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The Unification Church is a new religious movement founded by Sun Myung Moon in Seoul, Korea in 1954. Since then it has grown world-wide, having members in almost every nation. *

The formal and legal name is The Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (HSA-UWC), reflecting Moon's original vision as an ecumenical movement. In the face of opposition by established churches, it developed as a separate sect rather than as a movement, and became known as the Unification Church.

In the 1990s Moon began to establish various peace organizations, including the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, which took over many of the spiritual and organizational functions of the Unification Church. In many parts of the world, the movement was incorporated as HSA-UWC, and that name is found on legal documents.

History

The Unification Church (UC) claims that Jesus appeared to Mun Yong-myong (his birth name) in the spring of 1935, when Moon was 15 years old (16 years old in Korean age reckoning). He purportedly asked Moon to help him with the accomplishment of the work left unaccomplished after his crucifixion. After a period of prayer and consideration, Moon accepted the mission, later changing his name to Mun Son-myong (i.e., Sun Myung Moon).

The beginnings of the Church's official teachings, the Divine Principle, first saw written form as Wolli Wonbon in 1946. (The second, expanded version, Wolli Hesol, or Explanation of the Divine Principle, was not published until 1957; for a more complete account, see Wolli Kangron.) Sun Myung Moon preached in northern Korea after the end of World War II, and was imprisoned by the communist regime in North Korea in 1946. He was liberated from prison, along with many North Koreans, with the advance of American and United Nations forces during the Korean War, and built his first church from mud and cardboard boxes as a refugee in Pusan.

Moon founded his organization in Seoul, Korea, on May 1, 1954, calling it "The Holy Spirit(ual) Association for the Unification of World Christianity." The name alludes to Moon's stated intention for his organization to be a unifying force for all Christian denominations. The phrase "Holy Spirit Association" has the sense in the original Korean of "Heavenly Spirits" and not the "Holy Spirit" of Christianity. "Unification" has political as well as religious connotations, in keeping with the church's teaching that restoration must be complete, both spiritual and physical.

In 1958 Moon sent missionaries to Japan and in 1959 to America.

An American sociologist, John Lofland, encountered one of the first UC missionary groups in America, associated himself with them, and observed them over many months. He wrote a book about his findings called Doomsday Cult: A Study of Conversion, Proselytization, and Maintenance of Faith, although the Unification Church was not a "doomsday cult". Lofland does not identify the group explicitly, and disguises the identities of the individuals. He later indicated that he thought that the movement would soon fade away, and he wanted to spare any embarassment to the individuals involved, many of whom he judged vulnerable.

Moon himself moved to the United States in 1971. UC missionaries found success in San Francisco first, then quickly spread to most of the nation's most populous cities.

Moon took full-page ads in major newspapers defending President Richard M. Nixon at the height of the Watergate Controversy, based on the principle that God works through designated central figures throughout history, and that America played a crucial central role in the ongoing Providence of God on the world level. His message of "Forgive, Love, Unite" was predictably not well received.

In 1975 Moon sent out missionaries to 120 countries, in part, he said, to act as "lightning rods" to receive "persecution."

The theme of anti-communism was clearly expressed in two rallies, first at Yankee Stadium in New York, and in September on the grounds of the Washington Monument in the nation's capital in the bicentennial year 1976, where Moon spoke of "God's Hope for America." Attempts to court established Christianity and the conservative right were for the most part unsuccessful until a degree of success followed the Interdenominational Conferences for Clergy and publication of the Washington Times, respectively.

Eileen Barker, a sociologist specializing in religious topics, studied church members in England and in 1984 published her findings in her book Choice or Brainwashing?.

Theology

A fundamental teaching of the church is that God possesses both male and female attributes and that the most perfect substantial expression of God is to be found in a "true love" relationship between a fully perfected man and a fully perfected woman, living in accordance with the will of God. This love can then grow between parents and children. "True love" is understood to mean a sacrifical love that it is unconditional, unchanging, and eternal.

The church differentiates itself from traditional Christianity through its view of the Trinity and its view of the reason for Jesus's death. The church believes only in what some theologians have called the "economic trinity," a relationship between God, Adam, and Eve (with the messiah in the role of perfected Adam). It does not believe that Jesus or any man is ontologically one with God as "God the Son." Rather, Jesus became Godlike through a natural process of growth to personal perfection that would otherwise be available to all persons except for original sin preventing it. The "pre-existence" and the "logos" was not Jesus in a personal sense, but rather the prototype for perfected man which Jesus came to embody during his lifetime.

The church does not believe that Jesus' death was a preordained necessity. Like traditional Christians, however, they do believe that his death serves as a redemption of humanity's sins and that his resurrection was a victory over death for all eternity.

The church further teaches that:

  • God appointed Jesus to establish the literal (political), rather than symbolic, Kingdom of Heaven on earth, preferably in his lifetime. Due to the failure of the Jewish people to accept "him whom He had sent" (John 6:29), Jesus had to go the alternate course of dying on the cross. (See the section on the role of Elijah below.)
  • With the mission of establishing God's kingdom unfulfilled, He will appoint another Messiah to accomplish His purpose. "I have purposed, and I will do it. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass." (Isaiah 46:11).
  • Moon has spoken of himself as "Messiah of the Second Coming" and "True Parent" and monarch ("True Love King") of a literal "Kingdom of Heaven" on earth (see Divine Principle quotes below).
  • In the Last Days, (a literal angel) Satan will be brought to repentance and become a good angel again and all souls now in Hell will be liberated and restored to Heaven.

The role of Elijah and the role of the messiah

The church's understanding of the mission of Elijah is a key to understanding its conception of the mission of the Messiah.

Elijah had the role of harbinger or forerunner. He was to reveal to Israel and the world the identity of the Messiah, and the person fulfilling this role was slated to work with the Messiah to usher in the kingdom of Heaven.

In particular, John the Baptist was to play the role of Elijah in relation to his kinsman Jesus.

Based on biblical texts (especially in Matthew), the church believes that Jesus was appointed by God to be the Messiah, not only for the Jewish people but for all of humanity.

The prophecies concerning John's ministry ("in the spirit and power of Elijah" and "make ready for the Lord a people prepared") are cited by the church in support of this view. Moon singles out John for intense criticism for failing to provide active support for Jesus and asserts this as the primary reason that the Jewish people did not recognize Jesus as the Messiah.

Second Coming of Christ

Virtually all Unification Church members consider Moon to be the new Messiah. The Unificationist view of the messiah is of a man (or ideally, a married couple) representing God as "True Parent(s)." The messiah is viewed as an incarnation of God in the sense of a person who has completed a natural growth process to perfect oneness with God, which all persons should achieve but cannot due to sin. To be the messiah is to be in a role of savior, which does not require ontological status as God the Son, one person of the Trinity (as understood in traditional Christianity).

In 2002, the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification published a message which it says describes a conference at which all the historical founders of all other religions have recently, in heaven, proclaimed Moon's messiahship (see Clouds of Witnesses).

Many other Christians strongly reject such a proclamation, citing the Gospel of John (see Chapter 14, verse 6) in which Jesus of Nazareth states with finality that "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (King James Version)

Celibacy and marriage

The Unification Church uses the term "absolute love" to refer to its teaching about sexual morality, which is essentially abstinence before marriage and fidelity thereafter.

During the church's period of early growth (1970-1985 in America), most church members lived in intentional communities.

The vast majority of members' marriages were arranged by Moon personally. In recent years this rule was relaxed, with parents often helping to arrange their children's choice of spouse and church leaders suggesting matches for members.

Many members considered it the ultimate test of their faith to accept a match arranged by Moon, and the church's increasingly large marriage blessings have attracted much notice. These large group weddings, dubbed "mass marriage" by the press, are the one feature of the Church that is perhaps the most unusual to Westerners. Moon has presided over marriages of groups of hundreds or even of tens of thousands of couples at once. Many of the arranged marriages paired people from different countries, races, and cultures. Moon teaches that such "exchange marriages" will help build connections among the divided human family, as people stretch their hearts to love spouse, in-laws, and children.

The church has been accused of arranging international marriages because of immigration rules. Several governments (most notably the government of Japan), have refused to accept the legitimacy of these mass marriages. Some of Moon's critics and opponents claim that the impersonality of large numbers of people all being married by a single minister negates the intimacy and person-to-person emotional and spiritual connection between the participants in the ceremony; some have considered Moon's mass marriages to be a mockery of the institution of marriage. For participants, it is an expression of faith to entrust the choice of one's spouse to a parental figure through whom they believe God works.

Moon teaches that his Blessing cleanses believers of original sin.

Candidates for matching are educated, counseled, interviewed and screened by church elders. The application form includes a disclosure about past relationships, in the form of a confession, and a commitment to purity and living for the sake of others. After being matched, people consult with each other and decide whether to accept the match. Critics claim instances of violence, pedophilia, and even bestiality -- situations that were disclosed to the Church in the written confession to Moon but were not made known to the prospective spouse. However, some people did not disclose their past. Furthermore, not everyone is able to carry out their commitment to change. The Church states that its members enter into arranged marriage as a free choice. Critics state that Moon has been known to become enraged if his suggestion is not accepted and to refuse to provide alternative partners for the member who has rejected his advice. However, people have requested and obtained an alternate match.

Some members consider the church poorly understood by outsiders, who have found it hard to imagine how people could marry strangers under the direction of the church leader. The passionate and sudden dedication of thousands of American young people, whom critics referred disparagingly to as "Moonies", to this new religious movement led to accusations, government investigations and a negative press image.

Overview of the beliefs of Unificationists

Principles underlying God's creation

God is viewed as the creator in Unification Theology. God is both male and female but is refered to as "he" for the sake of tradition. God is omniscient and omnipotent, however in order to experience a relationship of love created human beings as his children and gave them freedom to love him or not as they chose.

The fall of humanity

Unificationists believe there was an actual original human couple, called Adam and Eve in the Bible. The story of the Fall of Man, as written in the book of Genesis in the Bible, is interpreted by Unificationists as an actual historical event rather than an allegory. Some elements in the story, however - the Tree of Life, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, the forbidden fruit, and the serpent - are believed to be symbolic metaphors for ideal man, ideal woman, sexual love, and Satan respectively. The essence of the fall is that Eve was seduced by an angelic being (Lucifer). Eve then seduced Adam. So love was consummated through sexual intercourse between Adam and Eve apart from the plan of God. Unificationists believe there was a “spiritual (sexual) fall,” between Eve and the angel, and a “physical (sexual) fall” between Eve and Adam. Unificationists also regard Adam and Eve's son Cain killing his brother Abel as a literal event which contributed to humankind's fallen state. Unificationists teach the literal belief that since the "fall of humanity" all of human history has been a constant struggle between the forces of God and Satan to correct this original mistake. This belief contributes to their strict moral code of "absolute love" and sexual purity and the need for indemnity,

See also: Allegorical interpretations of Genesis and Biblical mythology

Restoration of God's original ideal

The Principle of Indemnity

Unificationists see an aspect of the universe in terms of debt and payment, like a merchant marketplace. If someone in the past has made a social ethical mistake, according to the Unificationist "absolute love" moral code, God remembers that mistake as a debt that must be paid (indemnified) by someone in the present or future. Misfortune will continue to happen to the family, nation or all of world history until the debt is paid with some kind of suffering or right moral action by a representative agent or agents.

Indemnity can also be a positive thing. By willingly enduring mistreatment (the principle of Indemnity), one can receive God's blessing. The principle seemed, to Unificationists, to be bearing fruit in the 1980s, after Moon served 13 months of an 18-month sentence for tax evasion and conspiracy to obstruct justice. Christian ministers, particularly from the black community, rallied around Moon.

History

History is viewed as God’s attempt to bring about God’s will regarding Adam and Eve. First, a person, group, or nation in the position of Adam must have faith in God and demonstrate that faith in some extraordinary way. Second, another person, group, or nation must follow that person of faith. This condition will enable God to send another person with the mission of Adam. In Unificationist viewpoint, this person is the Messiah.

Jesus

Unificationists view Jesus as the Messiah on the national level. Unificationists believe that Jesus fulfilled the condition of faith that Adam lacked, but that he did not gain a sufficient following during his lifetime to fulfill the condition of substance needed to achieve his ultimate God-given mission of building the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. Unificationists believe that, through his death on the cross, Jesus created a condition such that all who believe in him can achieve spiritual salvation and thus be united with him both on earth and beyond. They also view that someone in the position of Adam, or the Messiah, must come again to fulfill the condition of substance. This would be the second coming. The Messiah does not, in Unificationist theology, have any superhuman powers that are not available to anyone with faith. The Messiah can make errors of judgment. Unificationists specifically do not believe that Jesus, or anyone in the position of the Messiah, is God.

Rev. Moon

The majority of Unficationists view Moon as the actual historical Messiah or "Christ of the Second Advent" (See Divine Principle quotes below) and rightful spiritual and political leader of all mankind. He regards his own mission as that of “True Parents,” the parents that Adam and Eve should have become and the true monarch of the literal theocratic "Kingdom of Heaven" on Earth that Jesus should have established.

Divine Principle

The Unification Church regards The Divine Principle as holy canon. Contrary to popular opinion, it was written by Lee, an early follower of Moon and prominent lecturer, with Moon’s dictations (see Divine Principle) and approval. The entire text can be found online.

Present and Future

Since its early days there have been subgroups within the Unification movement because of cultural differences and differences of points of view among members. There are now several subgroups. However, they do not regard themselves as different groups, and there is considerable overlap between them. There are those who identify more closely with the early followers of Moon, and those who identify more closely with the children or grandchildren of Moon. There are those, mostly in the West, who regard the principles of Unificationism to be more fundamental than allegiances to particular people. And there are two spiritualists, the more popular who claims to channel Heung Jin Moon (Unificationists frequently add the suffix "nim," e.g., "Heung Jin Nim") and Mrs. Moon's mother Soon Ae Hong (called "Dae Mo Nim," meaning "Great Mother"); and one that claims to channel Lee. All these subgroups have the official sanction of Moon and the Unification Church. There are also a number of small, splinter groups that have no official sanction, but claim to be inspired by Moon. There are also many individuals who consider themselves Unificationists but are not part of any subgroup.

Theology and philosophy

Theology, fall of man, theory of education, love, God's Message to the United Nations.

See Also

Comparative religion, Religion and mythology, Biblical mythology, Comparative mythology, Parable, Allegory, Metaphor, Myth, Mythology, Kingdom of Heaven, Sun Myung Moon, Jesus, New Testament, Second Coming, Messiah, Religion, Conservative Christianity, Liberal Christianity, Christian mythology, Fundamentalism

Divine Principle political ideology

The Reverend Doctor Sun Myung Moon, founder of the Unification Church, is portrayed in some church publications as a monarch of the nation Cheon Il Guk.
"True Love King"
"Family Federation for World Peace and Unification"
"Declaration of the Establishment of Cheon Il Guk"
Moon was also portrayed as the leader of all religions in the online article "Cloud of Witnesses" and the church website "Messages From Spirit World."

Political statements in the Divine Principle

The Divine Principle asserts that existing modern democracies have been a necessary, but temporary, stage in history and politics.
"How can democracy accomplish its purpose?...We need to understand that democracy was born to undermine satanic monopolies of power for the purpose of God's final providence to restore, by the will of the people, a heavenly sovereignty under the leadership of the returning Christ."
- Divine Principle Section 7.2.6 Democracy and Socialism
"...Thus, in the ideal world, people of God led by Christ will form organizations analogous to today's political parties..."
- Divine Principle, Section 3.2 The Significance of the Separation of Powers
"If we are to realize the ideal world of one global family which can honor Christ at the Second Advent as our True Parent, surely our languages must be unified...then he will certainly use the Korean language, which will then become the mother tongue for all humanity."
- Divine Principle, Section 5

Political statements in Moon's Speeches

"The democratic world has come to a dead end..."
- Sun Myung Moon, Creation Of The Fatherland, January 1, 1984
"America's intellectual establishment is liberal, godless, secular, humanistic, and anti-religious. We are declaring war against three main enemies: godless communism, Christ-less American liberalism, and secular-humanistic morality. They are the enemies of God, the True Parents, the Unification Church, all of Christianity, and all religions. We are working to mobilize a united front against them."
- Sun Myung Moon, August 29, 1985
"Through True Love our family shall accomplish the True Family of the Filial Child, the Loyal Subject, the Saint and the Holy Child of the Cheon Il Guk (God's Kingdom on earth.)"
- ''Church Motto, Sun Myung Moon, January 1, 2003
"There is no doubt that this kingdom is one that the children of God's direct lineage can reign over by upholding the heavenly decree. In other words, it is a nation in which they rule on behalf of God's commands and kingship. Democracy and communism cannot exist in such a kingdom. Once established, it will remain as an eternal state system. Considering these things, isn't it mortifying that you have not yet become the citizens of that kingdom?"
- Sun Myung Moon, March 4, 2005

Definitions of Theocracy

"...theocracy is commonly used to describe a form of government in which a religion or faith plays the dominant role. Properly speaking, it refers to a form of government in which the organs of the religious sphere replace or dominate the organs of the political sphere." -- Wikipedia
Theocratic tendencies have been found in several religious traditions including Judaism, Islam, Confucianism, Hinduism, and among Christianity Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Protestantism, and Mormonism. Historical examples of Christian theocracies are the Byzantine Empire and the Carolingian Empire.

See Also

rule of law, religious freedom, Western world values, secular democracy, separation of church and state, religious pluralism, fundamentalism, Kingdom of Heaven

Church holy texts

Divine Principle

The Divine Principle is seen as the foundation of the Unification Church. The earliest manuscript was lost in North Korea during the Korean War. Upon arriving as a refugee in Pusan, Moon wrote and dictated a manuscript called Wolli Wonbon (Original Text of the Divine Principle). He then guided Hyo Won Eu, the first president of the Unification Church of Korea, to prepare more systematic presentations of his teachings with biblical, historical and scientific illustrations. Moon gave Eu special instruction regarding the content of these texts and then checked them over meticulously. These efforts resulted in Wolli Hesul (Explanation of the Divine Principle), published in 1957, and Wolli Kangron (Exposition of the Divine Principle), published in 1966. Since then, Wolli Kangron has been the text of Moon's basic teaching. According to its Preface, Exposition of the Divine Principle expresses a truth which is universal; it inherits and builds upon the core truths which God revealed through the Jewish and Christian scriptures and encompasses the wisdom from the Orient.

Heavenly Scripture

The Cheong Seong Gyeong (Heavenly Scripture) is a recent compilation of the speeches Moon selected as representing his core thought and legacy. Each day, wherever Moon is, this is read aloud at hoon dok hae, the gatherings for reading and learning from 5:00 to 6:30 am. Cheong Seong Gyeong is being translated into English and other languages.

Speeches

Many of Moon's sermons, speeches, and directives have been collected and archived by the Unification Church. In earlier years they were printed out and given to members. Since the 1990s they have also been posted on the Internet. In the 1960s and 1970s the speeches were given the general title "Master Speaks", which was later dropped. Except for speeches prepared in advance for official events, the English versions of Moon's speeches are transcribed from consecutive or simultaneous translation, often in summary form, and distributed without verification of the accuracy of the translation.

Related organizations

The Unification Church (and Moon personally) has accumulated an enormous quantity of money, invested much of it, and consequently has a controlling interest in many companies, including Pyonghwa Motors. It is considered to be among the strongest forces in South Korean politics, among other causes in favor of a closer relationship with North Korea.

The UC is also something of a force in American politics. It established and continues to own and fund the right-wing Washington Times and also UPI newswire, and has also established many prominent groups to advocate sexual abstinence until marriage and fidelity in marriage. In general the positions supported by the UC are similar to, and in some cases more liberal than, those of more mainstream conservative Christians.

Professors for World Peace Academy International (PWPA), was founded on May 6, 1973, in Korea, by Moon declaring its 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.*

In the United States the church owns fishing interests, which are for-profit businesses and pay taxes. The biggest are in Gloucester, Massachusetts, Alaska and Alabama. In Kodiak, Alaska the church "runs a fleet of fishing boats ... is the largest private employer" in Kodiak. *

The church also plays roles in a variety of other business including Atlantic Video, a Massachusetts Avenue video post-production facility; the University of Bridgeport in Bridgeport, Connecticut; a cable television channel called the AmericanLife TV Network, the firearms manufacturer Kahr Arms, and the New Yorker Hotel in Manhattan.

The Unification Church was a major financial backer of the World Anti-Communist League.

See also: ICUS.

Journalism

Rev. Moon inspired the founding of the Washington Times newspaper which is owned by church members. It is a generally conservative and right-wing publication that, along with such smaller political publications as Insight magazine, further the organization's political views. Critics point out that the Washington Times has never turned a profit and continually loses money; but the church community continues to finance the paper, perhaps because it gives the organization political influence in Washington D.C.. In a similar vein, the purchase of the UPI news service by the Unification Church community allows one of their reporters to sit in a press seat aboard Air Force One.

Controversy

The Unification Church is among the more controversial religious organizations in the world today. Governments of most countries have recognized it as a bona fide "religion" entitled to tax exempt status. (In the United States tax exempt status has nothing to do with being a "bona fide religion".) A number of opponents denounce it as a "cult."

Cult of personality: money, aggrandizement

A frequently heard criticism of the Unification Church (UC) is that it's not really a church at all but a "cult". By the sociological definition of "cult," the UC may no longer qualify (has grown too big, is less in tension with the larger society than in the 70s, or may in fact have always had too many beliefs in common with mainstream Christianity), in spite of its reputation for having some bizarre features, as emphasized by sensational media reports. The value-neutral sociological identification is not usually what critics mean, however. The Anti-Cult Movement and the Christian countercult movement have definitions that suit their purposes, and are sometimes somewhat arbitrary. Most sociologists of religion prefer the term "new religious movement" (or "NRM").

Some detractors in the US claimed the church's main purpose is to enrich Moon personally or to advance (what they suppose are) his political aspirations. In response, Moon, who has never run for public office, asserts that he has no political aspirations and ridicules the idea that his followers are stupid enough to sacrifice themselves for his personal aggrandizement: "They are smart, idealistic and determined." (Newsweek International interview with Chesnoff and Nagorsky, 1973).

The Japanese Supreme Court upheld a 1997 fraud charge against the Unification Church of Japan with regard to certain fundraising practices, but it has also upheld the church's status as a religion whose members have a right to practice their beliefs.

Messianic claims

Rev. Moon's supposed encounter with Jesus is rejected by most Christian theologians. Some of these challengers interpret the UC view as a claim that Jesus "failed" and take great umbrage at this claim. The UC calls this interpretation a misunderstanding and insists that Jesus did not "fail," pointing out that Jesus did everything he could in the face of and insufficient amount of faith and support. It was humanity who failed Jesus, not the other way around. Even so, Moon himself has strongly affirmed that he is greater than Jesus (see Jesus and John the Baptist).

Some critics of the Unification Church have complained about Moon declaring himself to be the Messiah, which they consider self-aggrandizement on his part, as well suggesting that Moon's intentions for his church are to place himself above all other religious figures, including Jesus.

"In early July I spoke in five cities around Korea at rallies held by the Women's Federation for World Peace. There, I declared that my wife, WFWP President Hak Ja Han Moon, and I are the True Parents of all humanity. I declared that we are the Savior, the Lord of the Second Advent, the Messiah." -- Reverend Moon, Unification News, August 24, 1992

Some see Moon as the Messiah and others see him as an evil genius. However, these are not the only possibilities. A small number of people from the many faith traditions he has courted have come to respect him as a teacher bringing a message from heaven to a troubled world. Other critics say Moon might suffer from delusions resulting from a mental illness; he might be perfectly sincere and yet perfectly mad too.

Recruitment and brainwashing

In the United States in the 1970s Unificationists gained a reputation for high-pressure recruitment, and critics charged that they separated vulnerable college students from their families via alleged brainwashing or mind control.

Moon called these criticisms nonsense and claimed in 1976 that he had received many thank-you letters from parents whose children became closer to them after joining the movement. (In 1977, Moon had a notice posted in all Unification Churches in America, mandating that all members write their families no less than once every 10 days.)

Moon and his wife remain banned from entry into Germany and the other 14 Schengen treaty countries, on the grounds that they are leaders of a sect that endangered the personal and social development of young people. (This Schengen treaty ban, however, seems to have lost its grip on the case since The Netherlands and a few other Schengen states let Moon and his wife enter their countries in 2005) * Japan refuses to issue a visa on the grounds that Moon is a convicted felon (see Moon tax case).

Political activities

Critics of the Unification Church have accused the organization of being closely involved with covert CIA-authored operations against Communism in Korea during the 1960s, largely due to similarity in names of the actual Korean CIA director and Won Pil Kim, the teenage follower who accompanied Sun Myung Moon on his journey from North Korea to the safety of Pusan during the Korean War, and who became the first long-time member. The Church is known to have been involved with weapon and munitions manufacturing in Korea since the 1960s, as documented in a 1978 United States Congressional Report on the Unification Church. The explanation given by Korean Unification Church members is that all manufacturers seeking to do business in South Korea were required to supply the military, and the actual products made were shell casings.

In 1978, Moon's group was the focus of a Congressional investigation that alleged widespread fraud as well as ties to the Koreagate influence-peddling scandal.

Rep. Donald Fraser asserted that the Unification Church and other related groups constitute a single, monolithic "Moon organization". Like-minded critics accuse the church of working to further a political agenda in both the Far East and in the United States. Sun Myung Moon's controversial religious and political Unification Movement, which includes not only the Unification Church but an enormous constellation of civic organizations, including the Washington Times foundation, allied politically with such Washington, D.C. evangelical Christians as Jerry Falwell and Tim LaHaye. Advocates adhering to this point of view have challenged the church's tax-exempt status in the US, arguing that the political activities of church-related groups comprise an impermissible intrusion of the church into political areas.

Defenders of the church dismiss this argument, on the grounds that the Unification movement is properly divided into distinct organizations, each of which should be judged by the laws relating to its type. Thus, church-owned businesses pay taxes, while the church itself largely need not. It has been claimed that church missionaries who decided to campaign for Ronald Reagan, had to resign from the church (at least on paper) while conducting their non-church political activities (private communication from Dan Peterson and Tom Carter). However, Moon himself has boasted that his order to Unification Church members to support the 1980 Reagan campaign in New York City was instrumental in winning the Big Apple for the Gipper.

The church-related Collegiate Association for the Research of Principles (CARP), which has a different type of tax-exempt charter, has more freedom than the church itself to engage in political speech and hold demonstrations on political topics. Church treasurer Kevin Smith said (in 1992) that the church is not permitted by US law to give any money to CARP, a fact that even some low-level church leaders might not even be aware of (see talk).

South America

Authorities in Brazil and Paraguay have expressed concerns over the Church's purchases in recent years of large tracts of land in South America, ranging in the hundreds of thousands of acres.

In May of 2002, federal police in Brazil conducted a number of raids on organizations linked to Sun Myung Moon. In a statement, the police stated that the raids were part of a broad investigation into allegations of tax evasion and immigration violations by Moon's organization. The Moon-funded Association of Families for Unification and World Peace was the target of the raids, which took place in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and the personal residence of Moon's primary representative in Brazil, Reverend Kim Yoon-sang. As of 2006 no legal action has been taken by the Brazilian government resulting from their investigations.

Accusations of anti-Semitism

In 1976, the American Jewish Committee accused Reverend Moon of anti-Semitism, based on his writings. Moon has made explicit statements about many racial, ethnic, and religious groupings, which some may choose to label "racist". However, supporters state that he does not regard Jews as being any better or worse than the rest of the human race which he considers to be stained with fallen nature, acquired at the beginning of human history and subsequently augmented by personal, collective and inherited sin. See Unification Church and anti-Semitism. Any such accusations should be tempered with his staunch support in word and "matchings" of interracial couples. There are members of most ethnic groups among the Unfication Church membership in the United States; including some Jews, some of whom have served in leadership postitions within the church. Quite a number of Jewish non-members work for the Washington Times, the Unification Theological Seminary in Barrytown, NY, and other Unification Church related organizations.

The Tragedy of the Six Marys

In the 1993 Chung Hwa Pak released "Roku Maria no Higeki" (Tragedy of the Six Marys)" through the Koyu Publishing Co. of Japan. The book contained allegations that Moon conducted sex rituals amongst six married female disciples ("The Six Marys") who were to have prepared the way for the virgin who would marry Moon and become the True Mother. Chung Hwa Pak had left the movement when the book was published yet he later withdrew the book from print when he rejoined the Unification Church. Before his death Chung Hwa Pak published a second book ‘The Apostate’ recanted all allegations made in "Roku Maria no Higeki.”. A speech made by Pak titled Retraction of "The Tragedy of the Six Marys" is listed on tparents.org*

According to investigative journalist Robert Parry Pak withdrew the book under intense pressure from the movement and the allegations made in "Roku Maria no Higeki" tracked closely with U.S. intelligence reports of the same period and interviews with former church leaders. No one has come forward and claimed to be a victim.**

References

  • Nansook Hong: In the Shadow of the Moons. Little Brown & Company; ISBN 0316348163; (August 1998). The book is written by the ex-wife of Hyo Jin Moon, Reverend Moon's son (to whom she was married, handpicked by Moon, at 15 years of age) and details various abuses she claims to have suffered from members of the Moon family.
  • Founder's Address: "The Messiah and True Parents", given by Moon at the World Summit on Leadership and Governance, Shilla Hotel, Seoul, Korea, 27 January, 2004.
  • * Reverend Sun Myung Moon Speaks on Understanding Life and Death, Inter-Religious Federation for World Peace, "Realizing the Interfaith Ideal: Action Beyond Dialogue", Washington, DC - December 18, 1998, Founder's Address

See also

Bibliography

  • Reading the Bible Again For the First Time: Taking the Bible Seriously But Not, Literally, by Marcus J. Borg ISBN 0060609192

  • Lofland, John Doomsday Cult: A Study of Conversion, Proselytization, and Maintenance of Faith first published Prentice Hall, c/o Pearson Ed, 1966. Reprinted Ardent Media, U.S. ISBN 082900095X

External links

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