Chapter 2 The Unification Movement in Korea

 

 

 

 

 

1981 - Home Church is My Kingdom of Heaven

 

 

"The second 21-year course begins from this year. This period is your era. It is the era for Reverend Moon to past on to you all the responsibility that he has assumed up until now, and it is for you to accomplish God's will by taking on Reverend Moon's work as his representative.

Then, what can one center on to perform such a task? I have been emphasizing this for three years in a row since 1979, but it is the time to work centering on Home Church. This year's motto is: Home Church is My Kingdom of Heaven. Home Church activity has been standardized up to the present, but now the era has come when Home Church is directly connected to the individual."

1981 was the year of the conclusion of the three seven-year courses and the beginning of another three seven-year courses (21 year course). There were many significant events and changes during this year of intense activity.

The first 21-year course, in fact, ended on April 11, the twenty-first anniversary of the Holy Wedding of Reverend and Mrs. Moon, and a new, second 21-year course, the children's course, began from May 15, the day of the Holy Wedding of Ye-jin Moon, first daughter of Reverend and Mrs. Moon. This Holy Wedding was the first blessing in marriage for someone of Reverend and Mrs. Moon's direct lineage.

Reverend Moon stepped forward actively from the dawn of the new year, by presiding over an engagement ceremony for 843 couples at the New Yorker Hotel on January 1. An invitational seminar for Korean community leaders in America, sponsored by the Korean Evangelical Association in America, was held at Seoul's Lotte Hotel from January 9 to 16. The eighty-two Korean-American leaders, from the fields of politics, education and finance, arrived in Korea on January 8. Their stay included a visit to Panmunjom and the church-related businesses. They received VOC training, plus lectures on the Principle and Unification Thought while  at the Lotte Hotel. The second invitational seminar ran from February 23 to March 7 with 176 participants, the third from March 30 to April 13 with 303 participants, the fourth for one week from May 18 with   304 participants, and the fifth, also for one week from July 29, with eighty Korean-American leaders participating.

Invitational lectures, given by Missionary Bo-hi Pak and sponsored by the Supra-denominational Christian Association, were held in five major cities from January 8 to 15. The church held a banquet marking the thirteenth anniversary of the establishment of IFVOC at the Lotte Hotel on January 13, with 1,300 guests including distinguished representatives from all spheres of society. From April 22, Missionary Bo-hi Pak gave further invitational lectures throughout the major cities of Korea.

These programs organized at the beginning of the year had the purpose of instilling the importance of VOC into the citizens' minds, and in education them directly in overcoming the difficulties related to the political situation. At the same time, the lectures introduced the ideology of the Unification Church as the religion of the salvation of Humankind, and gave an overview of church activities worldwide.

The International Christian Professors Association (Chairman: Byung-rim Chang) held its inaugural conference on March 28 with forty-three Christian professors participating. The ICPA is an association for friendship, dialogue and cooperation among Christian professors. The association was proposed by Bo-hi Pak, then a missionary, at the invitational Christian professors lecture sponsored by the Supra-denominational Christian Association on January 14, and inaugurated following four meetings of the preparatory committee.

Reverend Moon returned to Korea on April 8. They presided over the significant events marking the end of the first 21-year course and the beginning of the second 21-year course, and encouraged and inspired VOC and witnessing activities.

Reverend and Mrs. Moon's schedule prior to their departure for Germany was as follows: From April 25, for two days, they attended a meeting held to welcome Reverend Moon on his return to Korea, held at he Icheon Training Center and attended by four thousand members, and a district VOC leaders banquet at the Shilla Hotel. Reverend and Mrs. Moon also presided over the Holy Wedding of Jin-whi Hong and Ye-jin Moon on May 16 and gave a speech of encouragement at the third national meeting of the Sung Hwa Youth Association, held from May 10 to 11 at the Chamshil Indoor Gymnasium, and attended by fifteen thousand.

On May 14, Reverend Moon spoke at a meeting for 2,200 Christian church members, including elders, sponsored by the Supra-denominational Christian Association. He also delivered a lecture with the title "Intellect and Religion Today" to an audience of 850 eminent guests at an invitational lecture for dignitaries. Other events deserving mention are Reverend Moon's dawn visits to the churches in Seoul everyday during his stay, his granting of forgiveness to families who had strayed from the tradition during the 21-year course (on April 21), and his presiding over an engagement ceremony for 512 couples on May 9.

The most significant events of this year were Ye-jin Nim's engagement at the former Headquarters Church on May 15 (the twentieth anniversary of the 36 couples Blessing), and her Holy Wedding the following day at the Headquarters Church. It was here that the most important turning point in the history of the Unification Church was declared: the beginning of the children's course, together with the providential victory of the side of goodness.

Forty Long-serving church leaders visited Japan for the first time in their fifteen years of leadership, from August 27 to September 10. The trip was held to acknowledge the hard work of the leaders and to broaden their perspective.

The installation of a new church president on September 1, and the direction for the total mobilization of senior families (from 430-couples and above) on November 1, among other development, demonstrated that this year was a time for reform. Korea church president Young-whi Kim was assigned as the leader for the region of Europe. He had served the church for twenty-one years as director of the general affairs department and a further twelve years as church president of church.

Following his inauguration as president, Reverend Jae-suk Lee presided over a conference for nationwide church leaders under the theme "Let's Be New!" from September 16 to 18. He also gave guidelines for administration during a tour of the districts undertaken for the purpose of acquiring an overall grasp of the church situation, starting from Kyung-gi Province on September 24.

Reverend Moon again returned to Korea on October 16, announced a new policy for mission work, and presided over major meetings. On October 20, he announced a witnessing plan at a meeting for Seoul blessed families ranging from the 36-couple to the 430-couple families. He directed that all these blessed couples should be on the front line of witnessing.

The church implemented a policy on the distribution of church members, under which it assigned about ten members to each church. Personnel changes were announced on November 1. A blessed family meeting was organized at the Central Training Center from October 29 to November 5 at which members received education and were assigned positions in the church. Additionally, there was a full-scale reshuffle throughout the various organizations, including the church and church-related companies.

Meanwhile, senior blessed wives from the 430-couple blessed families and above, who had been mobilized to do witnessing activity, completed their activity on October 20 and their husbands stepped forward to the front line of church activity.

The Unification Church History Committee, including the Historical Archive office, was established on November 1 under Reverend Moon's direction. Kwang-yol Yoo, director of the church's cultural department for twenty-seven years, was appointed chairman. The church's headquarters were moved to the Headquarters Church, and the Historical Archive office plus the Religion Herald publishing office took over the old church offices.

The Tenth International conference on the Unity of the Sciences (ICUS) was held in Seoul from November 9 to 13 with 857 representatives from 109 nations participating. This conference was not only the largest ever academic conference in Korea but also the largest ICUS  conference ever held.

The International Christian Students Association was established on November 14 for the purpose of unity, cooperation, community service, and international exchange. Approximately two hundred Christian students attended its inaugural ceremony.

The New York district attorney's office in New York indicted Reverend Moon on charges of tax evasion on October 15. On October 21, Reverend Moon voluntarily appeared before the New York District Court in Manhattan and asserted his innocence of all the charges brought. This event had the trappings of the inquisition of the century, the sole reasons for the indictment being religious bias and racial discrimination.

Notable events this year included:

January 10: Training for engaged male members.

January 10: Luncheon for Christian professors sponsored by the International Christian Professors Association.

February 19: Public lecture for Christian church elders (held on several subsequent occasions.)

February 23: Training for leaders of church fund managers

May 30: Bo-hi Pak and Chung-hwan Kwak gave keynote speeches at a CARP rally.

September 1: Sang-hun Lee appointed chairman of IFVOC Board of Directors.

September 18: First issue of Ultimas Noticias, daily newspaper in Uruguay.

November 1: Seventeen members of the Unification Church History Committee commissioned (Advisor: Won-pil Kim; Chairman: Jae-suk Lee; Committee members: Young-whi Kim, Yo-han Lee, Su-kyung Lee, Sang-chul Kim, Hwan-chae Hwang, Seung-ryong Moon, Bong-choon Choi, Chung-hwan Kwak, Bo-hi Pak, Kwang-yol Yoo, Gye-hwan Kim, Hyun-shil Kang, Young-oon Kim, Hideo Oyamada); Establishment of the Association for the Support of Missions (members donated three-tenths of their income); Establishment of HSA-UWC Education Department.

November 6: First academic conference for Korean and Japanese Professors, sponsored by the International Christian Professors association (at the Shilla Hotel, for three days.)

November 8: Opening of the Little Angels Performing Arts Center.

November 12: Mrs. Moon hosted a banquet for the two hundred wives of ICUS participants (Lotte Hotel.)

November 21: Reverend Moon donated 100 million won to help physically disabled people.

November 22: Engagement of Hyo-jin Moon and Nan-sook Hong (Shinmunro Public Residence.)

December 1: Publication of Monthly Bulletin of Unification Church History (Sa-Bo) commenced by the History Committee.

December 10: Establishment of the Construction Committee for the International Highway Project (Tokyo, Teikoku Hotel, Room 405.)

December 26: "God" Conference (sponsored by New ERA in Hawaii: 164 participants.)

 

 

 

 

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