The North American chapter of the Federation of Continental Nations for World Peace (FCNWP) was formally founded at an impressive Inaugural Convention held at the Meadowlands Hilton (New Jersey, USA) from August 30 - September 1, 1996. August 1996 has seen a flurry of world-level activity under Reverend Moon's sponsorship defying all historical records. From July 30 - August 1, 1996 the Inaugural Convention of the Family Federation for World Peace (FFWP) stunned the world with an unprecedented gathering of world leaders, including two U.S. presidents. In addition to major conventions in Latin America Reverend Moon also hosted the Inaugural Conventions of the Federation of Island Nations for World Peace (FINWP) in Tokyo, and the Peninsular Nations Federation for World Peace (FPNWP) in Seoul. Now this constellation of organizations comes full circle in this week's convention for continental nations.

Reverend Joong Hyun Pak, Continental leader for North America and responsible leader for the Continental convention, benefited greatly from the excellent and fruitful efforts of Dr. Tyler Hendricks, President of the Unification Church of America, and Mr. Michael Smith, President of the American Constitution Committee. These three were well supported by Mr. David Eaton of the New York City Symphony, who managed the conference, and led a fine support staff.

Approximately 70 full participants benefited from a well conceived program of speakers addressing issues pertinent to the concerns of continental nations. The opening plenary was open to the public, and was attended by several hundred local guests. Those hundreds in attendance were first treated to a rich and erudite social history of the United States; the keynote speech delivered by University of Bridgeport president, Dr. Richard Rubenstein. Following Dr. Rubenstein's address, Reverend Dr. Pak then read the Founder's Address, namely Reverend Moon's teaching on the historical and geo- political relationship among island, peninsula, and continental nations, and the role of human responsibility in the evolution of human affairs. The Founder's Address brought the crowd to their feet in an ovation lasting several minutes, a rare and uncommon event for any speech read on someone else's behalf.

The remainder of the program included a host of prominent speakers including the United States governor (Pennsylvania) Robert Casey, the Bush and Clinton Administrations appointee Patricia Funderburk Ware, Dr. Glenn Bassett, Director of the Business School at University of Bridgeport, and renowned Chicago University Political Scientist, Professor (Emeritus) Morton Kaplan. The event came to a magnificent conclusion with the Banquet Address from Canadian (former) Prime Minister the Right Honorable Brian Mulroney. His captivating address was followed by the farewell remarks of Reverend Pak who used his time to introduce the highlights of Reverend Moon's incomparable career of service to humankind. The result of the convention was to produce a significant community of leaders ready to commit to on-going peace activities linked to this federation and to the many other peace and social action initiatives of Reverend and Mrs. Moon.

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