Creating a World of Peace - The Thought and Works of Sun Myung Moon by Joon Ho Seuk
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Creating a World of Peace - The Thought and Works of Sun Myung Moon by Joon Ho Seuk |
In a reflection of his own personal life, Reverend Moon has launched numerous organizations and projects for the purpose of breaking down barriers between people and establishing lasting peace in our world. They all encourage people to take responsibility to break the cycle of conflict and become agents of reconciliation by practicing living for the sake of others. Some of these projects and organizations are:
The Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU) seeks to build a peaceful world through true families. It promotes activities that strengthen the love of husband and wife, the love of parents for their children, and the love of children for their parents. The message of the Family Federation is that the world needs strong families which can heal our communities and provide a clear model for the next generation.
The FFWPU calls all couples to rededicate their marriage in the love of God, beyond race, culture or religion.
The Family Federation for World Peace & Unification (FFWPU) calls couples to dedicate their marriage to God:
• Affirming the eternal true love of husband and wife, we rededicate our marriage to God.
• We will be faithful in marriage forever.
• We will teach our children sexual purity.
• We will support all people to uplift sexual purity and marital fidelity, beyond race, nation and religion.
Reverend Moon first announced his plan for the establishment of the Inter-religious and International Federation for World Peace (IIFWP) at a gathering of more than three hundred international delegates in Washington, DC, on December 19, 1998. He presented his hope for the development of the IIFWP and eventually the establishment of a council of religious leaders working within the context of the United Nations.
As a global peace movement, IIFWP sees the family as the foundation of, model for, and one of the most basic instruments for creating world peace. Rooted in the universal moral values of unselfish service, its programs engender a transformation of heart for individuals, families, societies, and nations by advancing the global ethic of "living for the sake of others."
The Inter-religious & International Federation for World Peace (IIFWP) works primarily in these areas:
• Peace Initiatives - IIFWP initiated a unique peace process that starts from the most profound critical conviction that Jehovah/ God/Allah is the one Origin, Source of all, whose heart is like that of a parent to all humankind. Rather than religion being divisive, it becomes the starting point and core of the peace process.
• Human Development - IIFWP promotes the sanctity of marriage, the centrality of character education as the foundation for a successful life, the importance of sexual purity before marriage, fidelity within marriage, and a world that embraces the family as the basic ideal of human society.
Together with a network of affiliated NGOs, IIFWP has been working throughout Africa to deal with the HIV/AIDS pandemic, teaching people how to live a healthy lifestyle.
• Good Governance - IIFWP views the future of global governance as a necessary convergence of both religious and governmental cooperation, and convenes summits of world leaders to promote such development.
• UN Relations - IIFWP promotes the practical potential and effectiveness of inter-religious and international cooperation in addressing critical problems in society, the nation, and the world, advocating the establishment of an Inter-religious Council within the United Nations system to strengthen UN efforts to solve critical global problems.
The International Relief Friendship Foundation (IRFF) was founded in 1976 based on the vision and inspiration of Reverend and Mrs. Moon and their ethic of "living for the sake of others." IRFF was created for the purpose of providing humanitarian relief to those individuals and families devastated by poverty, illness, natural disasters, and conflict.
Since its founding, IRFF has provided basic relief to people throughout the world. The organization has expanded its vision and work to focus on sustainable development and personal empowerment through the concept of people helping people.
The International Relief Friendship Foundation (IRFF) sponsors the following major projects:
• Health care and Nutrition - IRFF provides medical equipment and supplies, conducts public education programs in nutrition, health awareness and AIDS prevention, and helps in the creation of clinics, dispensaries, and hospitals. Health care projects have been initiated in such locations as Bangladesh, Rwanda, Mali, China, Haiti, Turkey, and the Ivory Coast.
• Education - IRFF conducts programs such as developing community schools, community literacy centers, provides educational supplies, and supports the development of agricultural programs and vocational retraining efforts, and programs to support the physically and mentally challenged.
Educational projects have been conducted in such places as Ghana, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Uganda, India, Bangladesh, Guyana, and Haiti.
• Relief Projects - IRRF provides food, clothing, pharmaceuticals, and volunteer teams to assist in rebuilding communities hit by natural disasters and catastrophes. Relief has been provided to disaster-devastated communities in Honduras, Dominican Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Russia, Turkey, North Korea, and Haiti.
The Professors World Peace Academy (PWPA) was established to support the academic community in the quest for peace.
With chapters in over 100 countries, it forms a broad network covering the globe and provides links between scholars on all continents. Since its founding in 1972, PWPA has organized more than 2,000 programs, published more than 1,000 books and papers, and sponsored more than 200 student scholarships.
Professors World Peace Academy (PWPA) has the following purposes:
• International - to promote the creation of positive global values in education.
• Academic - to promote the highest standards of academic excellence in its programs and to support the free exchange of knowledge and ideas.
• Interdisciplinary - to promote mutual cooperation beyond national and international boundaries and interdisciplinary studies beyond limited specializations.
• Future oriented - to develop future scenarios for a better society.
• Practical - to provide useful information and constructive strategies to address local problems.