Unification movement status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Unification movement The Unification movement or Unificationism, also called the Unification Church (UC), is a worldwide new religious movement. Its members are colloquially called "Moonies". It was officially founded under the name Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (HSA-UWC) in Seoul, South Korea, in 1954, by Sun Myung Moon, a Korean religious leader also known for his business ventures and engagement in social and political causes. In 1994 the HSA-UWC was replaced by Moon with a new organization, the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU). The
Sun Myung Moon also drew criticism, especially after they involved members of other churches, including Roman Catholic archbishop Emmanuel Milingo. He was also criticized for his relationships with political and religious figures, including U.S. Presidents Richard Nixon, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, North Korean President Kim Il Sung, and Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan. Sun Myung Moon was born Moon Yong Myeong on 25 February 1920, in modern-day North P'yŏng'an Province, North Korea, at a time when Korea was under Japanese rule. He was the younger of two sons in a farming family of eight