The World Culture and Sports Festival '99 will convene in Seoul beginning on Thursday, February 4 and finishing on Sunday, February 8. Convened by the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification International, founded by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, The Festival consists of two major events: The Special Convocation and the Blessing '99.

Special Convocation: Lotte Hotel - February 4-7. A gathering of several hundred eminent leaders in the fields of religion, government, media, academia, and artists will gather to discuss the theme, "Family Ethics and World Peace." Speakers will include the Hon. Alexander Haig, Jr., former US Secretary of State; Hon. Albert Reynolds, former Prime Minister of Ireland; Arnaud De Borchgrave, journalist and current CEO of United Press International; and Susan Ford Bales, daughter of former US President Gerald Ford.

The Special Convocation serves several purposes. First, it provides a forum for experts from varied fields to discuss the importance of family ethics and world peace as we enter the new millenium. The loving family is seen as the model for peace in the world. Also, The gathered participants will inaugurate a new organization called the Inter-Religious and International Federation for World Peace. It's mission is to harness the combined resources and collective wisdom from both the spiritual and secular arenas of human leadership, as well as to acknowledge and work through the fact that human relationships are organized according to religious and national structures and loyalties.

Blessing '99: Chamsil Olympic Stadium - February 7, 2:00 pm. More than 25,000 couples from all major religions, races and nationalities will gather in an extraordinary show of faith in God and marriage. The Reverend and Mrs. Sun Myung Moon will bestow their blessing on the assembled brides and grooms, which will be broadcast by satellite and internet to participants in 185 countries. This international marriage blessing follows on the previous major blessings in America in 1997 and 1998 and is the culmination of 360 million couples worldwide who have taken the four universal marriages vows at the center of the ceremony.

These four vows are: 1) As husband and wife, we pledge to keep our purity through eternity and keep God at the center of our marriage. 2) Pledge we will never divorce and never express violence in the family. 3) Pledge to educate our children to be pure before marriage and raise them with the ideals of true and eternal love 4.) Pledge to realize true love and true family ideals, overcome race and religious divisions and spread the message of true love to our community.

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