'Mutual anxiety and desire': The history behind the Unification Church's political reach
Published: 15 Dec. 2025, 14:04
Updated: 15 Dec. 2025, 14:37
![Rev. Moon Hyung-jin, the church's pastor and the son of the late Moon Sun-myung, participates in a ceremony at the World Peace and Unification Sanctuary in Newfoundland, Pennsylvania, on Feb. 28, 2018. [AFP/YONHAP]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/12/15/ca3f1b51-4d03-4482-b452-8623e2b75d16.jpg)
Rev. Moon Hyung-jin, the church's pastor and the son of the late Moon Sun-myung, participates in a ceremony at the World Peace and Unification Sanctuary in Newfoundland, Pennsylvania, on Feb. 28, 2018. [AFP/YONHAP]
Renewed suspicions that the Unification Church has funneled money and support to lawmakers across party lines have reignited concerns about the collusion between religious groups and those in power: Why does the Unification Church have such an extensive reach into the political world?
The Unification Church refers to its founders, the late Rev. Moon Sun-myung and his wife Han Hak-ja, as its “True Parents.” According to the church’s doctrine, humanity’s bloodline was corrupted when Eve engaged in a sexual relationship with the serpent, or Satan, in the Book of Genesis. She then led Adam astray by beginning a sexual relationship with him, and as their descendants, all of humanity inherited this corruption.
To save humanity, the Unification Church believes this tainted bloodline must be purified. This is why, they argue, Jesus came to Earth. Born of a virgin and possessing pure blood, Jesus needed to marry, form a family and bear children to bring humanity closer to salvation.
The Unification Church, therefore, considers Jesus's ministry as “unfinished,” having achieved “spiritual salvation” but not “physical salvation” since he never married or started a family. According to the church, the messiah who returned to Earth to complete this mission is Rev. Moon and his wife. The former is considered the “perfect Adam” and the latter the “perfect Eve.”
After Moon died in 2012, the church experienced internal strife. In his will, Moon designated his seventh son, Moon Hyung-jin, as successor to the church — with the caveat that he must maintain a unified front with his mother.
Following Moon’s death, however, Han, referred to as the “only begotten daughter,” quickly consolidated power and established herself as the church’s central leader.
![Rev. Moon Hyung-jin, the son of the late Moon Sun-myung of the Unification Church [JOONGANG ILBO]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/12/15/f5580162-d0e6-4ddc-9f24-5a0e3c8e19df.jpg)
Rev. Moon Hyung-jin, the son of the late Moon Sun-myung of the Unification Church [JOONGANG ILBO]
Moon Hyung-jin and his elder brother Moon Kook-jin strongly opposed Han’s leadership and eventually left for the United States, where they founded the separate World Peace and Unification Sanctuary Church. This internal split has been dubbed by outsiders as a “princely rebellion.” With the succession issue still unresolved, Han has had to consistently assert her leadership. During this turbulent period, a major scandal involving the church emerged in Japan.
In March, a Japanese court ordered the dissolution of the Unification Church’s legal status as a religious corporation. The decision followed the 2022 assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, whose killer claimed his family had been financially ruined by his mother’s large donations to the church, sparking nationwide outrage.
After a lengthy investigation by Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, the court accepted the government's petition to strip the church of its religious corporation status. The Unification Church has appealed the ruling, and the case is now in its second trial at the high court, with Japan’s legal system allowing up to three trials.
Even if the dissolution is finalized, the Unification Church will not be banned from religious activities but will lose all legal and economic privileges associated with being a religious corporation. Properties previously exempt from taxation will become taxable. Given the church’s extensive real estate holdings, this could deal a severe financial blow.
![Japan’s former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, center, falls on the ground after being shot during a campaign speech in Nara, western Japan, on July 8, 2022. [AP/YONHAP]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/12/15/756c9053-aac6-4615-86ac-af355689c274.jpg)
Japan’s former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, center, falls on the ground after being shot during a campaign speech in Nara, western Japan, on July 8, 2022. [AP/YONHAP]
Donations would become taxable income as well. A Unification Church official said there are roughly 100,000 to 200,000 followers in Korea and 500,000 to 600,000 in Japan, highlighting Japan's importance to the church's financial base. The fallout would be significant and also damage Han's leadership.
Religious organizations benefit from tax exemptions, construction permits and state subsidies from the political establishment. For politicians, the real benefit is votes. Persuading individual voters is difficult. But large religious groups can mobilize en masse. Their members tend to be loyal and tightly organized, making them an influential force during elections.
“Politicians are plagued by an inherent anxiety over the finite nature of their power, and religious groups fear losing influence in an increasingly secular society,” said Song Jae-ryong, a professor of sociology of religion at Kyung Hee University. “It is this mutual anxiety and desire that brings religious and political power together.”
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY BAIK SUNG-HO [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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