A Legacy of Peace
This week in history, May 3-9:
- Unificationists clean Manhattan and the Bronx (May 3, 1976)
- True Father declares a New Sabbath and “The Era after the Coming of Heaven” (May 5, 2004)
- A joint worship service for the kickoff of Vision 2020 is held (May 5, 2013)
- The Professors World Peace Academy is founded (May 6, 1973)
- The New York State Court of Appeals declares the Unification Church a bona fide religion (May 6, 1982)
- A tribute to True Parents’ Golden Wedding Anniversary and “Legacy of Peace” honorees is held(May 9, 2010)
14 Years Ago Today:
May 8, 2001
Harlem Hoondok Rally, Harlem, New York, City
The Harlem Hoondok Rally was held in Canaan Baptist Church, Harlem, New York City, on May 8, 2001. In his address, “God is our King and True Parent” True Father emphasized, “We refer to God as “Father,” because He is our source of true love, true life and true lineage.” He delivered this message to American Christian clergy in a church that was packed with people.
May 3, 1976
U.S. Members Clean Manhattan and the Bronx
True Father launched an “America the Beautiful” project on May 3, 1976, as part of the “God Bless America” campaign on the occasion of the United States’ 200th anniversary. More than 1,000 Unificationists from across the nation took up brooms and dustpans to clean the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx. Dressed in white jumpsuits with the God Bless America Festival logo on the back, they cleaned in their witnessing area every morning from 7 to 8. The cleanup project was intended to raise awareness for the upcoming “God Bless America Festival” at Yankee Stadium on June 1 at which True Father would deliver an address on “God’s Hope for America.” The Unificationist folk-rock band Sunburst provided free lunch-hour concerts, and hundreds of additional Unificationists arrived for the final push, spearheading street rallies and massive ticket distribution efforts.
May 5, 2004
Declaration of a New Sabbath and “The Era after the Coming of Heaven”
On May 1, 2004, the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (HSA-UWC), or Unification Church, observed the 50th anniversary of its founding. In connection with this observance, True Father made two bold announcements—first, that the Sabbath had been fulfilled and that he was proclaiming Ahn Shi Il, the Day of Attendance of Safe Settlement, to be observed by Unificationists every eighth day. The first Ahn Shi Il was conducted on May 5. On that day, True Father made the second announcement: that a great transition from “the era before the coming of heaven” to “the era after the coming of heaven” had taken place. The key implication of this providential announcement was that world peace, which had been impossible to achieve during “the era before the coming of heaven,” was now possible. This, in particular, was understood to be the reason why the United Nations, born prior to “the era after the coming of heaven,” had not been able to fulfill its mission. True Father’s proclamation of a new Sabbath and “the era after the coming of heaven” culminated trends in his thought and practice that he had introduced previously, including his declaration that the “providence of salvation” was “over,” that “blessed families” should pray in their own names, that humankind had entered an era “beyond the realm of the Fall,” that a time of “high noon” with “no shadows” had arrived, that the time of “indirect dominion” had passed and that “God is now directly teaching and instructing us.”
May 5, 2013
Joint Worship Service for the Kickoff of Vision 2020
Prior to Foundation Day 2013, True Mother declared, “Foundation Day is not the end. Until we liberate all humanity and bring back all 6.5 billion people to Heaven, we have to offer our utmost effort.” In line with this commitment, True Mother announced the “2020 Vision,” which launched Unificationists on a new seven-year trajectory. True Mother’s stated intention was to “substantiate” Cheon Il Guk and, in particular, offer Korea “to Heaven” on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of True Father’s birthday in 2020. The “Joint Worship Service for Victory of Vision 2020” was held at the Cheongshim Peace World Center on May 5. Forty-three students from the Universal Peace Academy entered the stadium holding the flags of the 43 strategic and providential nations which would take the lead this effort. True Mother asked that all families who had received the Holy Marriage Blessing and all young people born into the Unificationist faith carry on True Parents’ tradition of absolute faith in fulfilling their mission as tribal messiahs and expand the scope of our responsibilities beyond the tribe to the society, nation and world, so that all humankind can become citizens of Cheon Il Guk.
May 6, 1973
The Professors World Peace Academy Founded
The Professors World Peace Academy (PWPA) was founded by True Father during an assembly of 168 Japanese and Korean professors, to “contribute to the solutions of urgent problems facing our modern civilization and to help resolve the cultural divide between East and West.” The organization held discussions such as healing historical tensions, first only in Korea and Japan, then spreading around the world to more than a hundred countries. PWPA sponsored a providentially significant conference on “The Fall of the Soviet Empire” in 1985. PWPA-related scholars have written important works through Paragon House and publish the International Journal on World Peace four times annually. PWPA is a major supporter of the University of Bridgeport.
May 6, 1982
New York State Court of Appeals Declares the Unification Church a Bona Fide Religion
The Unification Church was embroiled in near-constant litigation from 1975 to 1985. Though this was costly and time consuming, several decisions, won on appeal, gained the Church gradual recognition as a bona fide religion with tax exemption privileges, public solicitation rights and access to missionary visas. In addition, the Church was able to extend constitutional protections to its adherents and successfully press for action against deprogrammers. By unanimously overturning lower court decisions which had refused to recognize the Unification Church’s religious purposes, the New York Court of Appeals in HSA-UWC v. Tax Commission of New York City [1772], decided on May 6, 1982, held as a matter of law that the Unification Church was a bona fide religion entitled to tax exemption privileges.
May 9, 2010
A Tribute to True Parents’ Golden Wedding Anniversary and “Legacy of Peace” Honorees
Twelve hundred guests gathered in the Aria Hotel in Las Vegas to pay tribute to the 50th wedding anniversary of True Parents and participate in the final “Legacy of Peace” program in a series that began at the United Nations in March. Organized by the Universal Peace Federation, the event focused on True Parents’ lifelong vision to establish a global community of nations and religions—an “Abel UN”—guided by the ideal of “one family under God.” It was held during the year of True Father’s 90th birthday and the publication of his autobiography. The “Legacy of Peace” program honored those recently deceased persons who had contributed to the cause of world peace during their lifetime. Highlights of the program included interfaith prayer by religious leaders, congratulatory remarks by Neil Bush, and True Father’s three-hour speech on “The Establishment of the Abel UN and the Completion of God’s Kingdom of Cheon Il Guk in Korea.”
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 May 3 – 9.
Contributed by Dr. Michael Mickler, professor of church history at Unification Theological Seminary.