Hyung Jin Moon
Born
Hyung Jin Sean Moon

(1979-09-26) September 26, 1979 (age 44)
Tarrytown, New York
SpouseYeon Ah Lee Moon
Parents
Korean name
Hangul
문형진
Hanja
Revised RomanizationMun Hyeong-jin
McCune–ReischauerMun Hyŏngjin

Hyung Jin Moon (born September 26, 1979), also known as Sean Moon, is an American pastor and, along with his wife Yeon Ah Lee Moon, founded the Pennsylvania-based World Peace and Unification Sanctuary Church (also known as Rod of Iron Ministries). The Sanctuary Church is a schismatic and militant sect of the Unification Church, which was founded by Hyung Jin Moon's father Reverend Sun Myung Moon and now led by his mother Hak Ja Han.[1][2][3][4]

The Southern Poverty Law Center called Hyung Jin Moon an "anti-LGBT cult leader" in January 2018.[5] Moon and some Sanctuary Church members helped to organize the 2021 United States Capitol attack.[6]

Early life and education

Hyung Jin Sean Moon was born on September 26, 1979,[7] in Tarrytown, New York. He is the youngest son of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, the founder of the Unification movement, and Hak Ja Han. He attended the Hackley School until college. He earned bachelor of liberal arts degree from Harvard Extension University and master of theology from Harvard Divinity School.[8] At the Harvard Center for the Study of World Religions, he met the leader of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, Bub Jang, and pursued an interest in Buddhism.[9] He also practiced Tibetan Buddhism, and for a time lived in a Roman Catholic monastery.[10]

Religious career

Unification Church

In April 2008, Sun Myung Moon (then 88 years old) appointed Hyung Jin Moon to be the International President of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU). Hyung Jin Moon and members of his church believe that a coronation ceremony with his father in 2009 made him heir and successor.[11][12] Under his leadership, the Family Federation for World Peace was changed to the Unification Church.[13] He also introduced new practices like spiritual energy hand movements.[14]

In 2011, Hyung Jin Moon visited North Korea to express condolences on the death of Kim Jong-il.[15] In 2011 in Pyongyang, to mark the 20th anniversary of Sun Myung Moon's visit to North Korea, de jure President Kim Yong-nam hosted Hyung Jin Moon in the official residence.[16][17] The latter donated 600 tons of flour to North Korean children of North Pyongan Province, the birthplace of Sun Myung Moon.[18][19] After the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, he donated $1.7 million to the Japanese Red Cross.[20][21]

After Sun Myung Moon died in 2012, Hyung Jin Moon and his mother began expressing open differences. Hyung Jin was removed by his mother from various positions from 2013, and eventually[22][2] taken down as International President of the Family Federation for World Peace,[23] and replaced by his sister Sun Jin Moon.[24] The Family Federation for World Peace now considers Hyung Jin Moon's church a "breakaway organization" and most of the changes led by Hyung Jin in the Unification movement were dismissed after his removal.[1][2]

Sanctuary Church

Hyung Jin Moon and members of his church have publicly criticized his mother Hak Ja Han for changing the theological foundations of his father's teachings and elevating her own status.[25][26][27] This led Hyung Jin and his wife to separate from the movement and establish a local offshoot sect named World Peace and Unification Sanctuary Church in early 2013. The church, also called Rod of Iron Ministries, officially opened in January 2015.[28]

In 2015, Hyung Jin Moon began renouncing his mother as the Whore of Babylon, saying she was no longer a "True Mother". He also began teaching that Hyun Shil Kang, one of Sun Myung Moon's first disciples, was now True Mother instead, as his spirit had married her.[28] He and his wife Yeon Ah Lee also began assuming the titles 'Second King' and 'Second Queen' respectively.[29]

Hyung Jin Moon is backed by his elder brother Kook Jin Justin Moon, who effectively serves as assistant pastor of the church and owns Kahr Arms, a small arms manufacturer.[30]

By 2018, Hyung Jin Moon began wearing a crown of bullets on his head and expressed of a more militant and pro-gun rights ideology. Sanctuary Church also went by the name Rod of Iron Ministries and performed religious rituals that heavily involved the AR-15 semiautomatic rifle.[31] In October 2019, members of the World Peace and Unification Sanctuary were invited to "show their willingness to defend their families, communities and nation" by bringing their semi-auto rifles to a service in which their weapons were blessed.[32]

In 2021, Moon and Sanctuary Church bought and moved to a compound 40 miles from Waco, Texas, the site of the Waco siege.[33] Upon moving to the compound, they continued to espouse a highly militant ideology. Later that year it was reported that Moon and Sanctuary Church had bought a 130-acre property in Grainger County, Tennessee to serve as the church's retreat center.[34][35]

Political activity

After the founding of Rod of Iron Ministries, Moon publicly aligned with conservative politicians and other far-right media figures.[28] Moon espoused strong support for President Donald Trump during and after Trump's presidency.[33] Moon endorsed the "Big Lie" that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Trump.[30] Moon and other members of Sanctuary Church participated in the January 6, 2021 United States Capitol attack.[6] Moon faced no criminal charges from his involvement in the January 6 insurrection.[36]

Gun ritual controversies

Hyung Jin Moon's church, World Peace and Unification Sanctuary Church in Newfoundland, Pennsylvania gained national attention[37][38][39] in early 2018 for holding a marriage vows renewal ceremony that asked participants to bring their AR-15 rifles.[40] Hyung Jin Moon has likened the AR-15 rifles to the biblical "rod of iron".[30][41] Neighbors of the church came out to protest the insensitivity of having the AR-15 rifles at the event so soon after the Parkland, Florida shooting that killed 17.[42] To address concerns voiced by parents of an elementary school nearby, the Wallenpaupack Area School District relocated students for the day.[43]

References

  1. ^ a b "Unification Church does not encourage firearm use". Christian News Post. New York. February 22, 2018. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c Mickler, Michael (December 14, 2015). "The Sanctuary Church Schismatics". Applied Unificationism. Unification Theological Seminary. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  3. ^ http://www.cesnur.org/2016/daejin_fefferman.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  4. ^ THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (26 February 2018). "School to close for church ceremony featuring AR-15 rifles". nydailynews.com. Retrieved Oct 10, 2021.
  5. ^ "Anti-LGBT cult leader calls on followers to purchase assault rifles". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved Oct 10, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Green, Jordan (4 August 2021). "'Good Way to Die': The Moonies and the Jan. 6 Insurrection". DC Report. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  7. ^ Staff report (1979). Transition Newsweek
  8. ^ Sons Rise in a Moon Shadow, Forbes, April 12, 2010
  9. ^ Rev. Sun Myung Moon: His Family www.tparents.org 2014-05-20.
  10. ^ Son of Moonies founder takes over as church leader, Justin McCurry, The Guardian, 26 April 2008
  11. ^ "The Rev. Sun Myung Moon, founder of The Times, dies at 92". The Washington Times.
  12. ^ Unification Church pres sees smaller mass weddings Archived 2009-03-22 at the Wayback Machine, Daily Monitor, 2008-12-30
  13. ^ https://www.tparents.org/Moon-Talks/HyungJinMoon-13/HyungJinMoon-130118.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  14. ^ https://iunificationist.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/hyung_jin_nim_hands_devotion-1.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  15. ^ Unification Church president on condolence visit to N. Korea, Yonhap News, 2011-12-26.
  16. ^ "휴심정". www.hani.co.kr. Retrieved Oct 10, 2021.
  17. ^ "Son of Unification Church founder meets with senior North Korean official in Pyongyang". The Washington Post. Associated Press. 15 December 2011. Retrieved March 21, 2020 – via Little Green Footballs.
  18. ^ "S. Korea says food aid reached intended beneficiaries in N. Korea".
  19. ^ "Kbs News". Sports.kbs.co.kr. Archived from the original on 2013-05-25. Retrieved 2012-05-23.
  20. ^ "はてなブックマーク – たびのわ »UCニュース»日本赤十字社に文総裁からの寄付金を渡された文亨進世界会長". B.hatena.ne.jp. Retrieved 2012-05-23.
  21. ^ "Family Federation for World Peace and Unification". 67.227.135.108. Archived from the original on 2012-07-08. Retrieved 2012-05-23.
  22. ^ https://www.tparents.org/Moon-Talks/HyungJinMoon-13/HyungJinMoon-130224.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  23. ^ https://www.tparents.org/Moon-Talks/HyungJinMoon-13/HyungJinMoon-150302.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  24. ^ Myungho, Moon. "Inaugural Address by Sun Jin Moon, International President – FFWPU Mission Support". Retrieved Oct 10, 2021.
  25. ^ "The Harlot of Babylon - November 5, 2017 - Rev. Hyung Jin Moon - Unification Sanctuary". Archived from the original on 2021-12-19. Retrieved Oct 10, 2021 – via www.youtube.com.
  26. ^ "No Longer Wife of the True Parent – an essay by Kerry Williams – World Peace and Unification Sanctuary". Archived from the original on 2018-03-03. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  27. ^ "How Mother Eliminated God's Lineage and the Three Generation Kingships – World Peace and Unification Sanctuary". Archived from the original on 2018-03-03. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  28. ^ a b c Dunkel, Tom (May 21, 2018). "Locked and Loaded for the Lord". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  29. ^ "Hyung Jin Moon: Hyun Shil Kang in now True Mother, not Hak Ja Han" (PDF). tparents.org.
  30. ^ a b c Dickinson, Tim (18 August 2022). "Inside the Bizarre and Dangerous Rod of Iron Ministries". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  31. ^ Dunkel, Tom (May 21, 2018). "Two sons of Rev. Moon have split from his church — and their followers are armed". Washington Post. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  32. ^ "This church in Pennsylvania holds a ceremony to bless guns". The Telegraph. 15 Oct 2019. Archived from the original on October 15, 2019. Retrieved 15 Oct 2019.
  33. ^ a b Graziosi, Graig (1 June 2021). "Trump loving church that uses guns in holy rituals buys compound near Waco, Texas". The Independent. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  34. ^ Morgan-Rumsey, Camruinn (October 15, 2021). "Gun-toting religious organization buys East Tennessee property". WAFF48. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
  35. ^ Owen, Tess (12 October 2021). "MAGA Gun Church That Worships With AR-15s Buys Giant Property in Tennessee". www.vice.com. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  36. ^ Newton, Creede (October 8, 2021). "Rod of Iron: Antigovernment, Christian Right and Far-Right Movements To Join at 'Freedom Festival'". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  37. ^ Vera, Amir (March 2018). "Couples clutching AR-15 rifles renew wedding vows". CNN.
  38. ^ Phillips, Kristine (1 March 2018). "With crowns on their heads and AR-15s in their arms, couples exchange vows in pro-gun church" – via www.washingtonpost.com.
  39. ^ "AR-15 rifles, pistols, crowns of bullets and renewal of wedding vows in church". Newsweek. 1 March 2018.
  40. ^ "February 28, 2018 "Cosmic True Parents of Heaven, Earth and Humanity Cheon Il Guk Book of Life Registration Blessing" Ceremony – World Peace and Unification Sanctuary". sanctuary-pa.org. Archived from the original on March 2, 2018. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  41. ^ Sanctuary, Unification (19 January 2018). "Peace Police Peace Militia Intro" – via Vimeo.
  42. ^ "Florida high school shooting: Here's what we know". USA TODAY. Retrieved Oct 10, 2021.
  43. ^ "Different School Day for Wallenpaupack Elementary Students". 28 February 2018.

External links

Unification Church
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