The Family Federation for World Peace and Unification

A movement founded in Seoul in 1954 by Sun Myung Moon, led today by his widow Hak Ja Han Moon, known to courts and the press as the Unification Church, with the Divine Principle beside the Bible and the Marriage Blessing as its central rite.

About Us, with the FAQ (Family Federation for World Peace and Unification USA)

Our Core Beliefs (Family Federation for World Peace and Unification USA)

Connect: leadership and communities (Family Federation for World Peace and Unification USA)

Exposition of the Divine Principle, Preface (official site)

Exposition of the Divine Principle, Introduction to Restoration

Exposition of the Divine Principle, Part I, Chapter 2: The Human Fall

Exposition of the Divine Principle, Part I, Chapter 4: The Messiah: His Advent and the Purpose of His Second Coming

Exposition of the Divine Principle, Part II, Chapter 6: The Second Advent

Exposition of the Divine Principle, Part II, Chapter 7: Christology

Hoon Dok Hae (glossary entry), True Parents Legacy, a church-affiliated archive

Holy Wine Ceremony (glossary entry), True Parents Legacy, a church-affiliated archive

Blessing Ceremony (glossary entry), True Parents Legacy, a church-affiliated archive

Ahn Shil Il (glossary entry), True Parents Legacy, a church-affiliated archive

Cheon Il Guk (glossary entry), True Parents Legacy, a church-affiliated archive

Court in Japan orders dissolution of Unification Church (AP, via PBS News), 25 March 2025

What is the Unification Church and why did a Japanese court order it dissolved? (AP, via The Boston Globe), 25 March 2025

Tokyo High Court Upholds Unification Church Dissolution Order (Jiji Press, via Adnkronos), 4 March 2026

Japan Top Court Finalizes Dissolution Order for Unification Church (Jiji Press, via Adnkronos), 23 June 2026

South Korean investigators indict Unification Church leader over alleged ties to ex-first lady (AP), 10 October 2025

Unification Church leader appeals 2-year sentence in bribery case (The Korea Times / Yonhap), 7 September 2026

Unification Church leader attends first appeal hearing (The Korea Herald / Yonhap), 13 October 2026

35,000 people mourn unification church founder at funeral (The Korea Times), 15 September 2012

Exposition of the Divine Principle, Part I, Chapter 3: Eschatology

Exposition of the Divine Principle, Part I, Chapter 5: Resurrection

Sunday Service Livestreams (Family Federation for World Peace and Unification USA)

Portland Oregon Leadership Opportunity (Family Federation for World Peace and Unification USA), 1 October 2026

True Mother's Prayer, 12 June 2010 (True Parents Legacy, a church-affiliated archive)

Tyler O. Hendricks, "Ordination and the Unification Tradition," Journal of Unification Studies 10 (2009)

Theodore T. Shimmyo, "The Unification Doctrine of the Fall," Journal of Unification Studies 20 (2019): 57-112

Dan Fefferman, "Schism in the Unification Movement: The Theological Dimensions (an insider's view)," conference paper dated 10 October 2012

Eileen Barker, "The Unification Church: A Kaleidoscopic Introduction," Society Register 2, no. 2 (2018): 19-62

The movement grew out of Sun Myung Moon's teaching in Korea in the 1950s, set down in the Divine Principle, and spread to what the church says is "120 countries in 22 years." Its turning points are the writing of the Divine Principle, the Marriage Blessing that began with the founders' own in 1960, the death of Moon in 2012 and the leadership of Hak Ja Han Moon since, and, in the last four years, court cases in Japan and Korea. The legal record is kept in the final event below and in the fold, with exact dates and statuses. The doctrinal parts that follow do not depend on it.

Founded in Seoul

Sun Myung Moon, with five disciples, establishes the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity in Seoul. The church says he "had to build his own institutional foundation" because of "fierce opposition from ministers in Korea."

The Divine Principle is written down

The Exposition's preface says the earliest manuscript was lost in North Korea during the Korean War. Moon then dictated a new one in Pusan and guided Hyo Won Eu, the first president of the Church in Korea, in preparing Wolli Hesul, published in 1957, and Wolli Kangron, the Exposition, published in 1966.

The founders' Marriage Blessing

The church dates the beginning of its Marriage Blessing to the founders' own in 1960: "Beginning from their own Marriage Blessing in 1960, Father and Mother Moon are calling men and women to transcend race and religion." The Blessing is later given to many couples at once, which the church calls mass marriage.

First English translation

Dr. Won Pok Choi makes the first English translation, The Divine Principle, in 1973. The authorized Exposition of the Divine Principle, now on the church's site, is a later translation of Wolli Kangron.

The Family Federation is inaugurated

The church says the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification was "inaugurated on July 30, 1996," and calls itself "a worldwide para-religious movement" that places "the salvation of the family unit" at the center.

Cheon Il Guk proclaimed

The church's archive says Moon proclaimed Cheon Il Guk, the ideal nation or kingdom of God, in 2001 after a Coronation Ceremony for God's Kingship on 13 January 2001, and that years are counted from 2001 as Year 1 in the church's materials.

Ahn Shil Il proclaimed

The archive says Moon proclaimed the weekly holy day Ahn Shil Il on 19 April 2004. The first three, on 5, 13 and 21 May 2004, opened an eight-day cycle in place of the seven-day week.

Sun Myung Moon dies

The archive gives 3 September 2012 for what the church calls his Seunghwa, ascension to the spirit world. Since then Hak Ja Han Moon has been the worldwide leader. The Korea Times reported that an estimated 35,000 mourners attended his funeral at Gapyeong, "according to the church."

Japan: the dissolution order is upheld

The Tokyo District Court ordered the Japanese organization dissolved on 25 March 2025. The Tokyo High Court upheld the order on 4 March 2026. Japan's Supreme Court rejected the church's special appeal on 22 June 2026, and the order is final. Liquidation is under way. The full record is in the fold below.

Korea: Hak Ja Han is sentenced; the appeal is pending

The Seoul Central District Court sentenced Han to two years in prison on 31 August 2026 on charges including violating the anti-graft law, the political funds law and embezzlement. She and the special counsel have both appealed, and the first appeal hearing was held on 13 October 2026. She has denied wrongdoing. The appeal is pending.

Sun Myung Moon

The founder, born in a Korean farming village. The church calls him "the founder of Unificationism," and with Hak Ja Han Moon one of the "True Parents." He founded the church in 1954 and led it until his death.

Hak Ja Han Moon

Co-founder, called by members "the Mother of Peace," and "the current worldwide leader" of the movement since her husband's death in 2012. She is the defendant in the Korean case described below.

Hyo Won Eu

The first president of the Church in Korea. The Exposition's preface says Moon guided him in preparing the first systematic written presentations of the Divine Principle.

Demian Dunkley

Listed on the church's U.S. site as President, USA, and Regional Chairman, North America. He heads the national office in New York.

The legal record, with dates and statuses. These are findings of courts and charges of prosecutors, as reported. They are not teachings, and they do not decide any question in Part 4.

Japan.

• July 2022. Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was shot and killed. The Associated Press ties the government's later request to "the investigation into the 2022 assassination" (AP, 25 March 2025).
• October 2023. Japan's education ministry filed for a court order to dissolve the Unification Church (Jiji Press, 23 June 2026). The ministry cited "manipulative fundraising and recruitment tactics" (AP). The church's Japan president, Tomihiro Tanaka, said the government was "fabricating damages" and that the church was "not a malicious group."
• 25 March 2025. The Tokyo District Court ordered the dissolution (AP). It was the first dissolution order based on violations of the Civil Code and not on criminal charges.
• 4 March 2026. The Tokyo High Court upheld the order (Jiji Press). It reported that the lower court had found that the church "caused unprecedentedly large damage over a long span of roughly 40 years," that 1,559 people were victims of unlawful solicitation of donations, and that the total reached about 20.4 billion yen. The church had argued that the finding of unlawful acts after its 2009 compliance declaration was not backed by evidence.
• 22 June 2026. The Supreme Court's Third Petty Bench rejected the church's special appeal. It held that the order "does not violate the Constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion and association," and that the church's "continued solicitation of donations over long periods hurt many people financially and psychologically" (Jiji Press). Status: final. The order took effect after the High Court's decision, and liquidation is under way. The church loses its status as a religious corporation, and with it its tax benefits.

South Korea.

• 10 October 2025. Investigators under special prosecutor Min Joong-ki indicted Hak Ja Han on charges of bribery, violating political funding laws, embezzling church funds and ordering the destruction of evidence (AP). The AP reported that she had denied the allegations and that the church had condemned her arrest the month before as a disrespectful act against an "internationally respected religious leader."
• 31 August 2026. The Seoul Central District Court sentenced Han to two years in prison. The Korea Times reports the court found she gave a luxury necklace and a Chanel bag to the former first lady Kim Keon Hee in July 2022 while seeking favors for the church, and that she colluded with former church officials to give 100 million won to Rep. Kweon Seong-dong in January 2022. The conviction was for violating the anti-graft law, the political funds law and embezzlement. The special counsel had asked for 13 years.
• Early September 2026. Han's lawyers filed an appeal, and the special counsel appealed as well (Korea Times, 7 September 2026).
• 13 October 2026. The first appeal hearing was held at the Seoul High Court (Korea Herald). Han came in a wheelchair, and has been temporarily released from detention on health grounds. Status: appeal pending. The Korea Herald also reports that a joint police-prosecution team said the church made 189 million won in illicit donations to at least 132 politicians from 2019 to 2025, and that Han and three other church officials were indicted over the alleged embezzlement of 10.5 billion won in church funds. Investigators said they found insufficient evidence to establish Han's direct involvement in the broader political donations.

The Bible, read through the Divine Principle, with the words of Sun Myung Moon and Hak Ja Han Moon counted as scripture.

The Family Federation keeps the Bible and reads it through Sun Myung Moon's teaching. Its site says God "reveals His Word and His central providence in the Bible," and that "Father Moon's teachings, the Divine Principle, provide a logical and practical explanation of the Bible for today's world." Its own list of scriptures adds the Exposition of the Divine Principle and three collections of the words of Sun Myung Moon and Hak Ja Han Moon. It also says "the scriptures of all religions are holy." The Exposition's preface calls the text "the teaching of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon." Members read Moon's words aloud each day in Hoon Dok Hae, and the church's archive quotes Moon telling members to regard them as more necessary than family, nation and world. The pages we saved do not say what is done when the Bible and the later writings differ.

We believe that God reveals His Word and His central providence in the Bible. Father Moon's teachings, the Divine Principle, provide a logical and practical explanation of the Bible for today's world.

The Unificationist scriptures include the Exposition of the Divine Principle, and a three-volume compilation of Father and Mother Moon's teachings and words called the Cheon Seong Gyeong ("Heavenly Scripture"), Pyeong Hwa Shin Gyeong ("Peace Scriptures"), and Chambumo Gyeong ("True Parents Life Course").

You need to read the book of Words. You must regard them as more necessary than your family, your clan, your people, your nation, the world, and the entire cosmos.

What the Exposition says about itself. The preface says the text "contains the Divine Principle, the teaching of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon," that the earliest manuscript "was lost in North Korea during the Korean War," and that Moon "checked them over meticulously." It calls the new English text "the new authorized English translation of Wolli Kangron." Of the first English translator it says: "Aware of its sacred nature, she made a point of producing a literal translation."

The Bible's place. The church does not set the Bible aside. It says "Everything in the Bible provides guidance for our individual lives and the whole world." The Exposition argues its teaching from Bible texts at every step. The question is what stands above what when they disagree, and the pages we saved do not answer it.

The cross redeemed sins but did not finish the work; the Holy Marriage Blessing removes the first parents' sin and engrafts a person into God's lineage.

The Exposition says that "the cross has redeemed our sins," but that it "has not entirely purged us of our original sin," and that Jesus "did not come to die on the cross." It names faith in Jesus, baptism by water and Holy Communion as three conditions of "lesser indemnity," small conditions that bring a greater grace, and says baptism by water brings spiritual rebirth. The church's own rite for removing the root of sin is the Holy Marriage Blessing. Its FAQ says the Blessing "frees us from the sin of the first parents," that this sin is removed "when we are reborn as husband and wife through the Marriage Blessing," and that "Satan's claim on marriage is removed and we are engrafted directly into God's lineage." The Blessing is received by a couple after a time of matching, and is preceded by the Holy Wine Ceremony (see the Lord's Supper). The church says it "does not bring instant perfection" but opens "a gate to the path of perfection." The church's own scholars say the Blessing takes baptism into itself. Theodore Shimmyo writes that it "involves drinking the Holy Wine and sprinkling the Holy Water," and Tyler Hendricks that it "integrates several elements of the Christian tradition -- penance, communion, baptism and marriage." We found no source that describes a separate water baptism among members.

By making the indemnity condition of baptism by water, we can be spiritually born anew through Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

It is true that the cross has redeemed our sins; yet it is equally true that the cross has not entirely purged us of our original sin.

The Marriage Blessing frees us from the sin of the first parents, which has to do with their marriage and is the root cause of all sin in the world.

The reason for the second coming. The Exposition says: "Jesus, knowing that the redemption by the cross would not completely fulfill the purpose for which he came, promised he would come again." On this view the work Jesus began is finished by the True Parents (see the last things).

The Blessing as baptism. Dan Fefferman, a member writing on the movement's schism, calls the Blessing "an initiation ceremony combining marriage, baptism and first communion."

Faith in Jesus. The Exposition does not drop faith. It says "Merely by fulfilling a small indemnity condition of faith in Jesus, we receive the much greater grace of salvation, which entitles us to participate with Jesus in the same resurrection." The church's FAQ says Unificationists "believe in Jesus."

Where the Blessing sits. The church's archive says the Blessing is "not a prayer that something good will happen to a couple" but "a sacramental act through which two human beings are grafted into a new lineage." The church's public pages describe it more broadly, as "a worldwide tradition where couples dedicate, or re-dedicate, their marriage to a greater purpose and God."

Holy Communion is named in the Exposition; the wine rite the church itself describes is the Holy Wine Ceremony, drunk once by a couple before the Blessing.

The Exposition calls Holy Communion a sacrament in which, by taking bread and wine, "we receive the precious grace of partaking in Jesus' body and blood," and counts it among the conditions of lesser indemnity. The church's scholars say the Blessing takes communion into itself (see salvation), and we found no source that describes bread and cup served at a Sunday Service. What they describe in detail is the Holy Wine Ceremony, which the church's archive says comes just before the Blessing, after the couple's matching. The bride drinks first, then gives the cup to the groom, and each drinks "from a cup of specially prepared Holy Wine" offered in the name of the True Parents. The archive says it is received once, and that it "accomplishes a real and irreversible spiritual event," the change of the drinker's lineage "from satanic origin to God-centered origin." It says Moon placed it "as the fulfillment and completion of the Eucharistic tradition."

by taking a piece of bread and a cup of wine at the sacrament of Holy Communion, we receive the precious grace of partaking in Jesus' body and blood.

In it, the bride and groom each drink from a cup of specially prepared Holy Wine

The Holy Wine Ceremony symbolizes the change of lineage from satanic origin to God-centered origin.

What the wine is said to hold. The archive quotes Moon: "It includes elements of all things of creation, the body of Jesus Christ, and the love of the True Parents." It says the wine "is made of 21 ingredients." It says that after the Blessing the couple enters a period of engagement before the full union of husband and wife.

What the archive says it is not. "The ceremony is not simply symbolic in the conventional sacramental sense." The same entry compares it with the Eucharist and says the Holy Wine Ceremony "claims to accomplish what the Eucharist, on its own theological terms, cannot: a change of the lineage itself."

Who makes the wine. Tyler Hendricks, writing as the church's seminary president, says the Moons make the "seed" Holy Wine and that "it is distributed throughout the world," that Blessed Couples mix it with wine sanctified with prayer and holy salt, and that "The wine is changed from normal wine to Holy Wine, effecting an ontological change."

A worldwide leader, national and regional offices with senior pastors, and the True Parents holding an authority the church calls not ecclesiastical.

At the top is Hak Ja Han Moon, "the current leader of the worldwide Unification movement." Below her, the U.S. site lists a national president who is also regional chairman for North America, national directors for the Blessing and for the next generation, and a senior pastor over each of five regions and over the Las Vegas family church. The church says that "Family Federation for World Peace and Unification families meet regularly to pray, read, and reflect on Father and Mother Moon's words," and that a parish, congregation, synagogue, temple or "family church" of any religion "can participate in the Family Federation." The Blessing is given by the True Parents, who stand, in the church's words, "representing God on earth." Its archive says this authority "is not ecclesiastical" but "ontological." A local family church may have elders: a 2026 posting from Portland asks its new leader to "Cooperate with our Board of Elders," and says, "We are attending Holy Mother Han as our ecclesiastical leader." Tyler Hendricks wrote in 2009 that Moon "never created a formal ordination plan," that leaders are appointed, at times by a public announcement, and that "Unificationist leadership by and large would be considered lay ministry." He added that every Blessed Couple is a priest, and "the Blessing itself is, theologically, an ordination into the priesthood."

Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon is the current leader of the worldwide Unification movement

They have taken the responsibility as parents of humankind, representing God on earth, to love and unite God's family, which is all of humankind both living and in the spirit world.

This authority is not ecclesiastical — not a matter of institutional designation or apostolic succession.

The United States. The members' menu on the church's U.S. site includes "Pastors and Ministry Resources," which sits behind a login we did not enter.

Who leads after 2012. The church says Hak Ja Han Moon has led "since her husband, the Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon's ascension to the spirit world in 2012." It says two of her sons, Sean Moon and Preston Moon, have claimed to be the rightful leaders, and that court cases have been filed over church assets and the logo. Those sons lead separate groups. The church says its own body "is in no way affiliated with Sanctuary Church."

Ordination. Hendricks reported that a 2005 proposal for a formal ordination was still under committee review, and that "The Unification Church still has not established a position on the matter of formal ordination." We found no later rule, and no source on how a pastor is removed.

A Sunday Service in local family churches, daily reading of Moon's words, the Family Pledge, and a holy day every eight days; members say they attend the True Parents, not worship them.

The church's archive describes the devotional center of members' lives as the Family Pledge, recited "on Sundays and Holy Days," and Hoon Dok Hae, the reading aloud of Moon's words. On the weekly holy day, Ahn Shil Il, which the archive says comes every eight days, families recite the Pledge, hold Hoon Dok Hae, offer a representative prayer and "consciously orient their hearts toward the Heavenly Parent and True Parents." The church says plainly: "No, Unificationists do not worship True Parents." Its word for the relation is "attend," which it says "entails filial piety, loyalty, fidelity, faith, sacrificial service, and benevolence." It adds that individuals sometimes take up fasting and vigils. Local family churches also hold a Sunday Service with a sermon and a music ministry (see Sunday), and Barker notes the Holy Songs. A prayer of Hak Ja Han Moon kept in the archive closes, "have reported all this to You in the name of the Parents. Aju." We found no source that says whether instruments are used.

On this day, Blessed Families gather to recite the Family Pledge, engage in Hoon Dok Hae, offer representative prayer, and consciously orient their hearts toward the Heavenly Parent and True Parents.

The gathering begins with prayer, followed by the communal reading aloud of a selected text from Rev. Moon's Words.

No, Unificationists do not worship True Parents, also known as Father and Mother Moon. The word we use for our relationship with True Parents is "attend."

The eight-day cycle. The archive says Ahn Shil Il is "commonly translated" as a day of rest, but that it means "a day of active, conscious, filial attendance upon God." It quotes Moon on 21 May 2004: "From May 5, 2004, the calendar changes. The seven-day-interval Sabbath calendar changes to the eight-day-interval Ahn Shil Il calendar." It adds that Ahn Shil Il "is not anchored to the Saturday of Judaism or the Sunday of Christianity." In practice both are kept: the U.S. church lists a Sunday Service at its family churches, and Ahn Shil Il runs beside it on its own cycle.

Spiritual practices. The FAQ says: "We endorse the spiritual disciplines of all the world's religions. We engage in and encourage all traditional spiritual practices: prayer and meditation, developing a daily and weekly spiritual rhythm, regular study of scripture, active participation in the life of a spiritual community, service to others."

The Holy Spirit is taught to be feminine, the True Mother; the spirit world is near, and Moon's words are said to come from Heaven.

The Exposition teaches that "The Holy Spirit came as the True Mother," the feminine counterpart of Jesus, the spiritual True Father, and that "There are many who have received the revelation that the Holy Spirit is feminine." Together, it says, Jesus and the Holy Spirit give a spiritual rebirth, which the Blessing then completes in the flesh. The church's archive says Moon taught that his words "were not his own" but "spoken on behalf of Heaven," and that when members read them, "the spirit world is mobilized—ancestors and good spirits descend to participate in the reading alongside the living." The Exposition also says Jesus can be asked directly "if we communicate with Jesus spiritually," and that those who cannot "perceive spiritual realities" should seek the testimonies of "those who are endowed with such gifts." The sociologist Eileen Barker reports healing and messages from the spirit world among members, though she says healing is not central to the movement.

The Holy Spirit came as the True Mother.

There are many who have received the revelation that the Holy Spirit is feminine.

when members sincerely engage in Hoon Dok Hae, the spirit world is mobilized—ancestors and good spirits descend to participate in the reading alongside the living

What the Exposition says of the Holy Spirit's work. "Being feminine, the Holy Spirit consoles and moves the hearts of people." The Spirit also "cleanses people's sin, thereby atoning for the sin which Eve committed."

The Spirit and the True Parents. In the church's account the Holy Spirit is the spiritual True Mother, and Hak Ja Han Moon stands as the substantial True Mother. The FAQ says: "Jesus and the Holy Spirit are our spiritual True Parents. On their foundation, God called Father and Mother Moon to be substantial True Parents."

The spirit world. The FAQ speaks of "God's family, which is all of humankind both living and in the spirit world." The archive on the Holy Wine says Moon taught that "The entire spirit world knows the value of this Holy Wine."

Healing and messages. Barker writes that "spiritual healing has been reported on numerous occasions," and that besides Moon "there have been many others who have attested to receiving messages and who were taken seriously by the members."

Christ has returned in the flesh as Sun Myung Moon and Hak Ja Han Moon, and the kingdom of Cheon Il Guk is to be built on earth.

The Family Federation says that "Christ must come in the flesh, on the earth," and that "We believe the Second Coming is the couple of Rev. Sun Myung Moon and Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon." It says the Second Coming "will not be on the clouds, and is more than an event in the heart or in the spirit." The Exposition says "we are living in the Last Days today." The goal is the kingdom of God on earth, which the church calls Cheon Il Guk. Its FAQ says "the kingdom of God is possible on earth" and that "When evil evaporates, the kingdom of God will naturally appear." The archive says Moon proclaimed Cheon Il Guk on 13 January 2001, and that Blessed Families are its citizens. It says Jesus remains in paradise because he "could not become the True Parent." The Exposition reads the fire of the last judgment as a figure: "judgment by fire represents judgment by the Word of God." It teaches no raising of the body: "A decomposed body cannot be restored to its original state," and resurrection "means to leave the bosom of Satan and return to the bosom of God."

To fully repair our lost relationship with God, Christ must come in the flesh, on the earth. We believe the Second Coming is the couple of Rev. Sun Myung Moon and Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon.

We believe the Second Coming will not be on the clouds, and is more than an event in the heart or in the spirit.

We call the time of Christ's Second Advent the Last Days.

Why not on the clouds. The FAQ argues from Scripture: "The prophet Malachi foretold that Elijah would come down from heaven, but Jesus said that John the Baptist was Elijah. In like manner, Christ could be born on earth."

After 2012. The church says Moon's death in 2012 was an "ascension to the spirit world," and that Hak Ja Han Moon, his wife and co-founder, now leads the movement.

The Fall as a sexual sin

The Exposition teaches that the first sin was an illicit sexual act between the first woman and an angel, not the eating of a fruit.

The Exposition's account of the Fall argues from Genesis and from a passage in the letter of Jude about angels who left their proper dwelling. It says the serpent was an angel, that the fruit is a symbol, and that the first human ancestors fell through a sexual act. This is the root of the church's whole teaching on lineage: if sin entered through the bloodline, it must be cleansed through the bloodline. The church's FAQ says the same in brief: "Adam and Eve engaged in an illicit sexual relationship and fell away from God, thus severing all subsequent humans from the direct lineage of God."

the root of sin was not that the first human ancestors ate a fruit, but rather that they had an illicit sexual relationship with an angel (symbolized by a serpent)

In conclusion, human beings fell through an act of illicit sexual intercourse.

And Jehovah God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat; and she gave also unto her husband with her, and he did eat.

And Jehovah God said unto the woman, What is this thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

Therefore, as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin; and so death passed unto all men, for that all sinned:—

Scripture names the sin and the object plainly. God commanded the man, "of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it" (Genesis 2:17), the woman "took of the fruit thereof, and did eat" (Genesis 3:6), and she confessed, "The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat" (Genesis 3:13). Paul says "through one man sin entered into the world" (Romans 5:12), with no hint of a union with an angel or of a bloodline to be changed. A teaching that turns the fruit into a symbol and the serpent into an angel has left the text for a story the text does not tell. The lineage, the Blessing and the Holy Wine all rest on that missing ground.

Credit. The church takes the Fall seriously and says sin is not a small thing. It holds that humanity is cut off from God and needs to be restored, and that matches the Bible's own verdict on sin. Where it parts from the Bible is in what the sin was, and in the cure.

The True Parents

Sun Myung Moon and Hak Ja Han Moon are held to be the Second Advent couple who stand as the true parents of humankind.

The church teaches that God was looking for a couple to stand where Adam and Eve failed, and that this couple is Sun Myung Moon and Hak Ja Han Moon. They are the "substantial" True Parents, with Jesus and the Holy Spirit as the "spiritual" ones. It teaches that they bring the Blessing that no other person can bring. The church also says plainly that members do not worship them; the relation, it says, is "attend."

We believe this couple is the Rev. Sun Myung Moon and Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon.

Unificationists affectionately refer to the Rev. and Dr. Moon as True Parents for their taking on the role of parents to all of humankind.

Jesus and the Holy Spirit are our spiritual True Parents. On their foundation, God called Father and Mother Moon to be substantial True Parents, to lead us into blessed marriage and completely vanquish sin and suffering.

And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.

For there is one God, one mediator also between God and men, himself man, Christ Jesus,

And call no man your father on the earth: for one is your Father, even he who is in heaven.

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father, but by me.

The church denies that members worship the Moons, and that denial is to its credit. But it gives them a place the New Testament gives to Christ alone. The Bible says of Jesus, "in none other is there salvation" (Acts 4:12), and that there is "one mediator also between God and men, himself man, Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5). The Blessing, which the church says removes sin, must come through the Moons, so they stand where only Christ stands. They are also named the parents of all humankind, though Jesus said, "call no man your father on the earth" (Matthew 23:9).

The test of any new teaching. Paul wrote, "though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach unto you any gospel other than that which we preached unto you, let him be anathema" (Galatians 1:8). The claim that Jesus' work was left unfinished is what the New Testament rules out: "by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified" (Hebrews 10:14). A husband and wife honored warmly by the church are still not another mediator.

The Marriage Blessing and mass weddings

A rite given by the True Parents, after matching and the Holy Wine, said to change a couple's lineage and free them from the first parents' sin.

The Blessing is the church's best-known rite. It is a marriage ceremony with vows and the exchange of rings, bestowed by the True Parents, often on many couples at once. The church says its "main purpose is not simply to bring a man and a woman together who love each other, but to restore marriage and family life to the way God intended it to be." Before it comes the matching, an engagement process in which single members get to know each other with the intention of marriage, in partnership with their parents. The archive describes the Blessing as a change of lineage, and says that "The blessing is not wished upon them; it is transmitted into them."

Satan's claim on marriage is removed and we are engrafted directly into God's lineage.

The blessing is not wished upon them; it is transmitted into them.

The Marriage Blessing is a worldwide tradition where couples dedicate, or re-dedicate, their marriage to a greater purpose and God.

Let marriage be had in honor among all, and let the bed be undefiled: for fornicators and adulterers God will judge.

But as many as received him, to them gave he the right to become children of God, even to them that believe on his name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

in whom we have our redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,

but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

Marriage is good, and the church is right to hold it high: "Let marriage be had in honor among all, and let the bed be undefiled" (Hebrews 13:4). A call to faithful, lasting marriages across every divide is a call Scripture would bless. But the Blessing is said to remove the first parents' sin by changing the blood, and the New Testament puts the removal of sin elsewhere: "in whom we have our redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses" (Ephesians 1:7), and "the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin" (1 John 1:7). The new birth is "not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:13). A marriage rite, whatever it does for a husband and wife, cannot take the place of that.

The mass weddings. The church says it has led the way in mass marriages "for over 60 years," and that a couple makes "a public promise to bring joy to God through loving each other." The church says that in the early decades the True Parents arranged marriages for tens of thousands of couples, and that today it supports young people "to take an active role in finding a spouse in partnership with their parents." We do not say more about how partners are chosen than that.

Ahn Shil Il, the eight-day holy day

A holy day every eight days, proclaimed in 2004 in place of the seven-day week, and kept beside the Sunday Service of the family churches.

The church's archive says Moon proclaimed Ahn Shil Il on 19 April 2004 and quotes him: "The seven-day-interval Sabbath calendar changes to the eight-day-interval Ahn Shil Il calendar." It says the day falls on a different day of the ordinary week each cycle, and is "not anchored to the Saturday of Judaism or the Sunday of Christianity." On it, Blessed Families gather to recite the Pledge, hold Hoon Dok Hae and offer a representative prayer. The archive adds that God, it says, could not claim the days of the old week, and that the new cycle puts time under God's direct rule. In the United States the family churches still meet for a Sunday Service (see Sunday).

It is observed every eight days according to the Heavenly Calendar

Ahn Shil Il is not anchored to the Saturday of Judaism or the Sunday of Christianity

And upon the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul discoursed with them, intending to depart on the morrow; and prolonged his speech until midnight.

I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet

Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a feast day or a new moon or a sabbath day:

Ye observe days, and months, and seasons, and years.

The church deserves credit here: its family churches gather on the first day of the week, the day the New Testament names, "when we were gathered together to break bread" (Acts 20:7), and John was in the Spirit on "the Lord’s day" (Revelation 1:10). But Ahn Shil Il binds a holy day by a later proclamation, on a cycle no apostle knew. Paul answered such things: "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a feast day or a new moon or a sabbath day" (Colossians 2:16), and he grieved over the Galatians, "Ye observe days, and months, and seasons, and years" (Galatians 4:10). A calendar set by a later messenger binds what the apostles loosed.

God as Heavenly Parent

The church names God "Heavenly Parent," both masculine and feminine, and teaches a Holy Spirit who is feminine.

The church's core beliefs begin here. It says "God is first and foremost our Heavenly Parent, encompassing both female and male, mother and father." It cites Genesis 1:27 for it. This sits beside the teaching that the Holy Spirit is the True Mother, and that God's own image is a couple. The church adds that "God is both masculine and feminine, embodied in men and women."

God is first and foremost our Heavenly Parent, encompassing both female and male, mother and father.

God is both masculine and feminine, embodied in men and women.

After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

And God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Jesus saith to her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended unto the Father: but go unto my brethren, and say to them, I ascend unto my Father and your Father, and my God and your God.

As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

Scripture does use a mother's tenderness to show God's: "As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you" (Isaiah 66:13). The church is right that God cares as a parent. But that is a comparison, and the name is another matter. Jesus taught his disciples to pray, "Our Father who art in heaven" (Matthew 6:9), and said, "I ascend unto my Father and your Father, and my God and your God" (John 20:17). Genesis 1:27 says that God made mankind male and female; it does not say that God is both, and nothing in the text makes the Holy Spirit a True Mother.

The test is the same for every body: what the New Testament shows the first-century church doing and teaching, set beside what the Family Federation holds today. The body is not a branch on this site's lineage chart, because it holds added scripture and a later pair of messengers whose teaching it counts as binding. So the five placements below are authored on the rubric's rungs, and the reason is given with each. This body has its own rites in place of baptism and the Lord's Supper, and we weighed those rites, not the absence of the old ones. The church stands near the pattern in how it prizes faithful marriage, in its daily prayer and reading, and in its wish to see people reconciled. It stands far from it in what it adds to Scripture, in who it says the Christ is, and in what it says removes sin.

Every scripture inspired of God is also profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for instruction which is in righteousness: that the man of God may be complete, furnished completely unto every good work.

Beloved, while I was giving all diligence to write unto you of our common salvation, I was constrained to write unto you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints.

But though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach unto you any gospel other than that which we preached unto you, let him be anathema.

Now these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and Apollos for your sakes; that in us ye might learn not to go beyond the things which are written; that no one of you be puffed up for the one against the other.

The church keeps the Bible and argues from it at every step. But it sets beside the Bible the Exposition and three volumes of the Moons' words, calls them scripture, and asks members to read them daily. Scripture says it is enough: "that the man of God may be complete, furnished completely unto every good work" (2 Timothy 3:17). The faith was "once for all delivered unto the saints" (Jude 1:3), and a gospel beyond what the apostles preached is under a curse: "let him be anathema" (Galatians 1:8). On the rubric, an added book takes the last rung for the rule of faith, a body that supplies what Scripture does not say takes the last rung for its silence, and bound teaching on persons and events the New Testament does not describe takes the last rung too.

The criterion on added doctrine. We found no record of how a member who departs from the Divine Principle is disciplined, and the placement does not rest on one. It rests on what the body itself binds: its core beliefs name the Moons as the Second Coming, the Blessing that removes sin comes only through them, and the founder's office could change the teaching itself. Hendricks wrote that "Reverend Moon as the living founder has the authority to revise his movement's self-understanding dramatically," and a Portland family church says in 2026, "We are attending Holy Mother Han as our ecclesiastical leader." Barker notes that many adult children of members "may not accept much or even all of the teachings"; that is a fact about members, not about what the body teaches. Even a step lower on this criterion, the mean of the three still rounds to the far end.

And Peter said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Or are ye ignorant that all we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life.

For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.

The church names Jesus as Savior and does not drop the cross or baptism. But the rite its own sources set at the center, the rite that takes away the root of sin, is the Marriage Blessing, with the Holy Wine, given through the True Parents. The Exposition says the cross "has not entirely purged us of our original sin," where the New Testament says Christ "hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified" (Hebrews 10:14). Peter's word is "Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins" (Acts 2:38), and John's is that "the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin" (1 John 1:7). The church's own scholars say the Blessing takes baptism into itself, and its water is sprinkled, where Paul says "We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death" (Romans 6:4).

Why it is the far end. Subject: the Blessing is given to couples, and Hendricks writes that from 1997 a "pre-blessing" went to "hundreds of thousands of couples, few of whom were Unification Church members or even had much of an inkling of what they were doing"; the children of Blessed couples are held to be born without original sin and receive no rite of entry. That is a step short of the last rung. Mode: Holy Water is sprinkled and Holy Wine drunk, with no burial in water, which is the last rung. Purpose: the rite is held to work of itself, changing the lineage even of those who did not know what it was, which is the last rung. The mean rounds to the far end.

Credit. The church teaches repentance, faith in Jesus and a moral life, and it says that salvation is not simply earned. It also teaches that the person must keep faith and fulfill his own part. These are the right questions.

For I received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which he was betrayed took bread; and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, This is my body, which is for you: this do in remembrance of me. In like manner also the cup, after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood: this do, as often as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink the cup, ye proclaim the Lord’s death till he come.

And he took a cup, and gave thanks, and gave to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many unto remission of sins.

The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a communion of the body of Christ?

The wine rite the church's sources describe is the Holy Wine Ceremony, drunk once in a lifetime by a couple before the Blessing, in the name of the True Parents, to change their lineage. Its own scholars say the Blessing takes communion into itself, and we found no bread and cup at its Sunday Service. The Supper is for the gathered church "upon the first day of the week" (Acts 20:7), its cup is "my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many unto remission of sins" (Matthew 26:28), and of that cup the Lord said, "Drink ye all of it" (Matthew 26:27). A rite received once is not "as often as ye eat this bread, and drink the cup" (1 Corinthians 11:26); a wine said to take away the root of sin through a priestly officiator is a new rite, not the memorial; and a cup kept from every unmarried member is withheld. Frequency, nature and access each sit at the far end, so the placement does not move a step closer.

The three criteria. Frequency: the cup is received once, at the Blessing, which the rubric's last rung counts as a Supper not kept. Nature: Hendricks writes that the officiator of the Blessing "has a priestly role, mediating the work of God," and that the wine undergoes "an ontological change"; a rite said to remove sin through a mediating priest is the last rung, and even read a step lower the mean would not change. Access: the cup goes only to couples at their own Blessing, never to the unmarried or to children, and Scripture sets no such test.

Why not a step closer, as with bodies that keep no Supper. The chart places churches that drop the bread and cup a step short of the far end, because they put nothing in the Supper's place but prayer. This body puts a new cup there, with a meaning the Lord never gave it and in the name of other persons. That is further from the memorial, not nearer.

Credit. The Exposition's line that in communion "we receive the precious grace of partaking in Jesus' body and blood" is nearer to the New Testament than the Holy Wine rite is.

For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that were wanting, and appoint elders in every city, as I gave thee charge;

Take heed unto yourselves, and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit hath made you bishops, to feed the church of the Lord which he purchased with his own blood.

The elders therefore among you I exhort, who am a fellow-elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, who am also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: Tend the flock of God which is among you, exercising the oversight, not of constraint, but willingly, according to the will of God; nor yet for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither as lording it over the charge allotted to you, but making yourselves ensamples to the flock.

The New Testament shows each church led by elders, who are also called bishops and shepherds, with no office over them. Paul told Titus to "appoint elders in every city" (Titus 1:5), and Peter charged the elders to tend the flock, "neither as lording it over the charge allotted to you" (1 Peter 5:3). The Family Federation has a worldwide leader, national and regional offices, senior pastors over regions, and above them the True Parents, whose authority its own archive calls "ontological," not "ecclesiastical." That is an office above every congregation, held by persons said to give what no one else can give. Where a family church has a board of elders, it sits under an "ecclesiastical leader" in Korea, which is not the eldership of Titus.

The three criteria. Eldership: a worldwide head over every church, the last rung. Autonomy: a hierarchy that ends in one office, the last rung. Clergy: Hendricks calls the ministry largely lay, but the officiator of the Blessing holds "a priestly role," and the Moons alone make the seed Holy Wine, an order with powers the members lack. That is a step short of the last rung, and the mean rounds to the far end.

Credit. The church's use of families and homes as the main unit of faith is nearer to the early church than a large building-centered system. The apostles' churches met in homes. This is a real point in its favor.

speaking one to another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts unto God.

But in vain do they worship me, Teaching as their doctrines the precepts of men.

giving thanks always for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;

The New Testament pattern is simple: prayer to the Father, teaching and singing together, the first day, and the Supper at the center. The archive describes a daily reading of Moon's words, a Pledge recited together, a representative prayer, and a holy day on an eight-day cycle. These are set forms and added acts, and Jesus quoted Isaiah against such things: "in vain do they worship me, Teaching as their doctrines the precepts of men" (Matthew 15:9). The church gets credit for prayer, for reading a text together, and for saying members do not worship the Moons. A prayer of Hak Ja Han Moon closes "in the name of the Parents," where the apostles gave thanks "in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father" (Ephesians 5:20); music is not scored, since no source says whether the Holy Songs are sung with instruments.

Why not the far end. Prayer is addressed to God, the Heavenly Parent, even when it closes in the True Parents' name, and the church denies in terms that it worships the Moons. The added acts are set forms and rites with a claimed effect, such as the Holy Wine and the Holy Salt Barker describes, but no source shows images venerated in the assembly. Both criteria sit a step short of the last rung.

But the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said unto you.

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide you into all the truth: for he shall not speak from himself; but what things soever he shall hear, these shall he speak: and he shall declare unto you the things that are to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall take of mine, and shall declare it unto you.

But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thy heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land? While it remained, did it not remain thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thy power? How is it that thou hast conceived this thing in thy heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.

how shall we escape, if we neglect so great a salvation? which having at the first been spoken through the Lord, was confirmed unto us by them that heard; God also bearing witness with them, both by signs and wonders, and by manifold powers, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to his own will.

The Exposition teaches that the Holy Spirit is the True Mother, a feminine second Eve and the counterpart of Jesus. The Bible names the Spirit as God and speaks of him as "he": "the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things" (John 14:26). When Ananias lied to the Holy Spirit, Peter said, "thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God" (Acts 5:4), and Jesus said the Spirit "shall glorify me" (John 16:14). He is not a second parent standing beside a Christ. The church also counts Moon's words as spoken on behalf of Heaven, with the spirit world joining the reading, a claim the New Testament gives to the apostles alone, whose word the gifts "confirmed" (Hebrews 2:3-4).

Where we stand on gifts. The miraculous gifts came through the apostles' hands and ceased with them. The Family Federation does not, in the pages we saw, teach tongues or healing as a mark of the church. Its claim is of another kind: that the Second Coming is a later man and wife, and that the Spirit is the True Mother. That, and not gifts, decides the placement.

who also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye looking into heaven? this Jesus, who was received up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as ye beheld him going into heaven.

If therefore they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the wilderness; go not forth: Behold, he is in the inner chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh forth from the east, and is seen even unto the west; so shall be the coming of the Son of man.

Behold, he cometh with the clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they that pierced him; and all the tribes of the earth shall mourn over him. Even so, Amen.

so Christ also, having been once offered to bear the sins of many, shall appear a second time, apart from sin, to them that wait for him, unto salvation.

Marvel not at this: for the hour cometh, in which all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgment.

So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: it is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: it is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

The church says Christ has come in the flesh in the Moons, and that his coming "will not be on the clouds." At the ascension the messengers said the opposite: "this Jesus, who was received up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as ye beheld him going into heaven" (Acts 1:11), and John writes, "Behold, he cometh with the clouds; and every eye shall see him" (Revelation 1:7). Jesus warned against a hidden Christ: "Behold, he is in the inner chambers; believe it not" (Matthew 24:26). The Exposition also denies that the body is raised, but Jesus said "all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, and shall come forth" (John 5:28-29), and Paul, "It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption" (1 Corinthians 15:42). Christ "shall appear a second time, apart from sin, to them that wait for him, unto salvation" (Hebrews 9:28), not to finish a work left undone.

Credit. The church believes that Jesus will return, that the world is going somewhere, and that the end is a kingdom of peace and love. Its sense that history is moving toward a goal is the Bible's own. Where it goes wrong is in naming the man.

The Family Federation holds much that the New Testament holds, and it is right to say so. It confesses one God who cares for his children. It honors Jesus as Savior and believes he will return. It treats the Bible as God's revealed word, and prays and reads daily. It holds that marriage is honorable and that purity before and in marriage matters: "Let marriage be had in honor among all, and let the bed be undefiled" (Hebrews 13:4). It says plainly that members do not worship the Moons, and it says it opposes violence. It gives families a place of first importance, and tries to heal enemies by joining families across lines of nation and race.

Two things here are worth copying. The first is the daily habit of prayer and Scripture, which many churches have let go. The second is the weight placed on the family as the school of love, which the New Testament also teaches (Ephesians 5:22-6:4).

The test falls hardest where the church is most its own. It sets the Divine Principle and the words of the Moons beside the Bible, and the Bible says it is complete. It teaches that the first sin was a sexual act and that sin is a matter of blood, and Genesis says the woman ate the fruit. It holds that the cross left the work unfinished, and the writer to the Hebrews says one offering has perfected those who are sanctified. It puts the removal of sin in a marriage rite given by two persons, when the apostles put it in the blood of Christ. It names the Second Coming as a husband and wife in Korea, and the messengers at the ascension said he would come as he went. It sets a hierarchy over the churches, and the apostles set elders in each one.

These verdicts rest on the text and not on the sincerity of the people. Many members have given years of their lives to what they were taught. The courts' findings in Japan and Korea, set out in the history, concern conduct and not doctrine, and nothing in Part 4 depends on them. The question for each reader is the one the apostles put: is this what was delivered to the saints? The plain words of the New Testament ask us to go no further than what is written.

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