Earn Your Certificate in Unification Thought Online!
In recent years, a growing number of people have expressed an interest in learning more about Unification Thought (UT), which led to the idea of creating a college-level course and making it available to a large audience for a nominal fee. This online certificate course was created by the Research Institute for the Integration of World Thought, which True Father founded in the United States on July 8, 1999, to represent and further Unification Thought. Registration fee is $40 USD. Participants will receive the certificate upon successful completion of the course.
Unification Thought (sometimes referred to as Unification Philosophy) is a systematized presentation of the thought of Sun Myung Moon. This course aims to familiarize participants with the unique insights of Unification Thought and the ways in which it relates to mainstream Western thought. An effort has been made to shed light on the innovative contributions made by Unification Thought and to place them in context, thus removing some of the stumbling blocks that might disorient those new to UT.
The course does not presuppose either in-depth knowledge of Unificationist teachings or a familiarity with the Western or Eastern philosophical traditions, though a degree of acquaintance with both would be an advantage. This will be the occasion to discuss a number of key philosophical notions and their practical applications. In the process, the main areas of philosophical investigation, as they are treated in the Unification Thought textbooks, will be dealt with one by one. This course covers the entirety of Unification Thought, namely the 11 chapters found in current UT publications—each chapter corresponding to a specific field of philosophical inquiry (Ontology, Ethics, Epistemology … ), as well as an additional chapter on Spirit World not found in existing publications. Even more importantly, though, it is hoped that the general framework and method of Unification Thought will become clear through this course.
What follows thus can be read as a stand-alone, chapter-by-chapter description and analysis of Unification Thought. It is, however, best studied along with the brief corresponding content found in An Introduction to the Thought of Sun Myung Moon (RIIWT 2005), an abbreviated but quite complete overview of Unification Thought.
Instructor Biography
Dr. Claude Perrottet, secretary-general of the Research Institute for the Integration of World Thought, created and developed the certificate course in Unification Thought. He also served as the translator (from the Korean original to English) of An Introduction to the Thought of Sun Myung Moon: Unification Thought and V.O.C. Theory.
Claude Perrottet’s specialized field is philosophy of religion and he holds a Ph.D. from Laval University (state university, Quebec, Canada). He is a summa cum laude graduate of the Unification Theological Seminary, where he earned his master of divinity degree. He has researched and taught Unification Thought for more than three decades, and he has published articles on Gender in Western Philosophy and Unification Thought and a Philosophical Inquiry into Spirit World in the Journal of Unification Studies. He also has published a book on Kant’s influence on Tillich’s Philosophy of Religion, as well as articles on topics such as Kant’s Perpetual Peace as an antecedent to the United Nations and Paul Tillich and Zen Buddhism. He coauthored Unification Perspectives on Peace and Conflict Transformation (2013) with Dr. Thomas J. Ward.
In addition to his course on Unification Thought, Dr. Perrottet currently teaches graduate courses in global development and peace and undergraduate courses in sociology of religion, philosophy of religion, gender studies, and ethics at the University of Bridgeport.
Margaret Baron
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This is interesting. Could you please offer further information. I would like to know what other charges will be made apart from the registration fee and whether the course is one which you do at your convenience or whether it follows a schedule of broadcasted lectures which one has to adhere to. Would we have to purchase any additional literature or submit any work?
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editorial
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Dear Margaret,
Thank you for your comment. Please follow the link to learn more: http://unification-thought.org/proj08.html
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Frank Bell
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Unification Thought is a theistic philosophy which is to be recommended. However at present it does not address the question of an explanation of “spirit world” that is in accord with the scientific view of the nature of the universe. For example, quantum physics is barely touched on and only in terms of charge when done so. I have commented on this with with Gerry Servito and Richard Lewis, but have only received responses amounting to a sentence for such a complex matter. True Father at WRIST said to us that he has no explanation of this and delegated us the responsibility to address this matter. Are the responses I see from Gerry, Richard and Peter Nordquist the best responses that can be provided or is there more? This is a serious matter if there is to be an incorporation of the Standard Model which seems to be very effective an explanation, though experimental data is being sought to find its limitations.
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Joy
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how do I access the course which I have signed up for if I cannot set up an account in canvas without an un-provided learning code?
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editorial
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Dear Joy,
Thank you for your comment. Please follow the link to learn more and to connect to the instructor: http://unification-thought.org/proj08.html
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