][85]

In 2005 scholars Daske and Ashcraft explained the concept of indemnity:

To restart the process toward perfection, God has sent messiahs to earth who could restore the true state of humanity's relationship with God. Before that can happen, however, humans must perform good deeds that cancel the bad effects of sin. Unificationists call this 'indemnity'. Showing love and devotion to one's fellow humans, especially within families, helps pay this indemnity.^[86]

Other Christian commentators have criticized the concept of indemnity as being contrary to the Christian doctrine of sola fide. Radio and television evangelist Bob Larson said, "Moon's doctrine of sinless perfection by 'indemnity', which can apply even to deceased ancestors, is a denial of the salvation by grace offering through Jesus Christ." Christian historian Ruth Tucker said: "In simple language indemnity is salvation by works."^[87][85] Donald Tingle and Richard Fordyce, ministers with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) who debated two Unification Church theologians in 1977, wrote: "In short, indemnity is anything you want to make it, since you establish the conditions. The zeal and enthusiasm of the Unification Church members is not so much based on love for God as it is compulsion to indemnify one's own sins."^[88]

Science

The relationship of the Unification movement and science has often been noted, by the news media and by scholars of religion.^[89] The Divine Principle calls for the unification of science and religion: "Religion and science, each in their own spheres, have been the methods of searching for truth in order to conquer ignorance and attain knowledge. Eventually, the way of religion and the way of science should be integrated and their problems resolved in one united undertaking; the two aspects of truth, internal and external, should develop in full consonance."^[90]

In the 1970s and 1980s the Unification movement sponsored the International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences (ICUS),^[91][92] in order to promote the concept of the unity of science and religion.^[93][94] American news media have suggested that the conferences were also an attempt to improve the often controversial public image of the church.^[95][96] The first conference, held in 1972, had 20 participants; while the largest conference, in Seoul, South Korea in 1982, had 808 participants from over 100 countries.^[97] Participants in one or more of the conferences included Nobel laureates John Eccles (Physiology or Medicine 1963, who chaired the 1976 conference)^[92] and Eugene Wigner (Physics 1963).^[98]

The relationship of the Unification movement and science again came to public attention in 2002 with the publication of Icons of Evolution, a popular book critical of the teaching of evolution written by member Jonathan Wells. Wells is a graduate of the Unification Theological Seminary and has been active with the Discovery Institute as an advocate for Intelligent design.^{[99][100][101]}

Funerals

A Unification funeral (or seungwha) is a funeral ceremony for the purpose of aiding the deceased person's transition to the spirit world and to celebrate his or her life among family and friends.^[102][103]

Blessing ceremony and views on sex and family

Rev. and Mrs. Moon preside over a mass blessing ceremony in 2010

The Unification movement is well known for its wedding or wedding vow renewal ceremony. It is given to engaged or married couples. Through it, members believe, the couple is removed from the lineage of sinful humanity and engrafted into God's sinless lineage. The Blessing ceremony was first held in 1961 for 36 couples in Seoul, South Korea by the Moons shortly after their own marriage in 1960. All the couples were members of the church. Rev. Moon matched all of the couples except 12 who were already married to each other before joining the church.^[107] Moon's practice of matching couples was very unusual in both Christian tradition and in modern Western culture and attracted much attention and controversy.^[108]

Later Blessing ceremonies were larger in scale but followed the same pattern. All participants were HSA-UWC members and Moon matched most of the couples. In 1982 the first large scale Blessing (of 2,000 couples) outside of Korea took place in Madison Square Garden, New York City.^[109] In 1988, Moon matched 2,500 Korean members with Japanese members for a Blessing ceremony held in Korea, partly in order to promote unity between the two nations.^[110] In 1992 Sun Myung Moon gave the wedding blessing for 30,000 couples at the Seoul Olympic Stadium^[111] and for 13,000 at the Yankee Stadium.^[112]

Mary Farrell Bednarowski says that marriage is "really the only sacrament" in the Unification movement. Unificationists therefore view singleness as "not a state to be sought or cultivated" but as preparation for marriage. Pre-marital celibacy and marital faithfulness are emphasized.^[9] Adherents may be taught to "abstain from intimate relations for a specified time after marriage."^[113] The church does not give its marriage blessing to same-sex couples.^[114] Moon has emphasized the similarity between Unification views of sexuality and evangelical Christianity, "reaching out to conservative Christians in this country in the last few years by emphasizing shared goals like support for sexual abstinence outside of marriage, and opposition to homosexuality."^[115]

Esotericism

The Unification movement is sometimes said to be esoteric in that it kept some of its doctrines secret from nonmembers,^{[116][117][118]} a practice that is sometimes called "heavenly deception."^[119] In 1979, critics Tingle and Fordyce commented: "How different the openness of Christianity is to the attitude of Reverend Moon and his followers who are often reluctant to reveal to the public many of their basic doctrines."^[120] Since the 1990s, many Unification texts that were formerly regarded as esoteric have been posted on the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification's official websites.^[121]

Judaism

The relationship between the Unification movement and Judaism has been marked by controversy. In 1976 the American Jewish Committee released a report by Rabbi A. James Rudin which stated that Divine Principle contained "pejorative language, stereotyped imagery, and accusations of collective sin and guilt."^[136] In a news conference presented by the AJC and representatives of Catholic and Protestant churches, panelists stated that the text "contained over 125 anti-Jewish references." They noted Moon's public then-recent condemnation of "antisemitic and anti-Christian attitudes", and called upon him to make a "comprehensive and systematic removal" of antisemitic and anti-Christian references in the Divine Principle as a demonstration of good faith.^[137]

In 1977 the HSA-UWC issued a rebuttal to the report, stating that it was neither comprehensive nor reconciliatory, but rather had a "hateful tone" and was filled with "sweeping denunciations." It denied that the Divine Principle teaches antisemitism and gave detailed responses to 17 specific allegations contained in the AJC's report, stating that allegations were distortions of teaching and obscuration of real passage content or that the passages were accurate summaries of Jewish scripture or New Testament passages.^[138]

In 1984 Mose Durst, then the president of the Unification Church of the United States and himself a convert from Judaism,^[139] said that the Jewish community had been "hateful" in its response to the growth of the Unification Church, and placed blame both on the community's "insecurity" and on Unification Church members' "youthful zeal and ignorance." Rudin, then the national interreligious affairs director of the American Jewish Committee, said that Durst's remarks were inaccurate and unfair and that "hateful is a harsh word to use."^[140] In the same year Durst wrote in his autobiography: "Our relations with the Jewish community have been the most painful to me personally. I say this with a heavy heart, since I was raised in the Jewish faith and am proud of my heritage."^[141]

In 1989 church leaders Peter Ross and Andrew Wilson issued "Guidelines for Members of The Unification Church in Relations with the Jewish People" which stated: "In the past there have been serious misunderstandings between Judaism and the Unification Church. In order to clarify these difficulties and guide Unification Church members in their relations with Jews, the Unification Church suggests the following guidelines."^[142]

Mainstream Christianity

The relationship between the Unification movement and mainstream Christianity has been marked by conflict and disagreement, as well as by cooperation at times. The movement's teachings are based on the Bible, but include new interpretations not found in mainstream Christian tradition.^[143][144] Mainstream Christianity is usually defined as those Christian churches which follow the Nicene Creed and includes the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and most Protestant churches.^[145][146]

From its beginning the Unification movement has claimed to be Christian and has tried to promote its teachings to mainstream Christian churches and organizations. The Unification Church in South Korea was labeled as heretical by Protestant churches in South Korea, including Moon’s own Presbyterian Church. In the United States the church was rejected by ecumenical organizations as being non-Christian. The main objections against it were theological, especially because of the Unification Church’s addition of material to the Bible and for its rejection of a literal Second Coming of Jesus.^[147] Protestant commentators have also criticized Unification Church teachings as being contrary to the Protestant doctrine of salvation by faith alone.^[17][148]

The Divine Principle includes new interpretations of the Bible not found in mainstream Christian traditions.^[143] From its beginning, the Unification Church claimed to be Christian and promoted its teachings to mainstream Christian churches and organizations. The Unification Church in Korea was labeled as heretical by Protestant churches in South Korea, including Moon’s own Presbyterian Church. In the United States, the church was rejected by ecumenical organizations as being non-Christian. The main objections were theological, especially because of the Unification Church’s addition of material to the Bible.^[147]

Protestant Christian commentators have also criticized Unification Church teachings as contrary to the Protestant doctrine of sola fide.^[17][149] In their influential book The Kingdom of the Cults (first published in 1965), Walter Ralston Martin and Ravi K. Zacharias disagreed with the Divine Principle on the issues of Christology, the virgin birth of Jesus, the Unification Church's belief that Jesus should have married, the necessity of the crucifixion of Jesus, and a literal resurrection of Jesus as well as a literal Second Coming.^[150]

In 1974 Moon founded the Unification Theological Seminary, in Barrytown, New York, partly in order to improve relations of the Unification Church with other churches. Professors from other denominations, including a Methodist minister, a Presbyterian, and a Roman Catholic priest, as well as a rabbi, were hired to teach religious studies to the students, who were being trained as leaders in the Unification Church.^{[151][152][153][154][155]}

In 1977, church member Jonathan Wells, who later became well known as the author of the popular Intelligent Design book Icons of Evolution, defended Unification theology against what he said were unfair criticisms by the National Council of Churches.^[156] That same year Frederick Sontag, a professor of philosophy at Pomona College and a minister in the United Church of Christ,^[126] published Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church which gave an overview of the church and urged Christians to take it more seriously.^{[127][128][157]}

In 1982, Moon was imprisoned in the United States after being found guilty by a jury of willfully filing false Federal income tax returns and conspiracy. (See: United States vs. Sun Myung Moon) Unification Church members launched a public-relations campaign. Booklets, letters and videotapes were mailed to approximately 300,000 Christian leaders in the United States. Many of them signed petitions protesting the government's case.^[158] Among the American Christian leaders who spoke out in defense of Moon were conservative Jerry Falwell, head of Moral Majority, and liberal Joseph Lowery, head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.^[144] The American Baptist Churches in the U.S.A, the National Council of Churches, the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference filed briefs in support of Moon.^[159]

In the 1980s the Unification movement sent thousands of American ministers from other churches on trips to Japan and South Korea to inform them about Unification Church teachings. At least one minister was dismissed by his congregation for taking part.^[160] In 1994 the church had about 5,000 members in Russia and came under criticism from the Russian Orthodox Church.^[48] In 1997, the Russian government passed a law requiring the Unification Church and other non-Russian religions to register their congregations and submit to tight controls.^[161]

In 1995 the Unification movement related organization the Women's Federation for World Peace indirectly contributed $3.5 million to help Baptist Liberty University which at that time was in financial difficulty. This was reported in the United States news media as an example of closer relationships between the Unification Church and conservative Christian congregations.^[162]

In 2001, the Unification movement came into conflict with the Roman Catholic Church when Catholic archbishop Emmanuel Milingo and Maria Sung, a 43-year-old Korean acupuncturist, married in a Unification Church Blessing ceremony, presided over by Rev. and Mrs. Moon. Following his marriage the Archbishop was called to the Vatican by Pope John Paul II, where he was asked not to see his wife anymore, and to move to a Capuchin monastery.^[163] Sung went on a hunger strike to protest their separation. This attracted much media attention.^[164] Milingo is now an advocate of the removal of the requirement for celibacy by priests in the Catholic Church. He is the founder of Married Priests Now!.^[165] Archbishop George Augustus Stallings, Jr., also a former Catholic priest, who had founded his own Imani Temple African-American Catholic Congregation, is also a supporter of the organization.^[166]

In 2003 Moon began his "tear down",^[167] or "take down the cross"^[168] campaign. The campaign was begun in the belief that the cross is a reminder of Jesus' pain and has been a source of division between people of different faiths. The campaign included a burial ceremony for the cross and a crown to be put in its place. The American Clergy Leadership Conference (ACLC), an interfaith group founded by Moon, spearheaded the effort, calling the cross a symbol of oppression and superiority.^[169]

Islam

The relationship between the Unification movement and Islam has often been noted, both by scholars and the news media. The Divine Principle lists the Muslim world as one of the world’s four major divisions (the others being East Asia, Hindu, and Christendom).^[170] In 1997, Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation of Islam, a Black Muslim organization, served as a coofficiator at a Blessing Ceremony presided over by Moon and Han.^[171] In 2000 the Church and the Nation of Islam co-sponsored the Million Family March, a rally in Washington, D.C., to celebrate family unity and racial and religious harmony.^[61][62]

Unification movement support for Islamist anti-communists came to public attention in 1987 when church member Lee Shapiro was killed in Afghanistan during the Soviet–Afghan War while filming a documentary.^[172][173] The resistance group they were traveling with reported that they had been ambushed by military forces of the Soviet Union or the Afghan government. However, the details have been questioned, partly because of the poor reputation of the group's leader, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar.^[174][175]

In 1997, the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs (which is critical of United States and Israeli policies), praised the Unification movement owned newspaper, The Washington Times and the Times' sister publication The Middle East Times (along with The Christian Science Monitor owned by the Church of Christ, Scientist) for their objective and informative coverage of Islam and the Middle East, while criticizing the Times generally pro-Israel editorial policy. The Report suggested that these newspapers, being owned by religious organizations, were less influenced by pro-Israel pressure groups in the United States.^[176]

In 1997, Louis Farrakhan, the leader of The Nation of Islam, served as a "co-officiator" at a blessing ceremony presided over by Sun Myung Moon]] and Hak Ja Han.^[177] In 2000 the FFWPU co-sponsored the Million Family March, a rally in Washington D.C. to celebrate family unity and racial and religious harmony, along with the Nation of Islam.^[61] Farrakhan was the main speaker at the event which was held on October 16, 2000; the fifth anniversary of the Million Man March, which was also organized by Farrakhan.^[62] Unification Church leader Dan Fefferman wrote to his colleagues acknowledging that Farrakhan’s and Moon’s views differed on multiple issues but shared a view of a "God-centered family".^[63] In 2007 Rev and Mrs Moon sent greetings to Farrakhan while he was recovering from cancer, saying: "We send love and greetings to Minister Farrakhan and Mother Khadijah."^[178]

In the 1990s and 2000s the Unification movement made public statements claiming communications with the spirits of religious leaders including Muhammad and also Confucius, the Buddha, Jesus, and Augustine, as well as political leaders such as Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Leon Trotsky, Mao Zedong, and many more. This was reported to have distanced the movement from Islam as well as from mainstream Christianity.^[179][180] From 2001 to 2009 the Unification movement owned the American Life TV Network (now known as Youtoo TV),^[181] which in 2007 broadcast George Clooney's documentary, A Journey to Darfur, which was harshly critical of Islamists in Darfur, the Republic of Sudan.^{[182][183][184]} It released the film on DVD in 2008 and announced that proceeds from its sale would be donated to the International Rescue Committee.^[185] In his 2009 autobiography Moon praised Islam and expressed the hope that there would be more understanding between different religious communities.^[186] In 2011 representatives of the Unification Church took part in an international seminar held in Taiwan by the Muslim World League. The purpose of the seminar was said to be to encourage inter-faith dialogue and discourage terrorism.^[187]

Interfaith activities

In 2009 the FFWPU held an interfaith event in the Congress of the Republic of Peru.^[188] Former President of the Congress Marcial Ayaipoma^[189] and other notable politicians were called "Ambassadors for Peace" of the Unification Church.^{[190][191][192][193]} In 2010, the church built a large interfaith temple in Seoul.^[194] Author Deepak Chopra was the keynote at an interfaith event of the Unification Church cohosted with the United Nations at the Headquarters of the United Nations.^[195] In 2011, an interfaith event was held in the National Assembly of Thailand, the President of the National Assembly of Thailand attended the event.^[196] In 2012, the Unification Church-affiliated Universal Peace Federation held an interfaith dialogue in Italy that was cosponsored by United Nations.^[197] That year, Unification movement affiliated Universal Peace Federation held an interfaith program for representatives of 12 various religions and confessions in the hall of the United Nations General Assembly. The President of the United Nations General Assembly,^[198] the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations,^[199][200] the Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations^[201] and other UN officials spoke.^[202]

Hak Ja Han

In 1992, Hak Ja Han established the Women's Federation for World Peace (WFWP) with the support of many Unification members,^{[278][279][280]} and traveled the world speaking at conventions on its behalf.^[281] The WFWP's purpose is to encourage women to work more actively in promoting peace in their communities and greater society,^[280] and it includes 143 member countries.^[279]

Hyun Jin Moon

Hyun Jin Moon was appointed vice-president of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification in 1998.^[282] Although at the time he was commonly understood to be the successor to Sun Myung Moon, his leadership style and proposed reforms to dismantle the church structure and create a family-based peace movement were met with resistance and accusations of being unorthodox, eventually leading to his replacement in 2008 with his younger brother, Hyung Jin Moon.^[283][284] In 2009 Hyun Jin Moon founded the Global Peace Foundation.^[285]

Hyung Jin Moon

In April 2008, Sun Myung Moon appointed his youngest son, Hyung Jin Moon, to be the International President of the FFWPU. Hyung Jin Moon and some members believe that a coronation ceremony with his father in 2009 made him his heir and successor.^[286][287] In 2011 he visited North Korea to express condolences on the death of Kim Jong-il.^[288]

In Jin Moon

Sun Myung Moon's daughter In Jin Moon became president of the FFWPU in the United States in 2008.^[289] After Sun Myung Moon's death both Hyung Jin Moon and In Jin Moon were removed from their positions within FFWPU by their mother Hak Ja Han.^[290]

Multi-faceted organizations

Women's Federation for World Peace

WFWP logo

The Women's Federation for World Peace was founded in 1992 by Hak Ja Han. Its stated purpose is to encourage women to work more actively in promoting peace in their communities and greater society. It has members in 143 countries.^{[280][278][279]}

Han has traveled the world speaking at conventions on the WFWP's behalf.^[281] In 1993 the WFWP held a conference in Tokyo, Japan at which the keynote speaker was former U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle's wife Marilyn Tucker Quayle, and in a speech at the event Han spoke positively of Mrs. Quayle's humanitarian work.^[21]

In 1993 Han traveled to 20 cities in the United States promoting the WFWP,^[312] as well as to 12 countries.^[280] At an event in Salt Lake City, Utah she told attendants: "If a family is not centered on God's ideal of love, there will be conflict among the members of that family. Without God's love as an absolute center, such a family will ultimately break down. A nation of such families will also decline."^[312] Her 1993 speeches in the United States focused on increasing violence in the U.S., and the degradation of the family unit.^[313]

In 1995 the WFWP generated controversy when it indirectly contributed $3.5 million to help Liberty University, which at that time was in financial difficulty. This was reported in the United States news media as an example of closer relationships between the Unification Church and conservative Christian congregations.^[276] That same year former United States president George H. W. Bush spoke at several WFWP meetings in Japan,^[314][315] and at a related conference in Washington D.C.. There he was quoted by the New York Times as saying: "If as president I could have done one thing to have helped the country more it would have been to do a better job in finding a way, either through speaking out or through raising a moral standard, to strengthen the American family."^[316]

The events in Japan drew protests from Japanese people who were wary of unorthodox religious groups. Bush's spokesperson Jane Becker stated "We were satisfied that there was not a connection with the Unification Church, and based on the information we were given we felt comfortable speaking to this group."^[317] 50,000 people attended Bush's speech in Tokyo.^[318] The theme of the talks was "family values".^[314] In the half-hour speech, Bush said "what really counts is faith, family and friends". Bush also spoke on the importance of the relationship between Japan and the United States and its importance for world peace.^[319] Han spoke after Bush's speech and praised Moon, crediting him for the decline of communism and saying that he must save America from "the destruction of the family and moral decay."^[319][320]

In 1999 the WFWP sponsored a conference in Malaysia in which religious and government leaders spoke on the need to strengthen education and support families, as well as the need for peace and understanding between ethnic and racial groups in the nations.^[321] In 2009 it co-sponsored, along with the Unification Church affiliated organization the Universal Peace Federation and the government of Taiwan, a conference in Taipei calling for Taiwan's greater participation in world affairs independent of the People's Republic of China. Taiwan's president, Ma Ying-jeou, spoke at the event.^[322] The WFWP has also been active in sponsoring various local charity and community events.^[323][324]

Interfaith organizations

• The Assembly of the World's Religions was founded by Sun Myung Moon. The first assembly was held from November 15 to 21, 1985, in MacAfee, New Jersey. The second was from August 15 to 21, 1990 in San Francisco.^[339]
• Inter-Religious Federation for World Peace^[340][341]
• American Clergy Leadership Conference (ACLC)^{[342][343][344]}
• The Middle East Peace Initiative sponsors projects to promote peace and understanding including visits by international Christians to Israel and Palestine and dialogues between members of the Israeli Knesset and the Palestinian Legislative Council.^[345]

Educational organizations

• Cheongshim Graduate School of Theology^[346]
• CheongShim International Academy
• International Educational Foundation.^[347]
• New World Encyclopedia — an Internet encyclopedia that, in part, selects and rewrites certain Wikipedia articles through a focus on Unification values.^[348] It "aims to organize and present human knowledge in ways consistent with our natural purposes"^[349] and "to promote knowledge that leads to happiness, well-being, and world peace."^[350]
• Paragon House, book publishing.^[351]
• The Professors World Peace Academy was founded in 1973 by Sun Myung Moon,^[352] who declared the group's intent to "contribute to the solutions of urgent problems facing our modern civilization and to help resolve the cultural divide between East and West". PWPA now has chapters in over one hundred countries.^[353]
• Sun Hwa Arts School
• Sun Moon University^[354]
• Sun Myung Moon Institute^[355]
• High School of the Pacific in Kealakekua, Hawaii^[356]
• The Unification Theological Seminary (UTS) is the main seminary of the international Unification movement. It is located in Barrytown, New York, and with an Extension Center in midtown Manhattan. Its purpose has been described as training leaders and theologians within the movement.^[11] The seminary's first classes were offered in September 1975. The institution's regional accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education first granted in 1996 was reaffirmed in 2016.^{[357][358][359]} While most of the UTS's students have been Unification Church members,^[360] a growing number come from diverse churches and faiths. The seminary's professors come from a wide range of faiths, including a Rabbi, a Sheikh, a Methodist minister, a Presbyterian, and a Roman Catholic priest.^{[361][362][363]} In 2003, the seminary had about 120 students from around the world, with most coming from South Korea and Japan, which have large numbers of Unification Church members.^[364]
• Blessed Teens Academy—Greeley, Colorado ^[365]
• New Hope Academy—Landover Hills, Maryland, USA. "Although New Hope Academy was founded in 1990 by members of the Unification movement, it is not a sectarian school. No doctrines are taught; in fact, no classes in religion are offered.However morning services are mandatory,during services discussions about religious doctrines, hymns, and group prayers all take place. We believe it is the job of parents—with the support of their church, temple, or mosque—to impart their personal faith to their child." ^[366][367]
• WUF - World University Federation
• Several UC-related groups are working to promote sexual abstinence until marriage and fidelity in marriage and to prevent child exploitation; they care for victims of Thailand's sex trade as well.^{[368][369][370]} In 1996, members of the Unification Church gathered 3,500 signatures in an anti-pornography campaign.^[371]

Organizations in the arts

• Kirov Academy of Ballet, dance school in Washington DC.^[372]
• Korean Cultural Foundation^[373]
• Little Angels Children’s Folk Ballet of Korea: The Little Angels Children's Folk Ballet of Korea is a dance troupe founded in 1962 by Moon and other UC members to project a positive image of South Korea to the world.^[374][375] In 1973 they performed at the Headquarters of the United Nations in New York City.^[376] The group's dances are based on Korean legends and regional dances, and its costumes on traditional Korean styles.^[377]
• Manhattan Center, Theater and recording studio in New York City.^[378]
• New York City Symphony
• One Way Productions, movie production company.^[379]
• The Universal Ballet, founded South Korea in 1984, is one of only four professional ballet companies in South Korea. The company performs a repertory that includes many full length classical story ballets, together with shorter contemporary works and original full-length Korean ballets created especially for the company. It is supported by UC members with Moon's daughter-in-law Julia Moon, who was the company's prima ballerina until 2001, now serving as General Director.^{[380][381][382][383]}

Sports organizations

• Centro Esportivo Nova Esperança, Clube Atlético Sorocaba, Brazilian football teams.^[384]
• Martial Arts Federation for World Peace^[378]
• Peace Cup^[385] International football (soccer) tournament.
• Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma, South Korean football team.^[386]
• The Sunmoon Peace Football Foundation founded by the UC in 2003 sponsors the Peace Cup, an invitational preseason friendly association football tournament for club teams, currently held every two years.^[387] It is contested by the eight clubs from several continents, though 12 teams participated in 2009. The first three competitions were held in South Korea, and the 2009 Peace Cup Andalucia was held in Madrid and Andalusia, Spain.^[388][389] In 1989, Moon founded Seongnam FC, a South Korean football team.^[390]
• Yeongpyeong Ski Resort, which hosted the 2018 Winter Olympics^[391][392]

Political organizations

• Freedom Leadership Foundation, an anti-communist organization in the United States active in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.^[393][394]
• Peace United Family Party, a South Korean political party founded by the Sun Myung Moon, one of whose main goals is the reunification of Korea.^[395]
• The International Association of Parliamentarians for Peace (IAPP) works to promote peace and understanding between potentially hostile nations.^[274]
• TheConservatives.com, a former political website in partnership with the Heritage Foundation.^[396]
• The Summit Council for World Peace is an international group active in Moon's effort to unite North and South Korea.^[397]
• Coalition for a Free World, anti-Soviet group active in the 1980s.^[398]
• Washington Institute for Values in Public Policy^[399][400]
• CAUSA International is an anti-communist educational organization created in New York City in 1980 by members of the Unification movement.^[213] In the 1980s it was active in 21 countries. In the United States it sponsored educational conferences for evangelical and fundamentalist Christian leaders^[214] as well as seminars and conferences for Senate staffers, Hispanic Americans and conservative activists.^[215] In 1986 it produced the anti-Communist documentary film Nicaragua Was Our Home.^[401]
• The International Coalition for Religious Freedom is an activist organization based in Virginia, the United States. Its president is Dan Fefferman, who has held several leadership positions within the Unification Church of the United States. Founded in the 1980s, it has been active in protesting what it considers to be threats to religious freedom by governmental agencies.^{[225][402][403][404]}
• International Federation for Victory over Communism
• Korean Culture and Freedom Foundation, a nonprofit organization which in the 1970s staged a public diplomacy campaign in the United States for South Korea^[211] When it was founded in 1964, former U.S. Presidents Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower were named as honorary presidents and former Vice President Richard Nixon (then practicing corporate law) was named as a director.^[203]
• National Committee Against Religious Bigotry and Racism^[405]
• National Prayer and Fast Committee, which supported President Richard Nixon during the Watergate scandal.^[406][407]
• Radio Free Asia.^[203]

Businesses

Members of the Unification movement own a number of businesses in various countries. In Eastern Europe Unification movement missionaries are using the church's business ties to win new converts.^[408] David Bromley, a sociologist at Virginia Commonwealth University, said: "The corporate section is understood to be the engine that funds the mission of the church. The wealth base is fairly substantial. But if you were to compare it to the LDS Church or the Catholic Church or other churches that have massive landholdings, this doesn't look on a global scale like a massive operation."^[409]

United Nations related non-governmental organizations

Since 2000, Moon has promoted the creation of an interreligious council at the United Nations as a check and balance to its political-only structure.^[441][442] Since then King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia and King Juan Carlos I of Spain hosted officially a program to promote the proposal.^[443] Moon's Universal Peace Federation is in special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council^[444][445] and a member of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development,^[444][446] a member of the United Nations Division for Palestinian Rights,^[447][448] a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council,^{[449][450][451]} a member of the UNHRC,^[452][453] a member of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.^[454] Three of Moon's non-governmental organizations (NGOs)—Universal Peace Federation, Women's Federation for World Peace and Service for Peace—are in consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.^{[455][445][456]}

Other organizations

• International Relief Friendship Foundation (IRFF) ^[457][458]
• Joshua House Children's Centre in Georgetown, Guyana helps homeless and victimized children.
• Korean War 60th Anniversary Memorial Committee ^[459]
• National Committee Against Religious Bigotry and Racism^[460]
• The New Hope East Garden Project, agricultural project in Brazil.^[461]
• Ocean Church^[462]
• Service For Peace^[456]
• Summit Council for World Peace^[463]
• Tongil Foundation^[418]
• World Media Association, sponsors trips for American journalists to Asian countries.^[224]

Organizations supported by members of the Unification movement

• American Conference on Religious Movements, a Rockville, Maryland based group that fights discrimination against new religions. The group is funded by the Church of Scientology, the Hare Krishna organization, as well as by Unificationists, who give it $3,000 a month.^[378]
• American Freedom Coalition (AFC), a group which seeks to unite American conservatives on the state level to work toward common goals. The coalition, while independent, receives support from the Unification movement.^[464] American Freedom Journal was a publication of the AFC published by Rev. Robert Grant.^[465] The journal was started in 1988 and suspended publication sometime before 1994.^[466] Contributors included Pat Buchanan, Ed Meese, Ben Wattenberg and Jeane Kirkpatrick.^[467]

• Christian Heritage Foundation, a private, independent charitable foundation based in Virginia that distributes Bibles and Christian literature to Communist and Third World nations. In 1995 it was given $3.5 million by the Women's Federation for World Peace.^[468]
• Empowerment Network, a pro-faith political action group supported by United States Senator Joe Lieberman.^[469]
• Foundation for Religious Freedom (Also known as the New Cult Awareness Network.), an organization affiliated with the Church of Scientology which states its purpose as "Educating the public as to religious rights, freedoms and responsibilities." ^[470][471]

• George Bush Presidential Library. In June 2006 the Houston Chronicle reported that in 2004 Moon’s Washington Times Foundation gave a $1 million donation to the George Bush Presidential Library.^[472]
• Liberty University. Sun Myung Moon and his wife Hak Ja Han helped to financially stabilize the University through two organizations: News World Communications, which provided a $400,000 loan to the University at 6% interest; and the Women's Federation for World Peace, which indirectly contributed $3.5 million toward the school's debt.^[162]
• Married Priests Now!,^[473] is an advocacy group headed by Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, who was himself married by Moon. MPN is a liberal Catholic organization calling for relaxing the rules concerning marriage in the Latin Rite Catholic priesthood.^[474]
• Million Family March, 2000 rally in Washington, D.C. sponsored by the FFWPU and The Nation of Islam.^[475]
• National Conservative Political Action Committee (NCPAC), was given $500,000 by CAUSA International to finance an anticommunist lobbying campaign.^[224]
• University of Bridgeport of Bridgeport, Connecticut.^[476] In 1992, following the longest faculty strike in United States academic history, the University of Bridgeport agreed to an arrangement with the Professors World Peace Academy whereby the university would be subsidized by PWPA in exchange for control of the university. The initial agreement was for $50 million, and a majority of board members were to be PWPA members.^[477] The next University of Bridgeport president was PWPA president and Holocaust theologian Richard L. Rubenstein (from 1995–1999),^[478] and subsequently former U.S. HSA-UWC president Neil Albert Salonen (2000–present).^[479][480]
• World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations (WANGO)^{[481][235][236][237]}