Sun Myung Moon: Difference between revisions
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In the 1940s, Moon, who at that time was still known by his birth name Mun Yong-myung, attended a church in Sangdo dong that was led by the messianic minister Kim Baek-moon. Kim claimed that he had been approached by Jesus on Gangsan mountain, and was given the mission to spread the message of a "new Israel” throughout the world.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Breen|first1=Michael|title=Sun Myung Moon : the early years 1920-53|date=1997|publisher=Refuge Books|location=Hurstpierpoint West Sussex, U.K. .|isbn=978-0953163700|pages=69, 173}}</ref> Kim wrote down his revelations in a book titled, ''The Fundamental Christian Principles''. It was around this same time that Moon, whose given name means dragon, changed his name to Mun Seon-myeong, and began to claim that Jesus had appeared to him years earlier and had given him a similar mission. Moon eventually helped to develop his own book titled, ''The Original Text of the Divine Principle'' (later changed to the ''Exposition of the Divine Principle'', and later changed again to the ''[[Divine Principle]]''). There are similarities in both men's work related to the Principles of Creation, the Fall, and Restoration.<ref>{{cite web|title=Moon Organization|url=https://freedomofmind.com/index.php/Info/infoDet.php?id=137|website=freedomofmind.com|accessdate=2015-11-29}}</ref> Moon himself stated that Kim was a "[[John the Baptist]] figure".<ref>{{cite web|last1=Moon|first1=Sun Myung|title=Sun Myung Moon’s Life In His Own Words. Part 9: Liberation and Aftermath|url=http://www.tparents.org/Moon-Books/SunMyungMoon-Life/SunMyungMoon-Life-09.htm|website=tparents.org|accessdate=1 December 2015}}</ref> Critics argue that Moon simply imitated Kim.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Divine Principle ‘parallels of history’ predicted the messiah would come in 1917. He did. His name was Kim Baek-moon, born on October 19, 1917. Kim wrote the ‘parallels of history.’ Moon stole them. That is why 1917 does not match up with Moon’s 1920 birth.|url=http://howwelldoyouknowyourmoon.tumblr.com/post/107628107973/the-divine-principle-parallels-of-history|website=http://howwelldoyouknowyourmoon.tumblr.com/|accessdate=1 December 2015}}</ref> |
In the 1940s, Moon, who at that time was still known by his birth name Mun Yong-myung, attended a church in Sangdo dong that was led by the messianic minister Kim Baek-moon. Kim claimed that he had been approached by Jesus on Gangsan mountain, and was given the mission to spread the message of a "new Israel” throughout the world.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Breen|first1=Michael|title=Sun Myung Moon : the early years 1920-53|date=1997|publisher=Refuge Books|location=Hurstpierpoint West Sussex, U.K. .|isbn=978-0953163700|pages=69, 173}}</ref> Kim wrote down his revelations in a book titled, ''The Fundamental Christian Principles''. It was around this same time that Moon, whose given name means dragon, changed his name to Mun Seon-myeong, and began to claim that Jesus had appeared to him years earlier and had given him a similar mission. Moon eventually helped to develop his own book titled, ''The Original Text of the Divine Principle'' (later changed to the ''Exposition of the Divine Principle'', and later changed again to the ''[[Divine Principle]]''). There are similarities in both men's work related to the Principles of Creation, the Fall, and Restoration.<ref>{{cite web|title=Moon Organization|url=https://freedomofmind.com/index.php/Info/infoDet.php?id=137|website=freedomofmind.com|accessdate=2015-11-29}}</ref> Moon himself stated that Kim was a "[[John the Baptist]] figure".<ref>{{cite web|last1=Moon|first1=Sun Myung|title=Sun Myung Moon’s Life In His Own Words. Part 9: Liberation and Aftermath|url=http://www.tparents.org/Moon-Books/SunMyungMoon-Life/SunMyungMoon-Life-09.htm|website=tparents.org|accessdate=1 December 2015}}</ref> Critics argue that Moon simply imitated Kim.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Divine Principle ‘parallels of history’ predicted the messiah would come in 1917. He did. His name was Kim Baek-moon, born on October 19, 1917. Kim wrote the ‘parallels of history.’ Moon stole them. That is why 1917 does not match up with Moon’s 1920 birth.|url=http://howwelldoyouknowyourmoon.tumblr.com/post/107628107973/the-divine-principle-parallels-of-history|website=http://howwelldoyouknowyourmoon.tumblr.com/|accessdate=1 December 2015}}</ref> |
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It was around that same time that Moon joined a Christian-based cult that engaged in a “cleansing of the womb” sex ritual called the ''picareum''. In 1993, one of Moon's original followers, Chung Hwa Pak, wrote a book titled ''The Tragedy of the Six Marys'', in which he claimed that Moon engaged in picareum while in the Unification Church. A year after publishing the book, Pak rejoined the church and issued a retraction.<ref>{{cite web|title=Retraction of The Tragedy of the Six Marys|url=http://www.tparents.org/library/unification/talks/pak/Chung-Hwa-Pak-Retraction.htm|website=tparents.org|accessdate=30 November 2015}}</ref> Other early members, such as Hyo-min Eu, said that the allegations were true. Eu's sister claimed to personally have had restorational sexual relations with Moon.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tragedy of the Six Marys|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6n6Mnts_tkY|website=youtube. |
It was around that same time that Moon joined a Christian-based cult that engaged in a “cleansing of the womb” sex ritual called the ''picareum''. In 1993, one of Moon's original followers, Chung Hwa Pak, wrote a book titled ''The Tragedy of the Six Marys'', in which he claimed that Moon engaged in picareum while in the Unification Church. A year after publishing the book, Pak rejoined the church and issued a retraction.<ref>{{cite web|title=Retraction of The Tragedy of the Six Marys|url=http://www.tparents.org/library/unification/talks/pak/Chung-Hwa-Pak-Retraction.htm|website=tparents.org|accessdate=30 November 2015}}</ref> Other early members, such as Hyo-min Eu, said that the allegations were true. Eu's sister claimed to personally have had restorational sexual relations with Moon.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tragedy of the Six Marys|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6n6Mnts_tkY|website=youtube.com|accessdate=30 November 2015}}</ref> In her 1998 book, ''In the Shadow of the Moons'', Moon's daughter-in-law Nan Sook Hong wrote that Moon's sexual indiscretions were explained to her by “True Parents” as having “providential” significance. Another early member, Annie Choi, said that she personally engaged in numerous picareum sessions with Moon, along with at least six other female members.<ref name="https">{{cite web|last1=Blake|first1=Mariah|title=The Fall of the House of Moon: Sex rituals, foreign spies, Biden offspring, and the Unification Church's war-torn first family|url=https://newrepublic.com/article/115512/unification-church-profile-fall-house-moon|website=newrepublic.com|accessdate=30 November 2015}}</ref> |
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The ''Divine Principle'' was labeled as [[Heresy|heretical]] by Protestant churches in South Korea, including Moon’s own [[Presbyterian Church]]. In the United States it was rejected by ecumenical organizations as being non-Christian, especially because of its addition of material to the [[Bible]] and for its rejection of a literal [[Second Coming]] of Jesus.<ref name="Chryssides2003">[http://www.cesnur.org/2003/vil2003_chryssides.htm Unifying or Dividing? Sun Myung Moon and the Origins of the Unification Church] George D. Chryssides, University of Wolverhampton, U.K. 2003, Since doctrine looms large in Christian thought, it is understandable that its objections to Unificationism are principally on doctrinal grounds. Although the Christian counter-cult literature does not always expound Unification teachings fairly, it is almost unanimous in identifying the respects in which Unificationism diverges from mainstream Christianity: it is unbiblical; teaches erroneous doctrines of God, Christ and salvation; Divine Principle usurps the status of the Judaeo-Christian Bible; it teaches that Jesus did not fully accomplish his mission and that a new messiah is needed to complete it; it introduces new rituals and forms of worship; and it is spiritist. As new religions progress, they occasionally gain acceptance into the mainstream fold, as happened with Seventh-day Adventism, and, even more strikingly, with the Worldwide Church of God. At the turn of the 21st century, however, Unificationism seems no more likely to gain recognition by mainstream Christians.</ref> Protestant commentators have also criticized Unification Church teachings as being contrary to the Protestant doctrine of [[Sola fide|salvation by faith alone]].<ref name="Daske, D 2005, p142"/><ref name="Yamamoto, J 1995, p40"/> 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 of Jesus]].<ref name="Walter Ralston Martin 2003, pages 368-370"/> |
The ''Divine Principle'' was labeled as [[Heresy|heretical]] by Protestant churches in South Korea, including Moon’s own [[Presbyterian Church]]. In the United States it was rejected by ecumenical organizations as being non-Christian, especially because of its addition of material to the [[Bible]] and for its rejection of a literal [[Second Coming]] of Jesus.<ref name="Chryssides2003">[http://www.cesnur.org/2003/vil2003_chryssides.htm Unifying or Dividing? Sun Myung Moon and the Origins of the Unification Church] George D. Chryssides, University of Wolverhampton, U.K. 2003, Since doctrine looms large in Christian thought, it is understandable that its objections to Unificationism are principally on doctrinal grounds. Although the Christian counter-cult literature does not always expound Unification teachings fairly, it is almost unanimous in identifying the respects in which Unificationism diverges from mainstream Christianity: it is unbiblical; teaches erroneous doctrines of God, Christ and salvation; Divine Principle usurps the status of the Judaeo-Christian Bible; it teaches that Jesus did not fully accomplish his mission and that a new messiah is needed to complete it; it introduces new rituals and forms of worship; and it is spiritist. As new religions progress, they occasionally gain acceptance into the mainstream fold, as happened with Seventh-day Adventism, and, even more strikingly, with the Worldwide Church of God. At the turn of the 21st century, however, Unificationism seems no more likely to gain recognition by mainstream Christians.</ref> Protestant commentators have also criticized Unification Church teachings as being contrary to the Protestant doctrine of [[Sola fide|salvation by faith alone]].<ref name="Daske, D 2005, p142"/><ref name="Yamamoto, J 1995, p40"/> 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 of Jesus]].<ref name="Walter Ralston Martin 2003, pages 368-370"/> |
Revision as of 15:51, 2 December 2015
Sun Myung Moon | |
---|---|
Born | Mun Yong-myeong 25 February 1920 |
Died | 3 September 2012 | (aged 92)
Nationality | Korean |
Occupation(s) | Religious leader, businessperson, media mogul, political activist |
Known for | Founder of Unification Church |
Spouse(s) | Choi Sun-kil (1944–1953) Hak Ja Han (1960–2012) |
Children | 16 |
Korean name | |
Hangul | 문선명 |
Hanja | |
Revised Romanization | Mun Seon-myeong |
McCune–Reischauer | Mun Sŏnmyŏng |
Birth name | |
Hangul | 문용명 |
Hanja | 文龍明 |
Revised Romanization | Mun Yong-myeong |
McCune–Reischauer | Mun Yongmyŏng |
Sun Myung Moon (Korean 문선명 Mun Seon-myeong; born Mun Yong-myeong; 25 February 1920 – 3 September 2012) was a Korean religious leader, businessperson, political activist, and media mogul.[1][2] A messiah claimant, he was the founder of the Unification Church (members of which have sometimes been called "Moonies" and called him their True Father), and of its widely noted "Blessing" or mass wedding ceremony, and the author of its unique theology the Divine Principle.[3][4][5] He was an ardent anti-communist and advocate for Korean reunification, for which he was recognized by the governments of both South and North Korea.[6] His business interests included News World Communications, an international news media corporation known for its American subsidiary The Washington Times,[7][8][9] and Tongil Group, a South Korean business group (chaebol),[10][11][12] as well as various affiliated organizations.[1][13]
Moon was born in what is now North Korea. When he was a child, his family converted to Christianity.[14] In 1947 he was convicted by the North Korean government of spying for South Korea and given a five-year sentence to the Hŭngnam labor camp.[15] In 1954, he founded the Unification Church in Seoul, South Korea based on conservative, family-oriented teachings from new interpretations of the Bible,[14][15] for which he has been criticized, especially by Protestant scholars.[16][17][18]
In 1971, Moon moved to the United States,[19] and became a leading figure in a wave of new religious movements that were then raising controversy on several issues,[1] with critics labeling him a cult leader, who made high demands on his followers.[20][21][22] In the 1982 case United States v. Sun Myung Moon he was charged by the United States government with willfully filing false federal income tax returns, found guilty in a jury trial, and sentenced to 18 months in federal prison. His case generated protests from clergy and civil libertarians.[5][23][24][25][26][27] Other controversial events in Moon's life included his presiding over the 2001 wedding of Roman Catholic archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, against the wishes of the Catholic Church including Pope John Paul II;[28][29] and his 2004 "coronation" as the Messiah in a ceremony attended by United States lawmakers.[30][31]
Early life
Sun Myung Moon was born Mun Yong-myeong on 25 February 1920, in modern-day North P'yŏng'an Province, North Korea, at a time when Korea was under Japanese rule. He was the younger of two sons in a farming family of eight children.[15] Moon's family rejected the Shinto faith pushed by the country’s Japanese rulers and followed Confucianist beliefs until he was around 10 years old, when they converted to Christianity and joined the Presbyterian Church.[32] When he was 15, Moon said that Jesus Christ anointed him to carry out his unfinished work by becoming parent to all of humanity.[4][22][33]
In 1941, Moon began studying electrical engineering at Waseda University in Japan.[20] During this time he cooperated with Communist Party members in the Korean independence movement against Imperial Japan.[34] In 1943, he returned to Seoul and married Sun Kil Choi on 28 April 1945. On 2 April 1946 their son, Sung Jin Moon was born.[1]
Following World War II, Korea was divided along the 38th parallel into two trusteeships: the United States and the Soviet Union.[22][35] Pyongyang was the center of Christian activity in Korea until 1945. From the late forties 166 priests and other religious figures were killed or disappeared in concentration camps, including Francis Hong Yong-ho, bishop of Pyongyang[36] and all monks of Tokwon abbey.[37][38] In 1947 Moon was convicted by the North Korean government of spying for South Korea and given a five-year sentence to the Hŭngnam labor camp.[15] In 1950, during the Korean War United Nations troops had raided Hŭngnam and the guards fled. Moon escaped and traveled to Busan, South Korea.[39][40][41]
Founding the Unification Church
Moon emerged from his years in the labor camp as a staunch anti-communist.[15] His teachings viewed the Cold War between democracy and communism as the final conflict between God and Satan, with divided Korea as its primary front line.[42] At his new church, he preached a conservative, family-oriented value system and his interpretation of the Bible.[5][43] In 1954, Moon formally founded the Unification Church as the "Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity" in Seoul. He quickly drew young acolytes who helped to build the foundations of church affiliated business and cultural organizations.[15][44] On 8 January 1957, Moon and Choi divorced.[1]
Doctrine
The Divine Principle or Exposition of the Divine Principle (Korean 원리강론/原理講論, translit. wonli ganglon) is the main theological textbook of the Unification Church. It was co-written by Moon and early disciple Hyo Won Eu and first published in 1966. A translation entitled Divine Principle was published in English in 1973. The book lays out the core of Unification theology, and is held to have the status of scripture 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.[45]
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.[46] "Give-and-take action" (reciprocal interaction) and "subject and object position" (initiator and responder) are "key interpretive concepts",[47] and the self is designed to be God's object.[47] The purpose of human existence is to return joy to God. The "four-position foundation" is "another important and interpretive concept", and explains in part the emphasis on the family.[48]
Second marriage and blessing ceremonies
Marriage to Hak Ja Han
Moon married his second wife, Hak Ja Han, on 11 April 1960, soon after she turned 17 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".[49][50][51][52][53][54] Moon has said that Jesus called upon him to carry out his unfinished work, including his failure to marry.[24] Jesus was divine but not God; 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.[20] 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.[13][20][33]
Blessing ceremonies
Moon was renowned for presiding over mass "blessing ceremonies", the most famous ritual of the Unification Church.[5][22][32][55] In church doctrine, this ceremony removes couples from the lineage of sinful humanity and grafts them into God’s sinless lineage.[22][32]
Blessing ceremonies have attracted a lot of attention in the press and in the public imagination, often being labeled "mass weddings".[56] However, in most cases the Blessing ceremony is not a legal wedding ceremony. Some couples are already married and those that are engaged are later legally married according to the laws of their own countries.[57][58] Meant to highlight the church's emphasis on traditional morality, they brought Moon both fame and notoriety.[59][60]
36 couples participated in the first ceremony in 1961 for members of the early church in Seoul, South Korea. The ceremonies continued to grow in scale; over 2,000 couples participated in the 1982 one at New York's Madison Square Garden, the first outside South Korea.[14][20] In 1997, about 30,000 couples took part in a ceremony in Washington, DC.[61]
Moon matched couples from differing races and nationalities as part 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."[5][14][33]
Move to United States
In 1971, Moon moved to the United States, which he had first visited in 1965. He remained a citizen of the Republic of Korea and maintained a residence in South Korea.[62] In 1972, Moon founded the International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences, a series of scientific conferences.[19][63] The first conference had 20 participants, while the largest conference in Seoul in 1982, had 808 participants from over 100 countries.[64][65] Participants included Nobel laureates John Eccles (Physiology or Medicine 1963, who chaired the 1976 conference),[66] Eugene Wigner (Physics 1963).[67]
In 1974, Moon asked church members in the United States to support President Richard Nixon during the Watergate 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 the United 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.[68]
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 were a rally in 1975 against North Korean aggression in Seoul and a speech at an event organized by the Unification Church in Washington D.C.[69][70]
United States v. Sun Myung Moon
In 1982, Moon was convicted in the United States of filing false federal income tax returns and conspiracy. 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 the Federal Correctional Institution, Danbury before being released on good behavior to a halfway house.[71]
The case was the center of national freedom of religion and free speech debates.[72] Prof. Laurence H. Tribe of the Harvard University Law School argued that the trial by jury had "doomed (Moon) to conviction based on religious prejudice."[73] 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.[74] Many notable clergy, including Jerry Falwell and Joseph Lowery, signed petitions protesting the government's case and spoke out in defense of Moon.[75][76]
Washington Times
In 1982 The Washington Times was founded by News World Communications, an international media conglomerate associated with Moon which also owns newspapers in South Korea, Japan, and South America, as well as the news agency United Press International.[77] The political views of The Washington Times have often been described as conservative.[78][79][80] The Times is read by Washington DC insiders (most of whom also read the more successful Washington Post), notably Ronald Reagan, but has never been a financial success.[81][82] By 2002 Moon had invested roughly $1.7 billion to support the Times,[83] which he called "the instrument in spreading the truth about God to the world".[84]
Twenty-first century events
In 2000, Moon sponsored a United Nations conference which proposed the formation of "a religious assembly, or council of religious representatives, within the structure of the United Nations."[85]
In 2003, Moon sponsored the first Peace Cup international club football tournament.[86][87][88] The Los Angeles Galaxy, which competes in Major League Soccer, played in South Korea in the Peace Cup.[89] During the event Pelé, widely regarded as the best soccer player of all time and former Brazilian Sports Minister, met with Moon.[90]
In 2003, George D. Chryssides of the University of Wolverhampton criticized Moon for introducing doctrines which tended to divide the Christian church rather than uniting it, which was his stated purpose in founding the Unification Church (originally named the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity).[49]
In April 2008, Moon appointed his youngest son, Hyung Jin Moon, to be the new leader of the Unification Church and the worldwide Unification Movement, saying, "I hope everyone helps him so that he may fulfil his duty as the successor of the True Parents."[91]
In 2009, Moon's autobiography, As a Peace-Loving Global Citizen (Template:Lang-ko),[92] was published by Gimm-Young Publishers in South Korea. The book became a best-seller in Korea and Japan.[93][94][95][96]
By 2010, Moon had given much of the responsibility for the Unification Church's religious and business activities to his children, who were then in their 30s and 40s.[97] In 2012, the South Korean press reported that Moon traveled worldwide in his private jet which cost $50 million.[98][99]
Illness and death
On 14 August 2012, after suffering from pneumonia earlier in the month, Moon was admitted to Saint Mary's Hospital at The Catholic University of Korea in Seoul.[100] On 15 August 2012, he was reported to be gravely ill and was put on a respirator at the intensive care unit of St. Mary’s Hospital.[101] On 31 August 2012, Moon was transferred to a church-owned hospital near his home in Gapyeong, northeast of Seoul,[102] after suffering multiple organ failure.[103] Moon died on the morning of 3 September 2012 (1:54 am KST) at the age of 92.[104]
Activities and interests
Politics
In 1964 Moon founded the Korean Culture and Freedom Foundation, which promoted the interests of South Korea and sponsored Radio Free Asia. Former U.S. Presidents Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Nixon were honorary presidents or directors at various times.[105]
In 1972 Moon predicted the decline of communism, based on the teachings of the Divine 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 approximately 60 years and reach its peak. So 1978 is the border line 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."[106]
In 1980, Moon asked church members to found CAUSA International as an anti-communist educational organization, based in New York.[107] In the 1980s, it was active in 21 countries. In the United States it sponsored educational conferences for Christian leaders[108] as well as seminars and conferences for Senate staffers and other activists.[109] In 1986, it produced the anti-communist documentary film Nicaragua Was Our Home.[110]
In August 1985, seven years before the fall of Soviet Union, the Professors World Peace Academy, an organization founded by Moon, sponsored a conference in Geneva to debate the theme "The situation in the world after the fall of the communist empire."[111]
In April 1990, Moon visited the Soviet Union and met with President Mikhail Gorbachev. Moon expressed support for the political and economic transformations under way in the Soviet Union. At the same time the Unification Church was expanding into formerly communist nations.[112] In 1991, he met with Kim Il Sung, the North Korean President, to discuss ways to achieve peace on the Korean peninsula, as well as on international relations, tourism, etc.[113] In 1994, Moon was officially invited to the funeral of Kim Il Sung, in spite of the absence of diplomatic relations between North Korea and South Korea.[114]
Moon and his church are known for their efforts to promote Korean unification.[6] In 2003, Korean Unification Church members started a political 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.[115] Moon was a member of the Honorary Committee of the Unification Ministry of the Republic of Korea.[116] In 2012 Moon was posthumously awarded North Korea's National Reunification Prize.[117]
Moon's projects have been lobbied in the National Congress of Brazil by Brazilian MPs.[118][119][120] Moon has held dialogues between members of the Israeli Knesset and the Palestinian Parliament as part of his Middle East Peace Initiatives.[121]
Business
News World Communications, is an international news media corporation[7] founded by Moon in 1976. It owns United Press International, The World and I, Tiempos del Mundo (Latin America), The Segye Ilbo (South Korea), The Sekai Nippo (Japan), the Zambezi Times (South Africa), The Middle East Times (Egypt).[8] Until 2008 it published the Washington D.C.-based newsmagazine Insight on the News.[7] Until 2010, it owned the Washington Times. On 2 November 2010, Sun Myung Moon and a group of former Times editors purchased the Times from News World.[9]
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 a nonprofit 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.[10] Among Tongil Group’s chief holdings are: The Ilwha Company, which produces ginseng and related products; Ilshin Stone, building materials; and Tongil Heavy Industries, machine parts including hardware for the South Korean military.[12]
In 1982, Moon sponsored the film Inchon, an historical drama about the Battle of Inchon during the Korean War. It was not successful critically or financially.[122]
The church is the largest owner of U.S. sushi restaurants and in the Kodiak region of Alaska, is the area's largest employer.[123][124] The church owns the only automobile manufacturing plant in North Korea, Pyeonghwa Motors, and is the second largest exporter of Korean goods.[125][126][127][128]
In 1989, Moon founded Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma,[129] the most successful soccer club in Korean football, having won a record 7 league titles, 2 FA Cups, 3 League Cups, and 2 AFC Champions League titles.
In 2011, construction of $18 million Yeosu Expo Hotel was completed; the hotel located at Moon-owned The Ocean Resort in Yeosu, the venue of the Expo 2012.[130] The opening ceremony was attended by the governor of the province.[130][131] Another one, The Ocean Hotel, was completed in February 2012.[132] Moon-owned Yeongpyeong Resort, The Ocean Resort and Pineridge Resort are scheduled to host the Expo 2012,[133][134] 2018 Winter Olympics[135][136] and Formula 1.[137] Moon also managed the FIFA-accredited Peace Cup.[138] The FIFA itself has funded more than $2m for the Peace Cup since 2003.[139]
Race relations
Moon took a strong stance against racism and racial 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."[140]
In 1981 he said that he himself was a victim of racial prejudice in the United States (concerning his prosecution on tax charges in United States v. Sun Myung Moon), saying: "I would not be standing here today if my skin were white or my religion were Presbyterian. I am here today only because my skin is yellow and my religion is Unification Church. The ugliest things in this beautiful country of America are religious bigotry and racism."[141]
Several African American organizations and individuals spoke out in defense of Moon at this time including the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the National Conference of Black Mayors,[142] and Joseph Lowery who was then the head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.[26]
In a later controversy over the use of the word "Moonie" by the American news media, which was said to be offensive, Moon's position was supported by civil rights activists Ralph Abernathy[143][144][145] and James Bevel.[146]
In 2000 Moon and The Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan got together to sponsor the Million Family March,[147] a rally in Washington 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 and Social Security reform, substance abuse prevention, and overhaul of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.[148] In his keynote speech Farrakhan called for racial harmony.[149]
Dance
In 1962, Moon and other church members founded the Little Angels Children’s Folk Ballet of Korea, a children's dance troop which presents traditional Korean folk dances. He said that this was to project a positive image of South Korea to the world.[150] In 1990, Moon founded the $8-million Universal Ballet project, with Soviet-born Oleg Vinogradov as its art director and Moon's daughter-in-law Julia as its prima ballerina. It was described by The New York Times as the top ballet company in Asia.[151]
Honorary degrees and other recognition
Moon held honorary degrees from more than ten universities and colleges worldwide;[152][153][154] at least one of which, the University of Bridgeport, received significant funding from his organizations.[155] He was a member of the Honorary Committee of the Unification Ministry of the Republic of Korea.[156] In 1985, he and his wife received Doctor of Divinity degrees from Shaw University.[157]
In 2004, at event in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, in Washington, D.C., Moon was honored as the Messiah. This attracted much public attention and was criticized by The New York Times and The Washington Post as a possible violation of the principle of separation 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.[30][31]
Moon was posthumously awarded North Korea's National Reunification Prize in 2012[117] and a meritorious award by K-League.[158][159] On the first anniversary of Moon's death, North Korean leader Kim 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."[160]
In 2013, Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan 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."[161]
Criticisms
In the 1940s, Moon, who at that time was still known by his birth name Mun Yong-myung, attended a church in Sangdo dong that was led by the messianic minister Kim Baek-moon. Kim claimed that he had been approached by Jesus on Gangsan mountain, and was given the mission to spread the message of a "new Israel” throughout the world.[162] Kim wrote down his revelations in a book titled, The Fundamental Christian Principles. It was around this same time that Moon, whose given name means dragon, changed his name to Mun Seon-myeong, and began to claim that Jesus had appeared to him years earlier and had given him a similar mission. Moon eventually helped to develop his own book titled, The Original Text of the Divine Principle (later changed to the Exposition of the Divine Principle, and later changed again to the Divine Principle). There are similarities in both men's work related to the Principles of Creation, the Fall, and Restoration.[163] Moon himself stated that Kim was a "John the Baptist figure".[164] Critics argue that Moon simply imitated Kim.[165]
It was around that same time that Moon joined a Christian-based cult that engaged in a “cleansing of the womb” sex ritual called the picareum. In 1993, one of Moon's original followers, Chung Hwa Pak, wrote a book titled The Tragedy of the Six Marys, in which he claimed that Moon engaged in picareum while in the Unification Church. A year after publishing the book, Pak rejoined the church and issued a retraction.[166] Other early members, such as Hyo-min Eu, said that the allegations were true. Eu's sister claimed to personally have had restorational sexual relations with Moon.[167] In her 1998 book, In the Shadow of the Moons, Moon's daughter-in-law Nan Sook Hong wrote that Moon's sexual indiscretions were explained to her by “True Parents” as having “providential” significance. Another early member, Annie Choi, said that she personally engaged in numerous picareum sessions with Moon, along with at least six other female members.[168]
The Divine Principle was labeled as heretical by Protestant churches in South Korea, including Moon’s own Presbyterian Church. In the United States it was rejected by ecumenical organizations as being non-Christian, especially because of its addition of material to the Bible and for its rejection of a literal Second Coming of Jesus.[49] Protestant commentators have also criticized Unification Church teachings as being contrary to the Protestant doctrine of salvation by faith alone.[16][17] 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 of Jesus.[18] Commentators have criticized the Divine Principle for saying that the First World War, the Second World War, the Holocaust, and the Cold War served as indemnity conditions to prepare the world for the establishment of the Kingdom of God.[169]
During the Cold War Moon was criticized by both the mainstream media and the alternative press for his anti-communist activism, which many said could lead to World War Three and a nuclear holocaust.[170] After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, some American conservatives criticized him for his softening of his previous anti-communist stance.[171][172]
In 1977 the Subcommittee on International Organizations of the Committee on International Relations, of the United States House of Representatives, while investigating the Koreagate scandal found that the South 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 which undertook public diplomacy for the Republic of Korea.[173] The committee also investigated possible KCIA influence on the Moon's campaign in support of Nixon.[174]
In 1980, Moon's church also reportedly helped finance a Bolivian military coup with connections to cocaine cartels and the fugitive Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie. The coup successfully overthrew a democratically elected government. Moon's newspaper, The Washington Times is said to have played a major role in introducing right wing propaganda into the United States news media, with links to Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck.[168][175] The Washington Times has also been criticized for its coverage of Middle East events.[176] In 1998 the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram criticized Moon's possible relationship with Israeli president Benjamin Netanyahu and wrote that the Times editorial policy was "rabidly anti-Arab, anti-Muslim and pro-Israel."[177]
In the 1990s when Moon began to offer the Unification Church marriage blessing ceremony to members of other churches and religions he was criticized for creating possible confusion.[178] In 1998, journalist Peter Maass reported that some Unification Church members were dismayed and grumbled when Moon extended the Blessing to non-members because they had not gone through the same course that members had.[179] In 2001, the Unification Church 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.[28] Sung went on a hunger strike to protest their separation. This attracted much media attention.[29] 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!.[180]
Moon was accused by his critics of misusing his church, at the expense of his own followers, for personal gain.[181] The church made millions by the selling of trinkets that were said to cause the liberation of their ancestors from hell.[168] These controversial and profitable ancestor liberation ceremonies continue to take place at a church compound in Cheong Pyoung Korea.[182]
Moon spoke vehemently against homosexuals and compared them to "dirty dung-eating dogs".[183] He prophesied that "gays will be eliminated" in a "purge on God's orders”.[184]
In 2000 Moon was criticized, including by some members of his church, for his support of controversial Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan's Million Family March project.[185]
In 2006 investigative reporter Robert Parry criticized Moon's financial support for the government of North Korea and the Bush family in the United States, including presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush. In 2009 Moon's support for the Japan–Korea Undersea Tunnel was criticized in Japan and South Korea as a possible threat to both nations' interests and national identities.[186]
Views on the role of Moon to church members
The Divine 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."[187]
In 1978 Rodney Sawatsky wrote in an article in Theology 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 an overwhelming personality. Charisma, as traditionally understood, seems hardly applicable here. Rather, Moon provides a model. He suffered valiantly, he knows confidently, he prays assuredly, 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 Sociologist Irving 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 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."[189]
In 1998 investigative journalist Peter Maass wrote in an article in The New Yorker: "There are, certainly, differing degrees of devotion among Moon's followers; the fact that they bow at the right moment or shout Mansei! 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."[190]
In his 2004 book The New Religious Movement Experience in America religious scholar Eugene V. Gallagher wrote: "The Divine 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 the Divine Principle offers Unificationists a comprehensive context for understanding human suffering."[191]
References
- ^ a b c d e Walkin, Daniel J. (2 September 2012). "Rev. Sun Myung Moon, Self-Proclaimed Messiah Who Built Religious Movement, Dies at 92". The New York Times. p. A17. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
The Rev. Sun Myung Moon, the Korean evangelist, businessman and self-proclaimed messiah who built a religious movement notable for its mass weddings, fresh-faced proselytizers and links to vast commercial interests, died on Monday
- ^ News desk (2 September 2012). "Religious Leader, Media Mogul Rev. Sun Myung Moon Dies at Age 92". PBS NewsHour. 1996-2013 MacNeil/Lehrer Productions. Retrieved 20 June 2013.The Rev. Sun Myung Moon, the controversial self-proclaimed messiah figure who founded the Unification Church and built a business empire from scratch.
- ^ Moon’s death marks end of an era, Eileen Barker, CNN, 2012-9-3, Although Moon is likely to be remembered for all these things – mass weddings, accusations of brainwashing, political intrigue and enormous wealth – he should also be remembered as creating what was arguably one of the most comprehensive and innovative theologies embraced by a new religion of the period.
- ^ a b Xaykaothao, Doualy (3 September 2013). "Sun Myung Moon, Unification Church Founder, Dies". NPR (National Public Radio). Retrieved 16 June 2013.
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 newspaper The Washington Times.
- ^ a b c d e Hyung-Jin Kim (2 September 2012). "Unification Church founder Rev. Sun Myung Moon dies at 92". USA Today. ISSN 0734-7456. Retrieved 2 September 2012.
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.
- ^ a b Sun Myung Moon's Groundbreaking Campaign to Open North Korea, The Atlantic, Armin Rosen, 6 September 2012, But for all the focus on the eccentric mogul's quirks and U.S. investments, his role in North Korea may turn out to be his most enduring legacy, a fascinating story of how one man opened one of the very few cracks in this modern hermit kingdom.
- ^ a b c "Who Owns What: News World Communications". The Columbia Journalism Review. 24 November 2003. Retrieved 2 February 2008.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) The World and I Wire Service United Press International (UPI)
- ^ a b Yahoo! Finance profile
- ^ a b Shapira, Ian (3 November 2010). "Moon group buys back Washington Times". Washington Post. p. C1.
- ^ a b Kim, Hyung-eun (12 April 2010). "Business engine of a global faith". Joong Ang Daily.
{{cite news}}
: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=
(help) - ^ Kirk, Don (2 May 1998). "Reverend Moon's Group Wants to Talk Investment : Seoul Nods At Church's Foray North". New York Times.
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.
- ^ a b Kirk, Donald (2 May 2010). "Sons rise in a Moon's shadow". Forbes.
- ^ a b Hagerty, Barbara Bradley (2 September 2012). "Rev. Moon, A 'Savior' To Some, Lived A Big Dream". NPR.org (National Public Radio). Retrieved 19 June 2013.
- ^ a b c d Urquhart, Conal (2 September 2013). "Sun Myung Moon, founder of the Moonies, dies in South Korea". The Guardian. London. 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
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.
- ^ a b c d e f Brown, Emma (2 September 2012). "Sun Myung Moon dies at 92; Washington Times owner led the Unification Church". The Washington Post. ISSN 0740-5421. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
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
- ^ a b Daske, D. and Ashcraft, W. 2005, New Religious Movements, New York: New York University Press, ISBN 0-8147-0702-5 p142
- ^ a b Yamamoto, J. 1995, Unification Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Press, ISBN 0-310-70381-6 p40
- ^ a b Walter Ralston Martin, Ravi K. Zacharias, The Kingdom of the Cults, Bethany House, 2003, ISBN 0764228218 pages 368-370
- ^ a b excerpt The Unification Church Studies in Contemporary Religion, Massimo Introvigne, 2000, Signature Books, Salt Lake City, Utah, ISBN 1-56085-145-7
- ^ a b c d e Schoifet, Mark (2 September 2012). "Sun Myung Moon, Church Head Who Ran Business Empire, Dies". Business Week. Bloomberg News. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
As Moon's popularity grew, anti-Moon organizations began forming around the country. Defectors told tales of non-stop indoctrination at church-run camps, including yelling and physical abuse by instructors. Recruits weren't allowed time alone; someone even accompanied them to the bathroom.
- ^ A+E Networks. (September 2013). "Sun Myung Moon.biography". Biography.com. Retrieved 16 June 2013.
Best Known For Sun Myung Moon was founder and leader of the Unification Church, a religious movement whose followers were labeled "Moonies."
- ^ a b c d e Richard Greene; K.J. Kwon; Greg Botelho (3 September 2013). "Rev. Moon, religious and political figure, dies in South Korea at 92". CNN. Retrieved 16 June 2013.
- ^ Emma Brown (2 September 2012). "Sun Myung Moon dies at 92; Washington Times owner led the Unification Church". Washington Post.
- ^ a b Associated Press (13 October 2009). "Big wedding: 20,000 gather for mass nuptials". NBC News. Retrieved 16 June 2013.
Over the next two decades, the weddings grew in scale and began to involve followers from Japan, Europe, Africa, Latin America, the U.S. and elsewhere. A 1982 mass wedding at Madison Square Garden in New York, the first held outside South Korea, drew tens of thousands of participants — and protesters. The ceremonies had been smaller in recent years.
- ^ The Unification Church Aims a Major Public Relations Effort at Christian Leaders Christianity Today 19 April 1985.
- ^ a b Introvigne, Massimo, 2000, The Unification Church Studies in Contemporary Religion, Signature Books, Salt Lake City, Utah, ISBN 1-56085-145-7, excerpt
- ^ Moon's financial rise and fall,Harvard Crimson, 11 October 1984
- ^ a b Archbishop rejects Vatican ultimatum
- ^ a b "The archbishop's wife speaks for herself", National Catholic Reporter August 31, 2001
- ^ a b Babington, Charles; Alan Cooperman (23 June 2004). "The Rev. Moon Honored at Hill Reception – Lawmakers Say They Were Misled". The Washington Post: A01.
- ^ a b "Lawmakers Scurry From the Light". The New York Times. 27 June 2004.
- ^ a b c Unification Church: Mass Moonie Marriage in the US, BBC News, Saturday, 29 November 1997.
- ^ a b c Moon, Reverend Sun Myung (2010). As a peace-loving global citizen (May 2010 ed.). [Washington, D.C.]: Washington Times Foundation. ISBN 0615393772.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location (link) - ^ Moon, Sun Myung (2009). As a Peace-Loving Global Citizen. Gimm-Young Publishers. ISBN 0-7166-0299-7.
- ^ "Unification Church". HD JONGKYO. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
- ^ "Korea, for a reconciliation between North and South". 30 Days. 24 March 2006. Retrieved 21 April 2010.
- ^ "The Martyrs of Tokwon: Historical Preliminary Notes". Missionary Benedictines of St. Ottilien. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
- ^ "Thank You Father Kim Il Sung" (PDF). U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, November 2005. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
- ^ Wakin, Daniel J. (2 September 2012). "Rev. Sun Myung Moon, 92, Unification Church Founder, Dies". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
- ^ Woo, Elaine (3 September 2012). "Sun Myung Moon dies at 92; led controversial Unification Church". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
- ^ Brown, Emma (4 September 2012). "Sun Myung Moon dies at 92; Washington Times owner led the Unification Church". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
- ^ Christianity: A Global History, David Chidester, HarperCollins, 2001, ISBN 0062517708, 9780062517708, pages 514 to 515
- ^ "Unification Church founder Rev. Moon dies at 92". CBC News/The Canadian Press. Associated Press. 2 September 2013. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
- ^ NBC News staff and news services (2 September 2012). "Sun Myung Moon, founder of Unification Church, dies at 92". WORLDNEWS on NBC NEWS. Retrieved 20 June 2013.
- ^ Korean Moon: Waxing of Waning?, Leo Sandon Jr., Theology Today, Vol 35, No 2, July 1978, "The movement's official doctrinal statement, and a part of the revelation, is the Divine Principle. Both an oral tradition and a written one and published in several versions, Divine Principle is the Completed Testament. The Rev. Moon claims to have come not to destroy or abrogate the Old and New Testaments, but to fulfill them-to "complete" them. To his Moonist followers, the Rev. Moon is primarily "true father," probably the Messiah, and only secondarily a theologian. In an effort to systematize Moon's teachings, several members of the Unification Church in Korea have put together a developing theological system in Divine Principle which is impressive in its imaginative nature, coherence, and consistency, if not in its Christian orthodoxy. As the most complete expression of Moonist teachings to date, Divine Principle is the basic text of the Unification Church.4 The two major divisions of the system are the doctrines of Creation and Restoration. There are many subsets to these major divisions, but Creation and Restoration are the foci for the Moonist theological system."
- ^ Sontag, Fredrick (1977). Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church. Abingdon. p. 102. ISBN 0-687-40622-6.
- ^ a b Sontag, Fredrick (1977). Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church. Abingdon. p. 107. ISBN 0-687-40622-6.
- ^ Sontag, Fredrick (1977). Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church. Abingdon. p. 108. ISBN 0-687-40622-6.
- ^ a b c Unifying or Dividing? Sun Myung Moon and the Origins of the Unification Church George D. Chryssides, University of Wolverhampton, U.K. 2003, Since doctrine looms large in Christian thought, it is understandable that its objections to Unificationism are principally on doctrinal grounds. Although the Christian counter-cult literature does not always expound Unification teachings fairly, it is almost unanimous in identifying the respects in which Unificationism diverges from mainstream Christianity: it is unbiblical; teaches erroneous doctrines of God, Christ and salvation; Divine Principle usurps the status of the Judaeo-Christian Bible; it teaches that Jesus did not fully accomplish his mission and that a new messiah is needed to complete it; it introduces new rituals and forms of worship; and it is spiritist. As new religions progress, they occasionally gain acceptance into the mainstream fold, as happened with Seventh-day Adventism, and, even more strikingly, with the Worldwide Church of God. At the turn of the 21st century, however, Unificationism seems no more likely to gain recognition by mainstream Christians.
- ^ Do As I Preach, and Not As I Do, TIME, Asian Edition, 28 September 1998, Vol. 152, NO. 12.
- ^ "1,000 Cheer Rev. Moon in Oakland: Unification Church leader at end of national crusade," by Peter Fimrite, San Francisco Chronicle, Wednesday, 20 September 1995.
- ^ Moon At Twilight: Amid scandal, the Unification Church has a strange new mission, Peter Maass New Yorker Magazine, 14 September 1998. "Moon sees the essence of his own mission as completing the one given to Jesus - establishing a 'true family' untouched by Satan while teaching all people to lead a God-centered life under his spiritual leadership."
- ^ "Sharpton in Ceremonies Of Unification Church," by David Firestone, The New York Times, Friday, 12 September 1997.
- ^ "Messiah" by John Dart, Los Angeles Times, 29 Jan 1976; B1.
- ^ Woo, Elaine (3 September 2013). "Sun Myung Moon dies at 92; led controversial Unification Church". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
South Korean immigrated to the U.S. and became the wealthy leader of an unorthodox religious movement that was labeled a cult and featured mass marriage ceremonies.
- ^ Despite controversy, Moon and his church moving into mainstream Chicago Tribune, April 11, 2006. '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."'
- ^ At RFK, Moon Presides Over Mass Wedding, Washington Post, November 3, 1997, "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 New York Times referred to a 1997 ceremony for 28,000 couples as a "marriage affirmation ceremony," adding: "The real weddings were held later in separate legal ceremonies." 28,000 Couples Gather for Rev. Moon Rites, New York Times, November 30, 1997
- ^ Daily Mail Reporter (2 September 2012). "Moonie tears for the Messiah: Devotees say farewell to founder after death at 92... now what will become of his billion-dollar empire?". Daily Mail (London). Retrieved 21 June 2013.
- ^ HENNEBERGER, Melinda (22 September 1992). "A Look at Life After Mass Marriage; For 2,075 Couples (Give or Take 200), 10 Years Together, Thanks to Sun Myung Moon". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
- ^ "Unification Church Mass Moonie Marriage in the US". BBC News. 29 November 1997. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
- ^ "Image of Moon's arrival" (JPG). Retrieved 29 April 2006.
- ^ Kety Quits Moon-Linked ICF Conference Harvard Crimson, 10 August 1976.
- ^ ICUS Statement of Purpose
- ^ Church Spends Millions On Its Image The Washington Post. 17 September 1984
- ^ Kety Quits Moon-linked ICF Conference, Harvard Crimson
- ^ Eugene Paul Wigner Papers Princeton University Library
- ^ Introvigne, Massimo, 2000, The Unification Church Studies in Contemporary Religion, Signature Books, Salt Lake City, Utah, ISBN 1-56085-145-7, excerpt page 16
- ^ Richard Quebedeaux, Lifestyle : Conversations with Members of Unification Church. Books.google.com. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "Moon Festival Draws 50,000 to Monument", Washington Post, 19 September 1976.
- ^ Moon's Japanese Profits Bolster Efforts in U.S., Washington Post, 16 September 2008.
- ^ "Clerics Urge Pardon For Rev. Moon". Chicago Tribune. 21 August 1985.
- ^ "THE CITY; Arguments Heard In Moon's Appeal". The New York Times. 24 March 1983.
- ^ Raspberry, William, "Did Unpopular Moonie Get a Fair Trial?", The Washington Post, 19 April 1984
- ^ "The Unification Church Aims a Major Public Relations Effort at Christian Leaders", Christianity Today, 19 April 1985.
- ^ Moon's financial rise and fall, Harvard Crimson, 11 October 1984.
- ^ "Sun Myung Moon Paper Appears in Washington". The New York Times. 18 May 1982.
- ^ Hall, Mimi (22 March 2001). "Bush, aides boost access of conservative media". USA Today. Retrieved 25 July 2009.
- ^ Glaberson, William (27 June 1994). "The Media Business; Conservative Daily Tries to Expand National Niche". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 July 2009.
- ^ New business models for news are not that new, Nikki Usher, Knight Digital Media Center, 2008-12-17, "And the Washington Times' conservative stance pursues its agenda from the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church."
- ^ Conservative Daily Tries to Expand National Niche, New York Times, June 27, 1994. That kind of political access has given The Times, after nearly a decade of publication, its own genuine, if limited, place in the capital's rich media mix. "It's the other half of the political picture, and without it I found I would be missing a lot of what was going on in conservative thinking," said Stephen G. Smith, news editor of the Knight-Ridder Newspapers bureau here. "While its circulation is small, its influence is out-sized." But The Washington Times has always been and remains a very expensive and unsuccessful business, losing an estimated $35 million a year. Part of The Times's problem is being the city's second-ranked daily newspaper during a deep advertising recession. The market is dominated in circulation and advertising by The Times's more liberal archrival, The Washington Post. Almost since it was started in 1982, The Times has seen its average weekday circulation hover at about 100,000, compared with nearly 800,000 for The Post. And The Times estimates that about two-thirds of its subscribers also take The Post.
- ^ Wemple, Erik (2 September 2012). "As the Rev. Moon goes, so goes the Washington Times?". The Washington Post. Retrieved 14 November 2012. The Washington Times, it notes, took in $1 billion in subsidies over its first decade and was a favorite read for President Ronald Reagan.
- ^ Ahrens, Frank, "Moon Speech Raises Old Ghosts as the Times Turns 20", Washington Post, 23 May 2002. "As of this year, Moon and his businesses have plowed about $1.7 billion into subsidizing the Times, say current and former employees."
- ^ Chinni, Dante (2002). "The Other Paper: The Washington Times's role". Columbia Journalism Review. Archived from the original on 19 April 2006. Retrieved 29 April 2006.
- ^ International religious summit at U.N. receives criticism, Baptist Press, 28 August 2000.
- ^ "Peace Cup (South Korea)". RSSSF. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ Korean influence: PSV's Hiddink hoping to win Peace CupSports Illustrated 21 July 2003
- ^ South Korea to host global peace cup in JulySports Illustrated 6 May 2003
- ^ Bell, Jack (14 July 2003). "MetroStars Midfielder Knows About Comebacks". The New York Times.
- ^ サッカーの神様"ペレ氏と文鮮明師夫妻
- ^ Son of Moonies founder takes over as church leader The Guardian, 28 April 2008
- ^ "문선명 자서전, 전국 목회자에 발송". Newspower.co.kr. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "문선명 총재 자서전 100만부 돌파". News.mk.co.kr. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
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- ^ "덕혜옹주 4주 연속 1위". 4000news.com. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ Sons Rise in a Moon Shadow, Forbes, 12 April 2010
- ^ 통일교 과천 교회 박준철 현직 목사 탈퇴 기자 회견 54가지 비리 폭로 (in Korean). Aspire7.net. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "통일교 과천 교회 박준철 현직 목사 탈퇴 기자 회견 54가지 비리 폭로". Happyhindol.org. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ Yoon, Sangwon (15 August 2012). "Unification Church Says Leader Moon Is 'Gravely Ill'". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
- ^ "The Rev Sun Myung Moon". The Daily Telegraph. London. 3 September 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ Brown, Emma (2 September 2012). "Sun Myung Moon dies at 92; Washington Times owner led the Unification Church". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2 September 2012.
- ^ "Sun Myung Moon illness 'irreversible': Unification Church". The Raw Story. 31 August 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
- ^ "The Rev. Sun Myung Moon, founder of The Times, dies at 92", Washington Times, 09/02/2012.
- ^ "Korean denies influence peddling". Bangor Daily News. Retrieved 21 March 2012.
- ^ The Way of Restoration, (April, 1972)
- ^ "Moon's 'Cause' Takes Aim At Communism in Americas", The Washington Post, 28 August 1983.
- ^ Sun Myung Moon's Followers Recruit Christians to Assist in Battle Against Communism Christianity Today 15 June 1985
- ^ Church Spends Millions On Its Image, The Washington Post, 1984-09-17. "Another church political arm, Causa International, which preaches a philosophy it calls "God-ism," has been spending millions of dollars on expense-paid seminars and conferences for Senate staffers, Hispanic Americans and conservative activists. It also has contributed $500,000 to finance an anticommunist lobbying campaign headed by John T. (Terry) Dolan, chairman of the National Conservative Political Action Committee (NCPAC)."
- ^ Public TV Tilts Toward Conservatives, Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting "While conservatives dismiss Bill Moyers' world-class documentaries on our constitutional checks and balances as "propaganda," they never mention PBS's airing of unabashed right-wing agitprop films such as Nicaragua Was Our Home (the pro-contra film produced by Rev. Sun Myung Moon's CAUSA, which funded the contras after Congress' ban)...."
- ^ Projections about a post-Soviet world-twenty-five years later. // Goliath Business News
- ^ EVOLUTION IN EUROPE; New Flock for Moon Church: The Changing Soviet Student from The New York Times
- ^ At Time of Change for Rev. Moon Church, a Return to Tradition // The New York Times, 14 October 2009
- ^ "mk 뉴스 — 金장례식에 日여자마술사 초청한 까닭". News.mk.co.kr. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ 'Moonies' launch political party in S Korea,The Independent (South Africa), 10 March 2003
- ^ "자유게시판". Unikorea.go.kr. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
- ^ a b "Moon Sun Myung Awarded National Reunification Prize", Korean Central News Agency, 7 September 2012, retrieved 13 September 2012
- ^ "Congressional papers of the Chamber of Deputies" (PDF). Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "Congressional papers of the Chamber of Deputies" (PDF). Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "Congressional papers of the Chamber of Deputies" (PDF). Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ Ghouse, Mike (21 February 2012). "Commitment to Israel-Palestine, Part 2". Huffington Post.
- ^ Kempley, Rita (17 September 1982). "Mooning Over MacArthur". The Washington Post. p. Weekend At The Movies; Pg. 13.
- ^ Eng, Monica, Delroy Alexander and David Jackson "Sushi and Rev. Moon: How Americans' growing appetite for sushi is helping to support his controversial church", Chicago Tribune, 11 April 2006.
- ^ "Tooth and Claw | CAA". Alumni.berkeley.edu. 27 June 2010. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "Policy Reform and Equity - Extending the Benefits of Development" (PDF). usaid.gov. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ Kirk, Donald, No, Not Yet. Palaver in Pyongyang doesn’t signal a northern manufacturing itch from Korea’s conglomerates., Forbes, 29 October 2007.
- ^ Demick, Barbara, "Who gave N. Korea those power tools?", Los Angeles Times, 27 September 2008.
- ^ "National News Briefs; Unification Church Head Charged in Fishing Case". The New York Times. 31 August 2000.
- ^ CNN, Soccer World News//World Roundup
- ^ a b "여수 거문도에 관광호텔 준공". News.jeonnam.go.kr. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "Yeosoo EXPO Hotel". Maiarc.com. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "도정활동25시 > 현장스케치". English.jeonnam.go.kr. 17 April 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "Governmental webpage of Jeju Island, Republic of Korea". News.jeju.go.kr. 3 February 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ CJ News
- ^ "Finance Today". Fntoday.co.kr. 14 January 2009. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "2018 Winter Olympics". cupress.com. 27 May 2008. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ Governmental web-page of Jeonnam City
- ^ Football (21 July 2005). "West Ham turn their attention to Baros". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ Governmental web-page of Daegu City
- ^ Restoration Through Indemnity And America's Role 1974-03-23
- ^ On the tax charges against him, in a speech at Foley Square in New York City (22 October 1981); published in a full page advertisement in the The New York Times (5 November 1981), as quoted in US Court of Appeals document s:U.S. v. Sun Myung Moon 718 F.2d 1210 (1983)
- ^ Raspberry, William, "Did Unpopular Moonie Get a Fair Trial?", Washington Post, 19 April 1984
- ^ Gorenfeld, John (2008). Bad Moon Rising. PoliPointPress. p. 96. ISBN 0-9794822-3-2.
- ^ Leigh, Andrew (15 October 1989). "Inside Moon's Washington - The private side of public relations improving the image, looking for clout". The Washington Post. The Washington Post Company. p. B1.
- ^ Knight-Ridder Newspapers (20 December 1987). "Unification Church funnels millions to U.S. conservatives". The Dallas Morning News. The Dallas Morning News Company. p. 4A.
- ^ Hatch, Walter (13 February 1989). "Big names lend luster to group's causes - Church leader gains legitimacy among U.S. conservatives". The Seattle Times. Seattle Times Company. p. A1.
- ^ Families Arrive in Washington For March Called by Farrakhan, New York Times, 16 October 2000
- ^ Million Family March reaches out to all
- ^ "Nation Of Islam - who are they?". BBC. 21 July 2001. Retrieved 10 November 2009.
- ^ Sewell first=Rhonda B. (28 February 2003). "Korean Culture Takes the Stage". The Blade. p. D11.
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 news}}
: Missing pipe in:|last=
(help) - ^ Robertson, Allen (29 July 2001). "DANCE; A Small Place Reaches for Ballet's Big Time". The New York Times.
- ^ Moon Gets Honorary Degree From Argentine at the U.N. / New York Times, 17 November 1984
- ^ "학교법인 선문학원, 제7대 한학자 이사장 취임 : 대학뉴스 : 사회 : 뉴스 : 한겨레". Hani.co.kr. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
- ^ "Мир Религий // Досье // Мун Сон Мён". Religio.ru. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ Wakin, Daniel (2 September 2012). "Rev. Sun Myung Moon, Self-Proclaimed Messiah Who Built Religious Movement, Dies at 92". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
- ^ "Ministry of Unification of the Republic of Korea, official webpage". Unikorea.go.kr. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
- ^ "Around The Nation: Divinity School Awards Moon Honorary Degree". The New York Times. 13 May 1985.
- ^ "데얀, K리그 MVP..감독상은 최용수 '서울 천하'(종합)". 3 December 2012.
- ^ "'축구로 세계평화를…' 고(故) 문선명 통일교 총재, K리그 공로패". 3 December 2012.
- ^ North Korean leader extends condolences over 1 yr anniversary of Unification Church founder death, Yonhap News, 20 August 2013
- ^ FULL TEXT: Tsvangirai Speech In South Korea. By Staff Reporter. Published: 25 February 2013
- ^ Breen, Michael (1997). Sun Myung Moon : the early years 1920-53. Hurstpierpoint West Sussex, U.K. .: Refuge Books. pp. 69, 173. ISBN 978-0953163700.
- ^ "Moon Organization". freedomofmind.com. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
- ^ Moon, Sun Myung. "Sun Myung Moon's Life In His Own Words. Part 9: Liberation and Aftermath". tparents.org. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
- ^ "The Divine Principle 'parallels of history' predicted the messiah would come in 1917. He did. His name was Kim Baek-moon, born on October 19, 1917. Kim wrote the 'parallels of history.' Moon stole them. That is why 1917 does not match up with Moon's 1920 birth". http://howwelldoyouknowyourmoon.tumblr.com/. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
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- ^ "Retraction of The Tragedy of the Six Marys". tparents.org. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ "Tragedy of the Six Marys". youtube.com. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ a b c Blake, Mariah. "The Fall of the House of Moon: Sex rituals, foreign spies, Biden offspring, and the Unification Church's war-torn first family". newrepublic.com. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ Helm, S. Divine Principle and the Second Advent Christian Century 11 May 1977.
- ^ Thomas Ward, 2006, Give and Forget
- ^ "Washington Times updates style guide, conservatives up in arms". Salon.com. 27 February 2008. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ^ News and Curiosities, Prospect, September 2006
- ^ Spiritual warfare: the politics of the Christian right, Sara Diamond, 1989, Pluto Press, Page 58
- ^ Ex-aide of Moon Faces Citation for Contempt, Associated Press, Eugene Register-Guard, August 5, 1977
- ^ Parry, Robert. "Rise & Fall of The Washington Times: The Ex-Nazis, Cocaine Smugglers & Cultists Who Created a Right-Wing Propaganda Organ, And Brought It Crashing Down". alternet.org. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ As U.S. Media Ownership Shrinks, Who Covers Islam?, Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, December 1997
- ^ The same old game, Al-Ahram, November 12–18, 1998, "The Washington Times is a mouthpiece for the ultra conservative right, unquestioning supporters of Israel's Likud government. The newspaper is owned by Sun Myung Moon, originally a native of North Korea and head of the Unification Church, whose ultra-right leanings make him a ready ally for Netanyahu. Whether or not Netanyahu is personally acquainted with Moon is unclear, though there is no doubt that he has established close friendships with several staff members on The Washington Times, whose editorial policy is rabidly anti-Arab, anti-Muslim and pro-Israel."
- ^ excerpt The Unification Church Studies in Contemporary Religion, Massimo Introvigne, 2000, Signature Books, Salt Lake City, Utah, ISBN 1-56085-145-7 "From a different perspective, it is true that participation of people who are not members of the Unification Church in certain Unificationist activities, such as marriage blessings, may be of concern to established churches. They perceive the possibility that their own members may become confused by their participation in such Unificationist activities and fear that they may in fact end up converting to Unificationism." -p59-60
- ^ Moon at Twilight, Peter Maass, The New Yorker "The campaign has dismayed some church members, because a blessing from Moon used to be a hard-won privilege, typically attained only after a person had joined the church, worked in it for several years, and agreed to marry someone--usually a stranger--selected by Moon. But grumblings about the blessing campaign are just the beginning of Moon's current troubles."
- ^ Archbishop launches married priests movement
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
newrepublic.com
was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Song, Hong Keun. "Crisis in the Unification Church after Rev. Moon's Death" (PDF). tparents.org. Shin-Dong-A Magazine. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ Moon, Sun Myung. "The Family Federation for Cosmic Peace and Unification and the Cosmic Era of the Blessed Family". unification.net. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- ^ "The Unification Church and Homosexuality". http://www.religioustolerance.org/. Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
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- ^ Clarkson, Frederick (9 October 2000). "Million Moon March". Salon. Salon.com, Inc. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
- ^ Yamazaki, Hiroshi (10 August 2009). "Is it time for Japan-South Korea tunnel?". UPIAsia.com website. Retrieved 11 August 2009.
- ^ Divine Principle (translated 1966), Introduction
- ^ Rodney Sawatsky, 1978, Dialogue with the Moonies Theology Today.
- ^ Irving Louis Horowitz, Science, Sin, and Society: The Politics or Reverend Moon and the Unification Church, 1980, MIT Press
- ^ Peter Maass, Moon at Twilight, The New Yorker 14 September 1998.
- ^ Eugene V. Gallagher, 2004, The New Religious Movement Experience in America, Greenwood Press, ISBN 0313328072, page 23.
Further reading
- Bjornstad, James (1984). Sun Myung & the Unification Church. Rev. ed. Minneapolis, Minn.: Bethany House Publishers. 57 p. N.B.: Rev. ed. of The Moon Is Not the Sun, which had been published in 1976. ISBN 0-87123-301-0
- Chryssides, George D., The Advent of Sun Myung Moon: The Origins, Beliefs and Practices of the Unification Church (1991) London, Macmillan Professional and Academic Ltd.
- Durst, Mose. 1984. To bigotry, no sanction: Reverend Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church. Chicago: Regnery Gateway. ISBN 978-0-89526-609-5
- Fichter, Joseph Henry. 1985. The holy family of father Moon. Kansas City, Mo: Leaven Press. ISBN 978-0-934134-13-2
- Gorenfeld, John (2008). Bad Moon Rising: How Reverend Moon Created the Washington Times, Seduced the Religious Right, and Built an American Kingdom. Sausalito, California: Polipoint Press. ISBN 0979482232.
- Gullery, Jonathan. 1986. The Path of a pioneer: the early days of Reverend Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church. New York: HSA Publications. ISBN 978-0-910621-50-2
- Hong, Nansook, 1998, In the Shadow of the Moons, Boston, Little, Brown and Company ISBN 0-316-34816-3
- Introvigne, M., 2000, The Unification Church, Salt Lake City, UT: Signature Books, ISBN 1-56085-145-7
- Moon, Sun Myung, 2009, As a Peace-Loving Global Citizen. Gimm-Young Publishers ISBN 978-89-349-3375-5 Template:Ko icon
- Peemoeller, Gehard, 2011, Bodyguard for Christ, Independent Publisher Services, ISBN 1450764398
- Sherwood, Carlton. 1991. Inquisition : The Persecution and Prosecution of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon. Washington, D.C.: Regnery Gateway. ISBN 978-0-89526-532-6
- Sontag, Frederick. 1977. Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church. Nashville, Tenn: Abingdon Press. ISBN 978-0-687-40622-7
- Tingle, D. and Fordyce, R. 1979, Phases and Faces of the Moon: A Critical Examination of the Unification Church and its Principles, Hicksville, NY: Exposition Press ISBN 0-682-49264-7
- Ward, Thomas J. 2006. March to Moscow: the role of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon in the collapse of communism. St. Paul, Minn: Paragon House. ISBN 978-1-885118-16-5
- Yamamoto, J. Isamu, 1995, Unification Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House ISBN 0-310-70381-6
External links
- Official website of the American Unification Church
- Biography in church sponsored encyclopedia
- Short biography at US church home page
- Teachings Integrated videos and transcripts
- Use dmy dates from October 2012
- 1920 births
- 2012 deaths
- Converts to Presbyterianism
- Former Presbyterians
- Members of the clergy with criminal convictions
- People from North Pyongan
- Prisoners and detainees of North Korea
- Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government
- Self-declared messiahs
- South Korean anti-communists
- South Korean prisoners and detainees
- South Korean religious leaders
- South Korean Unificationists
- Unification Church
- The Washington Times people
- Korean Presbyterians
- North Korean Christians
- Recipients of the National Reunification Prize
- Deaths from pneumonia
- Founders of new religious movements
- Newspaper founders