Criticism of Unification Church in Japan

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The Unification Church in Japan was criticized by the National Network of Lawyers Against Spiritual Sales for being involved in several controversies including “Spiritual sales”,[1] unlawful adoption practices[2] and a change of name to mask its purposes, according to reports.[3] The Unification Church was founded by Reverend Sun Myung Moon in 1954 in South Korea. Moon claimed to have had a vision of Jesus at age 16, prompting him to preach a new doctrine starting in 1946 in North Korea. After fleeing to South Korea, he established the church.[4]  It expanded to Japan in 1958, helped by the Cold War's anti-communist climate, connecting with Japanese politicians and establishing the Asian People's Anti-Communist League. The reunification of Korea and anti-communism were the main goals of the Unification Church.[5]

  1. ^ "WashingtonPost.com: The Cult Controversy". web.archive.org. 1997-05-06. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  2. ^ "Editorial: Japan gov't needs to uncover Unification Church's murky adoption practice". Mainichi Daily News. 2023-02-01. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  3. ^ "Name change by Unification Church a baffling issue years later". The Asahi Shimbun. August 3, 2022.
  4. ^ "Unification Church | History & Beliefs | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 2024-07-12. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  5. ^ NURCAN and DOĞRUL, Elif Sercen and Mürsel (2022). UNIFICATION CHURCH AND JAPAN: A HISTORICAL REVIEW. pp. 553–554.