Sun Myung Moon | |
|---|---|
 Moon delivering a speech inLas Vegas, 2010 | |
| Born | Moon Yong-myeong (1920-01-06)6 January 1920 |
| Died | 3 September 2012(2012-09-03) (aged 92) Gapyeong County,Gyeonggi Province, South Korea |
| Occupations | |
| Known for | Founder of theUnification Church and theWashington Times |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 16, including:
|
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 문선명 |
| Hanja | 文鮮明 |
| RR | Mun Seonmyeong |
| MR | Mun Sŏnmyŏng |
| Former name | |
| Hangul | 문용명 |
| Hanja | 文龍明 |
| RR | Mun Yongmyeong |
| MR | Mun Yongmyŏng |
| Part ofa series on |
| Korean nationalism |
|---|
 |
Ideologies |
Sun Myung Moon (Korean: 문선명;Hanja: 文鮮明; bornMoon Yong-myeong; 6 January 1920 – 3 September 2012) was a Korean religious leader, also known for his business ventures and support for conservative political causes.[1][2] Amessiah claimant, he was the founder of theUnification Church, whose members consider him and his wife,Hak Ja Han, to be their "True Parents",[3] and of its widely noted "Blessing" ormass wedding ceremonies. The author of the Unification Church's religious scripture, theDivine Principle,[4][5][6] was ananti-communist and an advocate forKorean reunification, for which he was recognized by the governments of bothNorth andSouth Korea.[7] Businesses he promoted includedNews World Communications, an international news media corporation known for its American subsidiaryThe Washington Times,[8][9][10] andTongil Group, a South Korean business group (chaebol),[11][12][13] as well as otherrelated organizations.[1][14]
Moon was born in what is now North Korea. When he was a child, his family converted toChristianity.[15] In the 1940s and 1950s, he was imprisoned multiple times by the North and South Korean governments during his early new religious ministries,[16] formally founding theHoly Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, simply known as the Unification Church, inSeoul, South Korea, in 1954.[17]
In 1971, Moon moved to the United States[18] and became well known after giving a series of public speeches on his beliefs.[19][20][21] In the 1982 caseUnited States v. Sun Myung Moon, he was found guilty of willfully filing false federalincome tax returns and sentenced to 18 months in federal prison. His case generated protests from clergy and civil libertarians, who said that the trial was biased against him.[22]
Many of Moon's followers were very dedicated and were often referred to in popular parlance as "Moonies".[23] His wedding ceremonies drew criticism, specifically after members of other churches took part, including the excommunicatedRoman Catholic archbishopEmmanuel Milingo.[24] Moon was also criticized for his relationships with political and religious figures, including US presidentsRichard Nixon,[25]George H. W. Bush, andGeorge W. Bush; Soviet presidentMikhail Gorbachev;[26] North Korean presidentKim Il Sung;[27] andNation of Islam leaderLouis Farrakhan.[28]
Sun Myung Moon was born Yong Myung Moon on 6 January 1920[29] in modern-dayNorth P'yŏng'anProvince, North Korea, at a time whenKorea was under Japanese rule. He was the second son in a farming family of thirteen children,[30] eight of whom survived.[16] Moon's family followedConfucianist beliefs until he was around 10 years old. Then they converted toChristianity and joined thePresbyterian Church.[31] Moon claims that he experienced a religious vision ofJesus at age 16 that laid out his life's mission.[32]
In 1941, Moon began studyingelectrical engineering atWaseda University in Japan.[33] During this time, he cooperated withCommunist Party members in theKorean independence movement against theEmpire of Japan.[34] In 1943, he returned to Seoul and, in 1944,[35] married his first wife, Sun-kil Choi (최선길;崔先吉;Choe Seon-gil).[1] They had a son,[1] Sung Jin Moon (문성진;文聖進;Mun Seong-jin).[36] In the 1940s, Sun Myung Moon attended a church led by Kim Baek-moon, who influentially taught that he had been given by Jesus the mission to spread the message of a "new Israel" throughout the world.[37] Around this time, Moon changed his given name to Sun Myung in an effort to quell the increased resentment of other Christians against him, as he gradually began gathering his own group of followers.[38]
FollowingWorld War II, Korea was divided (South and North) along the 38th parallel into two trusteeships: the United States and theSoviet Union.[39][40] Pyongyang (the eventual capital of North Korea) was the center of Christian activity in Korea until 1945.[41] From the late 1940s, hundreds of Korean Christian religious figures were killed or disappeared in concentration camps, includingFrancis Hong Yong-ho, Catholic bishop of Pyongyang,[42] and all monks ofTokwon Abbey.[43][44] When Moon started his own movement (an early version of the Unification Church) in Pyongyang in 1946,[45] the Soviet-controlled North Korean government imprisoned and, he claims, tortured him.[1] Sources vary on the motivation behind his arrest:religious persecution,[46] or a charge ofespionage[47] orpolygamy.[48] His religious practices during this time may have includedunorthodox sexual rituals with multiple women,[48] a claim the Unification Church denies and some scholars have doubted.[47][49]
Arrested again in 1948, he was sentenced to five years atHungnam labor camp,[47][48] though in 1950, during theKorean War, he was liberated byUnited Nations troops and allegedly traveled by foot toBusan, (South) Korea.[1][50][51] Moon emerged from his years in the labor camp as a staunch anti-communist.[16] His teachings viewed theCold War between capitalism and communism as the final conflict betweenGod andSatan, with divided Korea as its primary front line.[52]
In the 1950s, after years of being separated from his wife and child before reuniting,[53] Moon and Choi divorced. Moon moved to Seoul once again and, continuing his ministry, was arrested two more times: once on suspicion of religious orgies and once fordraft evasion; both charges were overturned.[54][46]
In 1954, Moon formally founded theHoly Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity in Seoul and fathered anillegitimate child[1] (who died in 1969).[55] In the 1950s, Moon quickly drew young acolytes who helped to build the foundations ofUnification-affiliated business and cultural organizations.[16][56] In his new church, he preached a conservative, family-oriented value system and his interpretation of theBible.[6][57] A follower whose family joined Moon's movement in the early 1950s claims that she and Moon engaged in various religious sexual rituals, including with several other women, and that she remained Moon's mistress (through his second marriage) until 1964, bearing Moon another son, in secret, in 1965.[48]
Moon married his second wife,Hak Ja Han (who was 17 at the time) on 11 April 1960, soon after Moon turned 40 years old, in a ceremony called the Holy Marriage. Han is called "Mother" or "True Mother". She and Moon together are referred to as the "True Parents" by members of the Unification Church and their family as the "True Family".[3][58][59][60]
Although they initially lived communally, his followers gradually returned to the traditional Christian family form (monogamy). Blessing ceremonies have attracted attention in the press and in the public imagination, often being labeled "mass weddings". People who have never met, from completely different countries, were married by the Messiah of theUnification Church by "matching". They were informed that a certain person, specially chosen for him/her by the Messiah, would become their husband/wife. Some of them did not see their future partner until the day of the "marriage". Public mass blessing ceremonies followed.[61][31][62][63][64][65][66] Some couples are already married, and those that are engaged are later legally married according to the laws of their own countries.[64][65] Meant to highlight the church's emphasis on traditional morality, they brought Moon both fame and controversy.[66]
36 couples participated in the first ceremony in 1961 for members of the early church inSeoul. The ceremonies continued to grow in scale; over 2,000 couples participated in the 1982 one at New York'sMadison Square Garden, the first outside South Korea.[15][33] In 1992, about 30,000 couples took part in a ceremony and a record 360,000 couples in Seoul took part three years later.[67]
Moon said that he matched couples from differing races and nationalities because of his belief that all of humanity should be united: "International and intercultural marriages are the quickest way to bring about an ideal world of peace. People should marry across national and cultural boundaries with people from countries they consider to be their enemies so that the world of peace can come that much more quickly."[6][15][68]
Moon said that when he was 16 years old,[32] Jesus appeared to him, anointing him to carry out his unfinished work by becoming a parent to all of humanity.[5][39][68] TheDivine Principle [ko], orExposition of the Divine Principle (Korean: 원리강론;Hanja: 原理講論;RR: Wolli Gangnon), is the main theological textbook of the Unification movement. It was co-written by Moon and early discipleHyo Won Eu and first published in 1966. A translation entitledDivine Principle was published in English in 1973. The book lays out the core of Unification theology and is held to have the status ofscripture by believers. Following the format of systematic theology, it includes (1) God's purpose in creating human beings, (2) the fall of man, and (3) restoration—the process through history by which God is working to remove the ill effects of the fall and restore humanity back to the relationship and position that God originally intended.[69]
God is viewed as the creator, whose nature combines both masculinity and femininity, and is the source of all truth, beauty, and goodness. Human beings and the universe reflect God's personality, nature, and purpose.[70] "Give-and-take action" (reciprocal interaction) and "subject and object position" (initiator and responder) are "key interpretive concepts",[71] and the self is designed to be God's object.[71] The purpose of human existence is to return joy to God. The "four-position foundation" (Origin, Subject, Object, and Union) is another important and interpretive concept and explains in part the emphasis on the family.[72]
Moon taught that Jesus was divine but notGod; he was supposed to be the second Adam who would create a perfect family by joining with the ideal wife and creating a pure family that would have begun humanity's liberation from its sinful condition.[33] When Jesus was crucified before marrying, he redeemed mankind spiritually but not physically. That task was left to the "True Parents"—Moon and Han—who would link married couples and their families to God.[14][33][68]
In 1971, Moon moved to the United States, which he had first visited in 1965, and eventually settled into a 35-room mansion on an estate inIrvington, New York.[73] He remained a citizen of South Korea, where he maintained a residence.[74] In 1972, Moon founded theInternational Conference on the Unity of the Sciences, a series of scientific conferences.[18][75] The first conference had 20 participants, while the largest conference in Seoul, in 1982, had 808 participants from over 100 countries.[76][77] Participants includedNobel laureatesJohn Eccles (Physiology or Medicine 1963, who chaired the 1976 conference)[78]andEugene Wigner (Physics 1963).[79]
In 1974, Moon asked church members in the United States to support PresidentRichard Nixon during theWatergate scandal, when Nixon was being pressured to resign his office. Church members prayed and fasted in support of Nixon for three days in front of theUnited States Capitol under the motto: "Forgive, Love and Unite." On 1 February 1974, Nixon publicly thanked them for their support and officially received Moon. This brought the church into widespread public and media attention.[25]
In the 1970s, Moon, who had seldom before spoken to the general public, gave a series of public speeches to audiences in the United States,Japan, and South Korea. The largest was a rally in 1975 against North Korean aggression in Seoul and a speech at an event organized by the Unification Church inWashington, D.C.[19][20]
In 1982, following anIRS investigation, Moon was convicted in the United States ofconspiracy andtax evasion by filing incorrect federalincome tax returns totaling less than$8,000.[80] He refused to stay in Korea and returned to the United States. His conviction was upheld on appeal in a split decision. Moon was given an 18-month sentence and a$15,000 fine. He served 13 months of the sentence at theFederal Correctional Institution, Danbury, before being released on good behavior to ahalfway house.[81]
The case was the center of nationalfreedom of religion andfree speech debates.[82] Prof.Laurence H. Tribe of theHarvard University Law School argued that the trial by jury had "doomed (Moon) to conviction based onreligious prejudice."[83] TheAmerican Baptist Churches in the USA, theNational Council of Churches, theNational Black Catholic Clergy Caucus, and theSouthern Christian Leadership Conference filed briefs in support of Moon.[84] Many notable clergy, includingJerry Falwell andJoseph Lowery, signed petitions protesting the government's case and spoke publicly in defense of Moon.[85][86]Carlton Sherwood, in his bookInquisition, stated that the conviction of Reverend Moon was viewed by Protestant pastors as a humiliation of religious liberty.[87]
After his prison sentence, Moon began calling himself humanity'sMessiah and officially conferred the title of "Messiah" on himself in 1992.[14][1][88]
In 1982,The Washington Times was founded byNews World Communications, an international media conglomerate associated with Moon, which also owned newspapers in South Korea,Japan, andSouth America, as well as thenews agencyUnited Press International.[89] The political views ofThe Washington Times have often been described asconservative.[90][91][92] TheTimes was read by many Washington, DC insiders, includingRonald Reagan.[93][94] By 2002, Moon had invested roughly$1.7 billion to support theTimes,[95] which he called "the instrument in spreading the truth about God to the world."[96]
In 2000, Moon sponsored aUnited Nations conference that proposed the formation of "a religious assembly, or council of religious representatives, within the structure of the United Nations."[97]
In 2003, Moon sponsored the firstPeace Cup international clubsoccer tournament.[98][99][100] TheLos Angeles Galaxy, which competes inMajor League Soccer, played in South Korea in the Peace Cup.[101] During the event,Pelé, widely regarded as the best soccer player of all time and former Brazilian Sports Minister, met with Moon.[102]
In 2009, Moon's autobiography,As a Peace-Loving Global Citizen (Korean:평화를 사랑하는 세계인으로),[103] was published byGimm-Young Publishers in South Korea. The book became abest-seller in Korea and Japan.[104][105][106][107]
By 2010, Moon had given much of the responsibility for the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification religious and business activities to his children, who were then in their 30s and 40s.[108] In 2012, the South Korean press reported that Moon traveled worldwide in hisprivate jet, which cost$50 million.[109][110]
On 14 August 2012, after suffering frompneumonia earlier in the month, Moon was admitted to Saint Mary's Hospital atThe Catholic University of Korea in Seoul.[111] On 15 August 2012, he was reported to be gravely ill and was put on a ventilator at the intensive care unit of St. Mary's.[112] On 31 August 2012, Moon was transferred to a church-owned hospital near his home inGapyeong, northeast ofSeoul,[113] after suffering multiple organ failure.[114] Moon died on the morning of 3 September 2012 (1:54 am KST) at the age of 92.[115]
A two-week mourning period was conducted in honor of him. On 15 September, after a funeral service attended by tens of thousands of Unification Church followers, Moon was buried at a church-owned mansion in Gapyeong.[116]
In 1964, Moon founded theKorean Culture and Freedom Foundation, which promoted the interests of South Korea and sponsored Radio Free Asia. FormerUS PresidentsHarry S Truman,Dwight D. Eisenhower, andRichard Nixon were honorary presidents or directors at various times.[117]
In 1972, Moon offered predictions on the decline ofcommunism, based on the teachings of theDivine Principle: "After 7,000 biblical years—6,000 years of restoration history plus the millennium, the time of completion—communism will fall in its 70th year. Here is the meaning of the year 1978. Communism, begun in 1917, could maintain itself for approximately 60 years and reach its peak. So 1978 is the borderline and afterward, communism will decline; in the 70th year, it will be altogether ruined. This is true. Therefore, now is the time for people who are studying communism to abandon it."[118]
In 1980, Moon asked church members to foundCAUSA International as an anti-communist educational organization, based inNew York.[119] In the 1980s, it was active in 21 countries. In the United States, it sponsored educational conferences for Christian leaders[120] as well as seminars and conferences forSenate staffers and other activists.[121] In 1986, it produced the anti-communist documentary filmNicaragua Was Our Home.[122] CAUSA supported theNicaraguan Contras.[123][48]
In August 1985, theProfessors World Peace Academy, an organization founded by Moon, sponsored a conference inGeneva to debate the theme "The situation in the world after the fall of the communist empire."[124] In April 1990, Moon visited theSoviet Union and met with PresidentMikhail Gorbachev. Moon expressed support for the political and economic transformations underway in the Soviet Union. At the same time, the Unification Church was expanding into formerly communist nations.[26] After thedissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, some American conservatives criticized Moon for his softening of his previousanti-communist stance.[125][126]
In 1991, Moon met withKim Il Sung, then North Korean president, to discuss ways to achieve peace on theKorean peninsula, as well as oninternational relations, tourism, etc.[27] In 1994, Moon was officially invited to the funeral of Kim Il Sung in spite of the absence ofdiplomatic relations between North Korea and South Korea.[127] Moon and his church are known for their efforts to promoteKorean unification.[7]
In 2003, Korean Unification Church members started apolitical party in South Korea. It was named "The Party for God, Peace, Unification, and Home." In its inauguration declaration, the new party said it would focus on preparing for Korean reunification by educating the public about God and peace.[128] Moon was a member of the Honorary Committee of theUnification Ministry of the Republic of Korea.[129] In 2012, Moon was posthumously awarded North Korea'sNational Reunification Prize.[130]
In 2005, Sun Myung Moon and his wife, Hak Ja Han Moon, founded the Universal Peace Federation (UPF), an NGO in Special Consultative Status with theUnited Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). "We support and promote the work of the United Nations and the achievement of theSustainable Development Goals."[131]
Moon's projects have been lobbied in theNational Congress of Brazil by Brazilian MPs.[132][133][134] Moon has held dialogues between members of the IsraeliKnesset and thePalestinian Parliament as part of hisMiddle East Peace Initiatives.[135]
Tongil Group is a South Korean business group (chaebol "Tongil" is Korean for "unification"; the name of the Unification Church in Korean is "Tongilgyo") founded in 1963 by Moon as anonprofit organization to provide revenue for the church. Its core focus was manufacturing, but in the 1970s and 1980s, it expanded by founding or acquiring businesses in pharmaceuticals, tourism, and publishing.[11] Among Tongil Group's chief holdings are: The Ilwha Company, which producesginseng and related products; Ilshin Stone, building materials; and Tongil Heavy Industries, machine parts, including hardware for the South Korean military.[13]
News World Communications is an internationalnews mediacorporation[8] founded by Moon in 1976. It ownsUnited Press International,World and I,Tiempos del Mundo (Latin America),The Segye Ilbo (South Korea),The Sekai Nippo (Japan), theZambezi Times (South Africa), andThe Middle East Times (Egypt).[9] Until 2008, it published the Washington, D.C.-based newsmagazineInsight on the News.[8] Until 2010, it ownedThe Washington Times. On 2 November 2010, Sun Myung Moon and a group of formerTimes editors purchased theTimes from News World.[10]
In 1982, Moon sponsored the filmInchon, ahistorical drama about theBattle of Inchon during theKorean War. It was not successful critically or financially and was criticized for its unfair treatment of the North Korean government.[136]
In 1989, Moon foundedSeongnam Ilhwa Chunma,[137] the second most successful soccer club in South Korea, having won arecord 7 league titles, 2FA Cups,3 League Cups, and 2AFC Champions League titles. Seongnam's record was beaten byJeonbuk Hyundai Motors in 2020.
The church is the largest owner of US sushi restaurants, and in theKodiak region of Alaska is the area's largest employer.[138][139] The church founded the first currently operating automobile manufacturing plant in North Korea,Pyeonghwa Motors, and is the second largest exporter of Korean goods.[140][141][142][143]
In 2011, construction of the$18 million Yeosu Expo Hotel was completed; the hotel is located at the Moon-owned Ocean Resort inYeosu, the venue ofExpo 2012.[144] The opening ceremony was attended by the governor of the province.[144][145] Another one, the Ocean Hotel, was completed in February 2012.[146] Moon-owned Yeongpyeong Resort, Ocean Resort, and Pineridge Resort were scheduled to hostExpo 2012,[147] the2018 Winter Olympics,[148][149] andFormula 1.[150] Moon also managed theFIFA-accreditedPeace Cup.[151] The FIFA itself has funded more than$2 million for the Peace Cup since 2003.[152]
Moon took a strong stance againstracism andracial discrimination. In 1974, he urged Unification Church members to support an African-American president of the United States: "We have had enough of white presidents. So, let's this time elect a president from the Negro race. What will you do if I say so? There's no question there. We must never forget that we are brothers and sisters in a huge human family. In any level of community, we must become like a family."[153]
In 1981, he said that he himself was a victim of racial prejudice in the United States (concerning his prosecution on tax charges inUnited States v. Sun Myung Moon), saying: "I would not be standing here today if my skin were white or my religion wasPresbyterian. I am here today only because my skin is yellow and my religion is the Unification Church. The ugliest things in this beautiful country of America are religious bigotry and racism."[154]
Several African American organizations and individuals spoke out in defense of Moon at this time, including theNational Black Catholic Clergy Caucus, theSouthern Christian Leadership Conference, theNational Conference of Black Mayors,[155] andJoseph Lowery, who was then the head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.[21]
In a later controversy over the use of the word"Moonie" (which was said to be offensive) by the American news media, Moon's position was supported by civil rights activistsRalph Abernathy[156][157][158] andJames Bevel.[159]
In 2000, Moon andNation of Islam leaderLouis Farrakhan got together to sponsor theMillion Family March,[160] a rally inWashington, D.C. to celebrate family unity and racial and religious harmony as well as to address other issues, including abortion, capital punishment, health care, education, welfare,Social Security reform, substance abuse prevention, and overhaul of theWorld Bank andInternational Monetary Fund.[161] In his keynote speech, Farrakhan called for racial harmony.[162]
In 1962, Moon and other church members founded theLittle Angels Children's Folk Ballet of Korea, a children's dance troupe that presents traditionalKorean folk dances. He said that this was to project a positive image of South Korea to the world.[163] In 1984, Moon founded the$8 millionUniversal Ballet project, with Soviet-born Oleg Vinogradov as itsart director and Moon's daughter-in-lawJulia as itsprima ballerina. It was described byThe New York Times as the topballet company in Asia.[164] In 1989, Moon founded Universal Ballet Academy, which later changed its name toKirov Academy of Ballet, inWashington, D.C.[165]
The Unification Church ownsTrue World Foods, which controls a major portion of thesushi trade in the US.[166][167] True World Foods' parent company is the corporate conglomerateTrue World Group, which operates restaurants and markets.[168]
The Unification Church's into the seafood industry began at the direction of Moon, who ordered an expansion into "the oceanic providence." In 1976 and 1977, the Unification Church invested nearly a million dollars into the American seafood industry.[166] Moon delivered a speech in 1980 entitled "The Way of Tuna", in which he claimed that "After we build the boats, we catch the fish and process them for the market, and then have a distribution network. This is not just on the drawing board; I have already done it" and declared himself the "king of the ocean." He also suggested that they could get around the recently imposed 200-nautical-mileexclusive economic zone by marrying American and Japanese members, allowing the Japanese ones to become American citizens, because once married, "we are not foreigners; therefore Japanese brothers, particularly those matched to Americans, are becoming ... leaders for fishing and distribution." He also declared that "Gloucester is almost a Moonie town now!"[166]
Later in 1980, Moon gave a sermon in which he said, "This ocean business is really reserved for Unification Church. How much income would this business generate? Roughly speaking, enough money to buy the entire world. That's true! It has unlimited potential."[168] In 1986, he advised his followers to open a thousand restaurants in America.[166]
The Unification Church owns Master Marine (a shipbuilding and fishing company inAlabama)[169] and International Seafood ofKodiak, Alaska.[170][171] In 2011, Master Marine opened a factory inLas Vegas,Nevada, to manufacture a 27-foot pleasure boat designed by Moon.[172][173]
Moon heldhonorary degrees from more than ten universities and colleges worldwide,[174][175][176] at least one of which, theUniversity of Bridgeport, received significant funding from his organizations.[1] He was a member of the Honorary Committee of theUnification Ministry of South Korea.[177] In 1985, he and his wife receivedDoctor of Divinity degrees fromShaw University.[178]
In 2004, Moon was honored as theMessiah at an event in theDirksen Senate Office Building,Washington, D.C. This attracted much public attention and was criticized byThe New York Times andThe Washington Post as a possible violation of the principle ofseparation of church and state in the United States. Some of the political figures who had attended the event later told reporters that they had been misled as to its nature.[179][180]
Several months after his death, an award named after him and his wife (theSunhak Peace Prize) was proposed, inheriting his will to "recognize and empower innovations in human development, conflict resolution, and ecological conservation." Its laureates receive a certificate, a medal, and$1 million.[181]
Moon was posthumously awarded North Korea'sNational Reunification Prize in 2012[130] and a meritorious award byK-League.[182][183] On the first anniversary of Moon's death, North Korean leaderKim Jong Un expressed condolences to Han and the family, saying: "Kim Jong Un prayed for the repose of Moon, who worked hard for national concord, prosperity and reunification and world peace."[184]
In 2013,ZimbabweanPrime MinisterMorgan Tsvangirai stated: "I remain greatly inspired by people like Reverend Dr. Sun Myung Moon, whose work and life across continents continue to impact positively on the lives of millions of others in the world."[185]
In 2021, presidentDonald Trump praised Moon in an event linked to theUnification Church.[186] Previously, such events held by Unification Church, named Rally of Hope, gathered speakers from the Trump Administration: e.g., former Vice PresidentMike Pence, former Secretary of StateMike Pompeo, and advisorPaula White.[187]
Moon's claim to be theMessiah and theSecond Coming of Christ has been rejected by most Jewish and Christian scholars.[188][189] TheDivine Principle was labeled asheretical by Protestant churches in South Korea, including Moon's ownPresbyterian Church. In the United States, it was rejected by ecumenical organizations as being non-Christian.[3] Protestant commentators have also criticized Moon's teachings as being contrary to the Protestant doctrine ofsalvation by faith alone.[190][191] In their influential bookThe Kingdom of the Cults (first published in 1965),Walter Ralston Martin andRavi K. Zacharias disagreed with theDivine Principle on the issues of thedivinity of Christ, thevirgin birth of Jesus, Moon's belief thatJesus should have married, the necessity of thecrucifixion of Jesus, a literalresurrection of Jesus, as well as a literalsecond coming of Jesus.[192] Commentators have criticized theDivine Principle for saying that theFirst World War, theSecond World War, theHolocaust, and theCold War served asindemnity conditions to prepare the world for the establishment of theKingdom of God.[193]
During theCold War, Moon was criticized by both themainstream media and thealternative media for hisanti-communist activism, which many said could lead toWorld War III and anuclear holocaust.[194] Moon's anti-communist activities received financial support from controversial Japanese millionaire and activistRyōichi Sasakawa.[195][196] In 1977, theSubcommittee on International Organizations of the Committee on International Relations of theUnited States House of Representatives, while investigating theKoreagate scandal, found that theSouth Korean National Intelligence Service (KCIA) had worked with the Unification Church to gain political influence within the United States, with some members working as volunteers in Congressional offices. Together, they founded the Korean Cultural Freedom Foundation, a nonprofit organization that undertookpublic diplomacy for the Republic of Korea.[197] The committee also investigated possible KCIA influence on Moon's campaign in support ofRichard Nixon.[198] After thedissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, some American conservatives criticized Moon for his softening of his previous anti-communist stance.[125][126]
In the 1990s, when Moon began to offer the Unification marriage blessing ceremony to members of other churches and religions, he was criticized for creating possible confusion.[199] In 1998, journalistPeter Maass, writing forThe New Yorker, reported that some Unification members were dismayed and also grumbled when Moon extended the Blessing to non-members, who had not gone through the same course that members had.[200] In 2001, Moon came into conflict with theRoman Catholic Church when 71-year-old Catholic archbishopEmmanuel Milingo and Maria Sung, a 43-year-oldKorean acupuncturist, married in a blessing ceremony, presided over by Moon and his wife. Following his marriage, the archbishop was called to the Vatican byPope John Paul II, where he was asked not to see his wife anymore and to move to a Capuchin monastery. Sung went on a hunger strike to protest their separation. This attracted much media attention.[24] Milingo is now an advocate of the removal of the requirement forcelibacy by priests in the Catholic Church. He is the founder of theMarried Priests Now! advocacy group.[201]
In 1998, the Egyptian newspaperAl-Ahram criticized Moon's possible relationship with Israeli Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu and wrote thatThe Washington Times editorial policy was "rabidly anti-Arab, anti-Muslim and pro-Israel."[202][203]
In 2000, Moon was criticized, including by some members of his church, for his support of controversialNation of Islam leaderLouis Farrakhan'sMillion Family March.[28] Moon was also criticized for his relationship with controversial Jewish scholarRichard L. Rubenstein, an advocate of the "death of God theology" of the 1960s.[204] Rubenstein was a defender of theUnification Church and served on its advisory council,[205] and on the board of directors ofThe Washington Times, a church-owned newspaper.[206] In the 1990s, he served as president of theUniversity of Bridgeport, which was then affiliated with the church.[207]
In 2003,George D. Chryssides of theUniversity of Wolverhampton criticized Moon for introducing doctrines that tended to divide the Christian church rather than uniting it, which was his stated purpose in founding the Unification movement (originally named the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity).[3] In his 2009 autobiography, Moon himself wrote that he did not originally intend on founding a separate denomination.[208]
Moon opposed homosexuality and compared gay people to "dirty dung-eating dogs".[209] He said that "gays will be eliminated" in a "purge on God's orders".[210]
In 2009, Moon's support for theJapan-Korea Undersea Tunnel was criticized in Japan and South Korea as a possible threat to both nations' interests andnational identities.[211]
Other criticisms include Moon's apparent neglect of his wife,Hak Ja Han, and his appointments of their children and their spouses to leadership positions in the church and related businesses, including their daughterIn Jin Moon to the presidency of theUnification Church of the United States against the wishes of some church members; his support of conservatives within the government of South Korea; his assignment of movement members and resources to business projects and political activism, includingThe Washington Times; as well as the relationship between theUnification Church and Islam, especially following theSeptember 11 attacks in New York City.[48]
TheDivine Principle itself says about Moon: "With the fullness of time, God has sent one person to this earth to resolve the fundamental problems of human life and the universe. His name is Sun Myung Moon. For several decades he wandered through the spirit world so vast as to be beyond imagining. He trod a bloody path of suffering in search of the truth, passing through tribulations that God alone remembers. Since he understood that no one can find the ultimate truth to save humanity without first passing through the bitterest of trials, he fought alone against millions of devils, both in the spiritual and physical worlds, and triumphed over them all. Through intimate spiritual communion with God and by meeting with Jesus and many saints in Paradise, he brought to light all the secrets of Heaven."[212]
In 1978, Rodney Sawatsky wrote in an article inTheology Today: "Why trust Rev. Moon's dreams and visions of the new age and his role in it, we ask? Most converts actually have had minimal contact with him. Frederick Sontag (Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church, Abingdon, 1977), in his interviews with Moon, appears to have found a pleasant but not overwhelming personality. Charisma, as traditionally understood, seems hardly applicable here. Rather, Moon provides a model. He suffered valiantly, he knows confidently, he prays assuredly, and he lives lovingly, say his followers. The Divine Principle is not an unrealizable ideal; it is incarnate in a man, it lives, it is imitable. His truth is experienced to be their truth. His explanation of the universe becomes their understanding of themselves and the world in which they live."[188]
In 1980,sociologistIrving Louis Horowitz commented: "The Reverend Moon is a fundamentalist with a vengeance. He has a belief system that admits of no boundaries or limits, an all-embracing truth. His writings exhibit a holistic concern for the person, society, nature, and all things embraced by the human vision. In this sense the concept underwriting the Unification Church is apt, for its primary drive and appeal is unity, urging a paradigm of the essence in an overly complicated world of existence. It is a ready-made doctrine for impatient young people and all those for whom the pursuit of the complex has become a tiresome and fruitless venture."[213]
In 1998,investigative journalistPeter Maass wrote in an article inThe New Yorker: "There are, certainly, differing degrees of devotion among Moon's followers; the fact that they bow at the right moment or shoutMansei! in unison doesn't mean they believe everything Moon says, or do precisely what he commands. Even on important issues, like Moon's claiming to be the messiah, there are church members whom I met, including a close aide to Moon, who demur. A religious leader whom they respect and whose theology they believe, yes; the messiah, perhaps not."[214]
In his 2004 bookThe New Religious Movement Experience in America,Eugene V. Gallagher wrote: "TheDivine Principle's analysis of the Fall sets the stage for the mission of Rev. Moon, who in the last days brings a revelation that offers humankind the chance to return to an Edenic state. The account in theDivine Principle offers Unificationists a comprehensive context for understanding humansuffering."[215]
The Rev. Sun Myung Moon, founder of the Unification Church, has died at the age of 92 in Korea. Unification church members viewed him as a messiah, despite allegations of cult-like behavior and financial fraud. Moon was known for presiding over mass weddings and starting the conservative newspaperThe Washington Times.
The Rev. Sun Myung Moon was a self-proclaimed messiah who built a global business empire. He called both North Korean leaders and American presidents his friends, but spent time in prisons in both countries. His followers around the world cherished him, while his detractors accused him of brainwashing recruits and extracting money from worshippers.
News World Communications is the media arm of Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church. Holdings: Newspapers and Magazines: GolfStyles Magazine, Middle Eastern Times, The Segye Ilbo (South Korea), The Sekai Nippo (Tokyo), Tiempos del Mundo (Online Only),World and I. Wire Service:United Press International (UPI).
The Unification Church, whose Tongil Group ranks about 35th in size among South Korean conglomerates, appears to have Seoul's permission to discuss possible investments with North Korea. Tongil, which means "unification" in Korean, owns factories and a chain of small stores in the South.
Moon was born in what would become North Korea in 1920 to a family that followed Confucian beliefs, but when he was 10 years old the family converted to Christianity and joined the Presbyterian church.
self-professed messiah who claimed millions of religious followers in his Unification Church and sought to become a powerful voice in the American conservative movement through business interests
The church's most spectacular rite remains mass weddings, which the church calls the way "fallen men and women can be engrafted into the true lineage of God."
Church and stadium officials estimated that more than 40,000 people, mostly couples, attended the event, including the Moon-matched couples who took their marriage vows on the football field and exchanged gold rings displaying the church symbol. Those couples, however, must still fulfill whatever requirements exist where they live to be considered legally married.
The real weddings were held later in separate legal ceremonies.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)The colors, sounds, and heritage of South Korea will come alive tonight as the Little Angels, an all-girls Korean folk ballet company, performs in the Ritz Theatre in Tiffin... The company was founded in 1962 by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon and his wife, Hak Ja Han, as a way to project a positive image of the country...
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
