Tongil Group News 2011 Inherit the true love of God! TToonnggiill GGrroouupp NNeewwsslleetttteerr Tongil Group http://www.tongilgroup.org Information: [email protected] COPYRIGHTⓒ TONGIL GROUP ALL RIGHTS RESERVED True Parents’ Recent Activities ❇ Dedication Ceremony of the Ocean Cheonjeong Palace Hotel on Geomun Island on 8.15 by the heavenly calendar (Monday, September 12) The dedication ceremony of the Ocean Cheonjeong Palace Hotel on Geomun Island began at 10:30 AM on 8.15 (by the heavenly calendar) at the newly built hotel located in Deokchon Hamlet, Samsan Village in Yeosu City, South Jeolla Province. More than three thousand people attended, including members of the American Clergy Leadership Conference (ACLC), church members, core members of the Tongil Group, chief executives of our providential organizations and corporations, ambassadors for peace, Japanese leaders, leading celebrities of the local Yeosu region, and local residents of Geomun Island. 1 / 18 The dedication ceremony proceeded in the order of 1) a tape-cutting ceremony, 2) the main event and 3) a commemorative luncheon. After the tape-cutting ceremony, True Parents personally sanctified the whole hotel, and then True Father wrote a blessing in calligraphy using the Chinese characters won, mo, pyeong and ae (an unofficial translation: harmonious mother’s peaceful love). 2 / 18 As a pioneer of ocean development who has dedicated himself to fulfilling God’s providence with his whole heart and effort, tirelessly, even during an intense storm, True Father frequently emphasized in his speech that the ocean would be a reservoir of food resources for the 6.5 billion people of the world in the 21st century. He also pioneered the marine development all over the world including Korea, Japan, the United States, the Pacific region, etc., by personally leading from the front. In order for us to develop an affinity to nature and realize its mystery and magnificence, he developed a number of marine businesses. Mr. Dong Seok Gang, the chairman of Yeosu World Expo Organizing Committee, expressed his feelings as follows: ―I’d like to offer my sincere congratulations on the completion of this hotel, built here on Geomun Island. In my opinion, because the Earth is covered by more water than land, as is evident when viewed from outer space, we should call it Haegu (Marine Globe) rather than its current Korean name Jigu (Earth Globe). I know through reading Rev. Moon’s autobiography that he has often made the point that the future vision for humankind is to be discovered in the oceans. I am deeply sympathetic with this view. In addition, being here with all the other participants from the world including American religious leaders, provided a good chance for me to realize again how deeply they respect our chairman, Rev. Sun Myung Moon. I wish him a long and healthy life as well as success and unending development in this Geomun Island hotel business.‖ Left: Congratulations by Dong Seok Gang, the chairman of the Yeosu World Expo Organizing Committee Right: Congratulations by Archbishop George Stallings of Imani Temple in United States. 3 / 18 Although the weather forecast had said from a week earlier that it would rain continuously during the whole Chuseok holiday (September 11–13), we heard another forecast at 3:00 PM on 8.13 (September 10) that Typhoon Kulap, which had taken a northerly route toward the Korean Peninsula had vanished on the way. Thus, we had fair autumnal skies above us from around noon on 8.14 (September 11), which brought us a feeling of grace that this event was concretely administrated by God and True Parents as a united sphere of Heaven’s providence. ❇ Hoondokhwe at the Ocean Cheonjeong Palace on Geomun Island on 8.16 (Tuesday, September 13) 4 / 18 More than a hundred members of ACLC participated in this hoondokhwe session, featuring a reading of the whole text of True Father’s speech at the event (in English) followed by True Father speaking to them personally. After hoondokhwe, True Parents went to sea aboard their boat, New Hope, with their son Hyung Jin Moon, the international president of the Unification Church; his wife Rev. Yeon Ah Lee, and two other daughters-in-law, Mrs. Yeon Ah Choi, vice-president of the Women’s Federation for World Peace; and Mrs. Ji Ye Park, wife of the Tongil Foundation chairman; to fish for about an hour and a half before going to Cheongjeong Palace. ❇ Hoondokhwe at the Cheongpyeong Youth Center on 8.17 (Wednesday, September, 14) – More than 170 people participated, including ACLC members from the U.S. 5 / 18 International President Hyung Jin Moon presides over an unveiling ceremony for a statue representing the Four Great Saints, the founders of four major religions The unveiling ceremony for a statue of the Four Great Saints, founders of four major religions, was held from 10:00 AM on 8.18 (September 15) in the open space in front of Cheong Bok Gung. More than four hundred people attended, including Rev. Hyung Jin Moon and Rev. Yeon Ah Lee, members of ACLC and senior Unification Church members. Representatives from the four religions (that is, Confucianism, Buddhism, Christianity and Islam) each lit a candle and gave a celebratory invocation for the sake of amicable relations and communication between adherents of the religions. 6 / 18 Rev. Hyung Jin Moon said, ―True Parents always told me to study all the world-level religions. Because all human beings are the children of one God, despite differences in religion or denomination, let’s make our best effort to reach an amicable reunion between the religions and realize world peace.‖ He introduced three main missions, that is, 1) the realization of the Holy Temple ideal for world peace and unification; 2) the establishment of the Abel UN; 3) the realization of the Cheon Il Guk model by achieving 210,000 congregants, which True Parents gave as Cheong Bok Gung’s goals. He also emphasized that we fulfill the missions so that we can become True Parents’ dutiful children by completing and consummating these providential goals in the Republic of Korea. 7 / 18 Foundation Chairman Kook Jin Moon delivers a speech at a meeting of the Korean Ambassadors for Peace Council – in the Jeolla Region Twofor meetings All Korea of the KoreaPeace Ambassadors Ambassador for Peace Council Council were– in held ChungCheongBukDo. on September 8 at the Gwangju문국진 May 이 18th Memorial Culture Center and on September 9 at the Jeonju Traditional Culture Hall. On both occasions, the chairman of the사장님 Tongil, Foundation전국 평화대사협의회 gave a speech entitled 특별강연회, ― Is the Republic 실시 of – Korea 전라지역 Strong? ‖ for the sake of heightening awareness of national security among Korean leaders and other citizens. ❇ Special lecture meeting for the Korea Ambassadors for Peace Council in Gwangju, South Jeolla Province, on Thursday, September 8 The special meeting began at 10:30 AM, at a cultural hall commemorating protests in Gwangju demanding democracy that began on May 18, 1980. More than 280 people attended, including Tongil Foundation Chairman Kook Jin Moon and his wife, President Sun Jo Hwang, Mr. Yong Il Gwan (chairman of the South Ward Assembly in the city of Gwangju) Mr. Jong Cheon Na (a member of the Gwangju City Council), Mr. Myeong Hwan Ban (chairman of the Gwangju Ambassadors for Peace Council) and Mr. Jae Jin Moon (chairman of the South Jeolla Province Ambassadors for Peace Council). 8 / 18 ❇Special meeting of the Korean Ambassadors for Peace Council in North Jeolla Province on Friday, September 9 The special meeting, which began at 10:30 AM on Friday, September 9, at the Jeonju Traditional Culture Hall, was attended by more than 230 people including the Tongil Foundation Chairman Kook Jin Moon and his wife, President Sun Jo Hwang, Mr. Han Su Kim (advisory ambassador for international relations), Seung Rae Lim (ex-chairman of the North Jeolla Province Board of Education) and Ms. Geum Sook Jo (chairwoman of the North Jeolla Ambassadors for Peace Council). Pointing out in his lecture that ―although two recent tragedies, the sinking of the ROKS Cheonan and the bombardment attack of Yeonpyeong Island in Korea, which has been divided—north and south—victimized a number of innocent soldiers and citizens, China only made a point that both sides, South Korea and North Korea, should control themselves, for the sake of having a dialogue, but did not sort out clearly which of the two was the assailant and which the aggrieved party,‖ the chairman emphasized the susceptibility of Korean national security to an attitude of China as a giant, which has emerged as the world’s second economic power. He also made the point that ―military expenditure in China increases by more than 12 percent every year to approach an annual level of U.S. $40 billion, which equals almost two thirds of the U.S. defense budget. This indicates that China’s defense expenditure may surpass that of the United States in a couple of years, when compared more realistically by converting the amounts using the Purchase Power Index.‖ The chairman concluded his presentation by appealing to the audience, ―In its history, this nation has often been caught up in war due to geopolitical reasons. As long as we live in circumstances without any convincing proof of our not being caught up war again in the future, we must make strong effort for ourselves to make this small nation of ours strong enough to avoid repeating our tragic history.‖ 9 / 18 Foundation Chairman Kook Jin Moon Visits Gwangju, South Jeolla Province and North Jeolla Province on a Speaking Tour of the Nation As part of a speaking tour of the nation, meetings took place on September 8 and 9.