Why should we be that concerned about the Unification Church/Moonies, given that they only have an estimated three hundred New Zealand members? Because their power outweighs their numbers. Born in 1920, Sun Myung Moon had a religious experience at fifteen (1935). At twenty six (1946), he wrote his Divine Principle and was imprisoned in communist North Korea for the next seven years (1946-1953). After the Korean War, he established his Unification Church in Pusan, South Korea. As a result of the trauma of civil war and widespread fear of communism, Moon's sect attracted substantial numbers of followers. It was able to send missionaries off to Japan (1958) and the United States (1959). It became infamous for its right-wing politics, bankrolling the World Anti-Communist League, a rat's nest of far right, neofascist, white supremacist and other so-called 'anti-communist' organisations during the Cold War. The Unification Church even defended Richard Nixon before the effects of the Watergate scandal made the latter's position as US President untenable. The US fundamentalist community was initially aghast at Moon's authoritarian control of his followers, as well as his unorthodox interpretation of Christian theology. It incorporates elements of prechristian ancestral spirit worship from South Korea, and argues that because Christ "failed" (as evidenced by his crucifixion), he had to be reincarnated as a Korean married man with children in the early twentieth century- Moon is "Lord of the Second Advent." As if this wasn't enough, Jesus is married to the female "Holy Spirit" of the Christian Trinity. However, as it became apparent that the Unification Church was deeply socially conservative, and prepared to bankroll Christian Right co-belligerency, their apprehension lessened considerably. For example, the right-wing Washington Times is Moonie-owned. Former Maxim Institute Director Bruce Logan even got into the act, delivering a 'family values' session at a meeting of a Moonie front group, the International Federation for World Peace. Apart from the incident noted above, the Unification Church's small membership has meant that it is mostly unable to interfere with New Zealand politics. In the late seventies, it tried to launch two periodicals - New Hope (1977-78) and Pioneer (1978-79). However, it did pop up as a new alias, the Family Federation for Unification and World Peace, during the Christian Right's campaign against repeal of Section 59 of the Crimes Act this year. As one might guess from its heavy investment in heterosexual marriage and family imagery, the church is quite dedicated to the institution. Moon has even gone so far as to simultaneously marry thousand of straight Moonie couples in mass weddings. As one might guess, Moonies don't welcome gay members, clergy or commitment ceremonies. At his worst, Moon's outbursts on the subject rival that of Paul Cameron and the late Jerry Falwell. Dirt and faeces feature prominently in his diatribes against lesbians and gay men, as does 'free sex' and drugs. Chillingly, he also ranted about a "purge, on God's orders," when "gays will be eliminated." It will be "greater than the Communists purges, but on God's orders." Altogether, there are about three million Moonies, with most clustered in South Korea and Japan, and with about one hundred thousand in the United States. How much of a threat to us are they? During the late eighties, they set up a so-called "Parents Rights Group" in the London borough of Hackney during the controversy about positive LGBT imagery in late high school social studies education curricula which led to the Thatcher administration's Clause 28 of the Local Government Act 1988. This draconian legislation made it illegal for local bodies to fund LGBT social services or educational material outside that required for HIV/AIDS prevention. Apart from the Logan incident above, though, it seems Moon's vitriol is far worse than his actual effect. However, as the well-heeled sect may finance Christian Right antigay campaigns indirectly and use the Washington Times and other media outlets to distribute its propaganda, diligence and investigative scrutiny may be required. At present, there is no evidence to suggest that the Unification Church here has derived any benefit from Korean emigration to New Zealand. Recommended: David Bromley and Anson Shupe: Moonies in America: Cult, Church and Crusade: Beverly Hills: Sage: 1979. George Chryssides: The Advent of Sun Myung Moon: Origins, Beliefs and Practices of the Unification Church: Basingstoke: Macmillan: 1991. J.Isasu Yamamoto: Unification Church: Grand Rapids: Zondervan: 1995. Moonie websites: http://www.unification.net http://www.familyfed.org http://www.tparents.org Craig Young - 8th August 2007