A Groundbreaking Declaration
This week in history, July 3-9:
- 1,440,000 second generation Christian youth and world religious youth receive the Holy Marriage Blessing (July 3, 2002)
- America declares independence from Great Britain (July 4, 1776)
- True Father is arrested in Ewha Womans University incident (July 4, 1955)
- True Father is transferred from Danbury to Phoenix House (July 4, 1985)
- Leading newspapers in all fifty states began publishing “A Cloud of Witnesses” (July 4, 2002)
- First one hundred-day workshop is held in Japan (July 5, 1973)
- The Cross-Cultural Marriage Blessing Ceremony in the Sacred Reign of Peace is held (July 5, 2007)
- True Father declares his messiahship publicly for the first time (July 6, 1992)
- The first car is purchased for True Parents (July 7, 1958)
- The Convention to Proclaim the Embodiment of God’s Word and the Era of the Parents of Heaven, Earth and Humankind is held (July 8, 2010)
July 3, 2002
Holy Blessing of 1,440,000 Second Generation Christian Youth and World Religious Youth
True Parents officiated at a series of Interfaith Marriage Blessings centered on the American Clergy Leadership Conference (est. 2000) and the ACLC’s “We Will Stand in Oneness” 50-state speaking tour (2001). The first of these was an Interfaith Marriage Blessing of sixty clergy couples presided over by True Parents in the Cotillion Room of the Hilton Hotel in New York City on May 27, 2001, which included, most prominently, Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo. The second was a blessing of 144,000 clergy couples, 700 of whom gathered as representative couples at the Sheraton National Hotel in Arlington, Virginia, on April 27, 2002. The third was the Holy Blessing of 1,440,000 Second Generation Christian Youth and World Religious Youth on July 3, 2002. Seven hundred couples jammed the representative venue at the Sheraton National Hotel. A U.S. congressman offered a congratulatory address. World religious representatives, including a Native American chief, offered prayers. This time, the Nation of Islam brought 40 couples, the Sikhs 20 and the Hindus 20 in addition to other groups that “brought their lineages before heaven.”
July 4, 1776
America Declares Independence from Great Britain
On July 4, 1776, members of the Second Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence, which explained the reasons for the 13 American colonies to separate from the British Empire. Two days earlier, on July 2 in closed session, the same Congress voted to approve a resolution of independence. From the beginning, Americans celebrated independence on July 4, thereafter known as Independence Day or the Fourth of July. Independence Day is a national holiday marked by patriotic displays, barbecues and fireworks. In 1976, the year of the American Bicentennial, True Father founded the “Bicentennial God Bless America Committee” to focus the bicentennial celebrations on God and to call America to its global responsibilities. True Father delivered major speeches at Yankee Stadium in New York City on June 1, 1976, and at the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., on September 18, 1976.
July 4, 1955
True Father Arrested in Ewha Womans University Incident
In late 1954 and early 1955, the newly founded Unification Church witnessed successfully on the campuses of Ewha Womans University and Yonsei University in Seoul. Nearly 400 students connected to the church, at which point Ewha President Helen Kim and Vice President Maria Park spearheaded a crackdown. Five Ewha University faculty members, including Dr. Young Oon Kim and Won Pok Choi, who had joined the church, were fired. Students were given the choice to discontinue association with the church or be expelled. Fourteen students accepted expulsion. Finally, as a result of an orchestrated defamation campaign, True Father, Won Pil Kim, Church President Hyo Won Eu and two of Mr. Eu’s relatives were arrested. True Father spent three months in Seoul’s Seodaemun prison before being freed on appeal.
July 4, 1985
True Father Transferred from Danbury to Phoenix House
After serving nearly 12 months in Danbury Federal Correctional Institution in Connecticut, True Father was transferred to Phoenix House, a halfway facility in Brooklyn, New York, where he served the final 45 days of his 18-month sentence, getting five months off for good behavior. True Father was permitted to leave the house at 7:00 a.m. each morning and was required to return by 11:00 p.m. During the day he was free to direct church affairs.
July 4, 2002
“A Cloud of Witnesses: The Saints’ Testimonies to the True Parents”
Leading newspapers in all fifty states began publishing “A Cloud of Witnesses” spirit world messages in ad space purchased by the Unification movement. The spirit world messages were the result of “seminars in the spirit world,” initially for the four religious founders (Jesus, Buddha, Confucius, Muhammad) and subsequently for “120 Christians Who Illuminated History,” 120 leaders each from Buddhist, Confucian and Muslim traditions, and 120 communists. They also included a “Letter from God.” The seminars were led by Dr. Sang Hun Lee (d. 1997) and channeled through Mrs. Young Soon Kim. True Father authorized the messages, stating they “should be considered to be from me.” The “cloud” testimonies were direct about True Parents’ position as the savior of all humankind and controversial among clergy associated with the movement. However, they also provided an opportunity for education. The movement convened “National Ministers Workshops” for several hundred clergy. As one leader put it, “The trial of the Cloud of Witnesses led to a Divine Principle movement within the clergy.”
July 5, 1973
First One Hundred-Day Workshop in Japan
The first one-hundred-day workshop in Japan began on July 5, 1973, at the Atsugi Training Center in the city of Atsugi. Members had responded to True Father’s words: “For people to become global leaders, there are three abilities they must have. Based on correct values, these are persuasion, public relations, diplomacy and business skills.” Eighteen one hundred-day workshops were held, with Japan’s top executives participating. After that, it was replaced by a forty-day workshop. (Materials provided by the FFWPU History Compilation Committee)
July 5, 2007
Cross-cultural Marriage Blessing Ceremony in the Sacred Reign of Peace
As part of the 2007 World Culture and Sports Festival (WCSF 2007), True Parents officiated an international marriage blessing at Yoo Gwan-soon Indoor Gymnasium in Cheonan, Korea (one hour south of Seoul) on July 5. Under the title, “2007 Cross-cultural Marriage Blessing Ceremony in the Sacred Reign of Peace,” the blessing brought 1,634 couples together in holy matrimony. The blessing was the 7th Phase of the International Cross-cultural Blessing of 400 Million Couples. The ceremony was broadcast through the internet, so many other couples participated indirectly from all around the world. Dr. Lee Soo-sung, former prime minister of Korea and H.E. Stanislav Shushkevich, former president of Republic of Belarus, offered congratulatory addresses. In his remarks, Shushkevich noted, “I had the privilege to be at the World Peace Blessing in 1992, when I was still head of state of Belarus,” he explained, “At that time we were so happy because of our new found freedoms. But looking back now fifteen years later I can say that freedom alone is not enough: we must have strong families and a strong moral structure if our nations are to prosper.”
July 6, 1992
True Father Publicly Declares His Messiahship
True Father publicly declared his messiahship for the first time in a speech delivered to Women’s Federation for World Peace (WFWP) and Korean civic leaders in Chungju, Korea. This was the first of four major gatherings that took place from July 6 to 9, 1992, in Korea’s Seoul region, the southeast region, the southwest region and the mid-Korea region. In his speech, “The Reappearance of True Parents and the Ideal Family,” True Father stated:
“God chose me to be the Messiah. … I have fulfilled my mission as the Lord of the Second Advent, Savior and the True Parent. I am proclaiming this in this place because the time has come to do so. Those who accept this will be blessed. If this race listens to me, how good that will be for the country. How good it would be, if the statesmen listen to me.”
True Father declared his messiahship on the worldwide level at the first World Culture and Sports Festival (WCSF) held in Seoul from August 19 to 30, 1992.
July 7, 1958
First Car Purchased for True Parents
True Parents’ first car was bought on July 7, 1958. The car’s plate number was “Seoul, Ja 747.” True Father went on endless tours nationwide with this car. During summer and winter forty-day witnessing periods in particular, True Father was busier than usual, moving around the country to encourage witnessing members. At times, a church in a province would be preparing for a revival when suddenly it would receive information of an impending visit by True Father. All members would come out and warmly welcome him. (Materials provided by the FFWPU History Compilation Committee)
July 8, 2010
The Convention to Proclaim the Embodiment of God’s Word and the Era of the Parents of Heaven, Earth and Humankind is Held
True Parents hosted the Convention to Proclaim the Embodiment of God’s Word and the Era
of the Parents of Heaven, Earth and Humankind at the Cheon Jeong (Original) Peace Palace in Korea on July 8, 2010. Two thousand overseas members attended including some 640 from Europe and 130 from the United States. The convention culminated True Parents proclamation of a new heavenly calendar, their Golden Wedding Anniversary and Seunghwa Memorial Festivals held at the United Nations and elsewhere earlier that year. In his speech, True Father
stated, “True Parents have already prepared the last words I will give to humankind” and noted, “I am leaving behind eight textbooks and teaching materials for humankind to use for all eternity. These are published in almost a thousand volumes.” He called upon blessed families to carry our Hoon Dok education, establish an absolute family, and to “inscribe in your hearts the fact that we have entered the era of the realm of the cosmic Sabbath.” Through this proclamation ceremony, True Father stated, “all the borderlines in the entire cosmos have been abolished.”
This Week in History briefly lists significant events in the history of the Unification Church, the lives of the Founders, and world events that are momentous to Unificationists. Most items are marked according to the solar calendar. Items marked “H.C.” correspond to the Cheon-gi or Heavenly Calendar, which is based on the lunar calendar. This installment covers the week of July 3 to 9.