Dr. Hyun Jin Preston Moon, Founder & Chairman of the Global Peace Foundation, delivers the keynote address at a banquet commemorating the 80th anniversary of Korean’s Liberation Day.

Watch the keynote address at the 2025 Action for Korea United banquet.

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Honorable guests, ladies and gentlemen:

On this auspicious occasion, it is a great honor to address such a distinguished gathering of Korean patriots and supporters of our efforts for Korea’s peaceful reunification. In particular, I would like to recognize and thank the Hon. Chung Woon Chan, former Prime Minister of Korea and the Convener of Korean Dream Hangang Festa organizing committee, Hon. Chung Woo Taek, Co-Chair of the organizing committee, Hon. Kim Jin Pyo, the former speaker of the National Assembly, Hon. Chung Dong Yeong, the Minister of Unification, and Hon. Song Seok Joon, member of the National Assembly.

I would like to also thank our leaders from around the world who have joined us today. H.E. Vinicio Cerezo, Former President of Guatemala, H.E. Jamil Mahuad, Former President of Ecuador, H.E. R. Amarjargal, Former Prime Minister of Mongolia, H.E. Anthony Kenny, Former Prime Minister of St. Lucia, H.E. Luis Castiglioni, Former Vice President of Paraguay. I want to also welcome all the leaders gathered here from around the world representing government, diplomacy, business, media and civil society.

We are gathered here to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Korean people’s liberation from Japanese colonial rule. Over these eight decades we have seen remarkable transformations, especially here in the South. Yet, today, we face a turbulent, divided present, and an uncertain future. Old frameworks are crumbling, and we can no longer rely on past certainties to chart a path to the future.

What is it that we can truly celebrate today? The liberation of Korea at the end of World War II opened a window of historic opportunity. It was a time of hope when the ideals and aspirations of the Sam Il Independence movement rooted in the Korean people’s founding vision of Hong-Ik Ingan- “to broadly live for the benefit humanity”- breathed life into the dream of creating a new western-style constitutional republic that was “united, independent, and free.” Tragically, that was not to be. Instead, we experienced the division of the peninsula and, ultimately, a civil war between the Korean people with contrary visions of a future, unified Korea.

It is time to take stock, to understand from where we came from, where we stand today, and where we can find the clear vision and sense of national purpose that will guide us to a brighter future. The significance of this moment for the current reality of the peninsula and the future of our people cannot be overstated.

 

The Beginning of Korea’s Modern Era

The 20th century was the most consequential century for the Korean people and the peninsula. With its annexation into the Japanese empire in 1910, the Korean nation and civilization was on the brink of extinction as Japan’s policy of forceful integration sought to stamp out its language, culture and, most importantly, its historic identity. The utter brutality of their rule, fueled by their anti-Korean sentiments, triggered widespread condemnation and a growing grassroots movement for independence.

With the end of the First World War, President Wilson’s 14 Points raised the hopes of colonized nations, offering them the prospect of eventually attaining national sovereignty. However, the European powers, their manpower and economic reserves depleted by the war, had no interest of relinquishing their colonial holdings; nor, did Japan, since it sought to be accepted into the elite circle of the Western colonial powers in addition to pursuing its own ambition of expanding Japanese Imperial rule over the rest of Asia. Although the idea of national self-determination for colonized peoples died in the halls of Versailles, President Wilson’s initiative sparked the kindling of nationalist movements with a universal moral tone that harkened to the American Declaration of Independence and would, eventually, lead to collapse of the colonial system.

The first of those movements happened here in Korea. The March 1st (Sam-Il) movement mobilized more than ten percent of the population around the Korean Declaration of Independence in a series of peaceful demonstrations throughout the peninsula and the diaspora. It drew heavily from the American Declaration with ideas of “the equality of all nations,” liberty” and “inalienable” rights. It highlighted the need for enlightened leadership where the Korean people “entertain no spirit of vengeance towards Japan” but “to influence the Japanese Government, which is now dominated by the old idea of brute force, so that it will change and act in accordance with the principles of justice and truth.” It concludes with the implications for Korean independence for the rest of Northeast Asia and the dawning of a new era rooted in “righteousness and truth.”

The high-minded nature of the document was reflective of the spiritual leadership that made up the 33 representatives who signed the Korean Declaration of Independence. Representing the three dominant factions of the Korean religious community- Christianity, Buddhism and Cheondogyo, they sought to appeal to the universal spiritual principles and values reflected in the American Declaration since it appealed to western Judeo-Christian sensibilities on the “inalienable” right of national self-determination and, eventually, the sins of colonialism. In addition, the founders wanted to steer the more radical voices for independence away from violent insurrection to peaceful, non- violent protest since they recognized that global support was necessary for their ultimate success.

Yet, it would not be until the end of the Second World War that Korea would eventually find independence. Nevertheless, the impact of the framework they pioneered of high- minded spiritual principles and values married to non-violent protest became the winning formula for other colonized people in the post-war era, most notably in India. Later, that same model would be adopted by the Civil Rights movement in the United States by the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s to great effect, bringing an end to generational racial discrimination in the South, maintained through the policy of segregation and Jim Crow laws.

 

The Division of Korea

The end of the Second World War in 1945 led to Korean independence from Japanese rule. Unlike many other colonized nations, liberation did not lead to national self-determination; but a division along geographic and ideological lines that had nothing to do with the aspirations of the Korean independence movement. After the Japanese surrender, the United States and the Soviet Union, the occupying powers, agreed upon “zones of control” on the peninsula along the 38th parallel.

During the war, the Allied leadership had determined that post-war Korea would be placed under an “international trusteeship” until they believed that “Koreans would be deemed ready for self-rule.” It was understood that the occupational zones were temporary until the trusteeship could be implemented.

Understandably, the Korean people opposed the idea of a “trusteeship.” Liberation should have led to their own process of self-determination without the interference of outside powers. Yet, that is exactly what transpired. The heightening tension of the Cold War, eventually, led to the breakdown in negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union by 1947 and, thereby, effectively ended the only existing framework for an independent unified Korea by the great powers.

The matter of Korea’s future was then passed over to the nascent United Nations. It sought to oversee national elections that would form a united government for the divided peninsula by 1948. The Soviet Union chose not to comply with UN-supervised elections, so they were held only in the South. This led to the formation of the Republic of Korea on August 15, 1948, staying true to its independence roots, while the North established the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea a few weeks later on September 9 under the dictatorship of Kim Il-Sung.

However, in hindsight, the possibility of a national election for the divided Koreas under UN supervision was naïve wishful thinking in the vortex of Cold War geopolitics. The Soviet Union had no interest in relinquishing control over their zones of influence in Eastern Europe and now in Korea. In addition, the civil war in China was going badly for the Kuomintang-led government against the Chinese communist Party and, by 1949, their defeat on the mainland would lead to the formation of the People’s Republic of China. Korea was swept up into these global currents and its fate as a divided nation sealed to this day.

Thus, the division of the peninsula was a “foreign construct” that had nothing to do with the aspirations of the Korean people and their movement for independence and self- determination. Their dreams and aspirations were brushed aside like a sacrificial pawn on the global chessboard of great powers seeking to shape the future of Northeast Asia.

Yet, their interference on the peninsula and their vision for the region is what shaped the reality that we have today. One must remember that nothing is created in a vacuum, the end effect is the accumulated consequences of past actions.

 

The Current Reality of the Divided Koreas and Northeast Asia

Where do we stand 80 years later? The Korean people are still divided, and the aspirations of the Sam Il movement remain unfulfilled. The two Koreas hold diametrically opposed worldviews and have travelled very different paths: the DPRK has become a repressive, dictatorial, nuclear-armed state, that threatens regional and global security and whose population live in dire poverty; the ROK, on the other hand, has transitioned from a dysfunctional and corrupt republic into a military dictatorship and, now, back to a liberal democracy, in form at least. Despite all the political upheavals, it has become an economic and cultural powerhouse globally due to the industry of its people.

At the end of the Korean War, South Korea was a devastated land with an agricultural economy at the same level as the poorest countries in the Sahel region of Africa. It had no industry and no natural resources to speak of. Its only resource was the spirit of its people. They went to work to create a strong, prosperous nation, capable of standing firm against any future attacks from the North. The result was the Miracle on the Han. It enabled the Republic of Korea to be globally recognized as a prosperous, technologically advanced society.

But it came at a heavy price. Without an animating vision rooted in some deeper national purpose, it was willing to offset its most sacred cultural institution-the traditional Korean extended family model- for the sake of materialism and progressive views on gender roles, marriage and family, falsely thinking that those ideas reflected modernity. The family is the foundational cornerstone of any civilization and reflects the cultural history and identity of a people. Today, the South is paying for that mistake with the breakdown of the traditional Korean family model that is directly attributable to its alarming demographic crisis.

The South has the lowest birthrate in the world of 0.7, well below replacement level of 2.1. Although surveys show that many young people are not getting married because of the high cost of housing and children’s education, economic factors alone cannot explain the dramatic decline in fertility when previous generations had large families despite financial hardships. The real reason for this shift is the changing perceptions on marriage and family, reflective of the symptoms in every other developed nation in the world.

The second biggest problem is the chaebol system that gave rise to “Crony capitalism” and a militant labor movement. It was an anachronistic holdover from the military dictatorship where the national policy of industrialization led to a toxic brew of political, financial and chaebol collusion to kickstart the South’s economy. Yet, today, its legacy leads to legal, financial and regulatory hurdles that stifle competition and economic diversity. The four biggest players have revenues equal to 40 percent of GDP. In 2019, 64 chaebols were worth 84 percent of GDP, yet employed only 10 percent of the workforce.

The third problem is tied to the South’s primarily export driven economy centered on the chaebols. This becomes acutely problematic in the era of American protectionist policies under President Donald Trump since the US is the second largest trading partner after China. The Trump tariffs have reconfigured the global trade of goods and services and will, negatively impact trading partners like the ROK that traditionally enjoyed no tariffs on its products in the US market while maintaining protectionist policies at home.

According to the World Bank, Korea’s exports made up 44 percent of GDP in 2023, compared with just under 22 percent for Japan, and just over 20 percent for China. Korea’s export led economy is uniquely vulnerable to the impact of tariffs. Although the current South Korean regime negotiated a trade deal with the US, the 15% flat tax on Korean goods and its commitment to invest hundreds of billions into American key industries is already having deleterious effects. The long-term solution is an expanding domestic market but with the fertility crisis and the breakdown of the Korean family this seems to be an impossibility.

The Miracle on the Han has hit its peak and will face a sharp decline. There is urgent need for reform and renewal in every sphere of national life – politics, economics, society and culture. Such renewal will only come through a fresh vision and national purpose that all citizens and segments of society can unite around and work towards as our parents worked in the post-war period.

 

Korean Reunification

The challenge for the peninsula, today, is a unifying vision that can bring its many disparate parts together rooted in a renewed Korean identity that speaks to all Koreans, both North and South, and in the diaspora. Being a man of deep faith, I am reminded of Proverbs 29:18, “where there is no vision, the people perish.”

The vision for this new age is the Korean Dream. It will not only engender a rebirth of Korean culture and historical heritage but reconnect all Koreans to the providential calling of our people rooted in our founding ideals of Hong-Ik Ingan, “to live for the benefit of all humanity.” We will then create an ideal nation that marries the best of Korea with the modern world. The reality of South Korea that I outlined earlier makes it clear that this is an inflection point in its history with major cultural, institutional, structural, political and economic challenges going forward. The only comprehensive vision that charts the path forward is the Korean Dream.

It is also a transitional moment for the North, as well, with no apparent successor to the Kim legacy and the slow unraveling of its regime with its unprecedented level of defections among the DPRK’s elite, unlike any other moment in its history. The North’s recent position to abandon its national goal of unification speaks volumes to its unwitting acceptance that they no longer have a compelling vision for unifying the peninsula. This is significant since his grandfather, Kim Il-Sung, started the Korean War in 1950 to forcefully bring about unification. The goal of unification had been the “raison d’etre” for the creation of both Koreas and for the North to voluntarily relinquish that claim speaks volumes about the current reality of that regime.

The world should view the DPRK’s efforts to bypass and ignore the South to once again establish dialogue with the United States as a feeble effort to gain global legitimacy in pursuing a permanent two-state solution on the peninsula. The Trump administration should not entertain their overtures since the North would never give up their nukes through any negotiated settlement with the United States. The only real path to denuclearization is the peaceful unification of the two Koreas. At Camp David in 2023, the United States and Japan already committed to supporting the peaceful reunification of Korea if such an event were to happen. This current administration should stand by that commitment.

I would go as far as to say that Kim Jong-Un abandoned unification because he knew that he could not compete with the Korean Dream in offering a unifying vision for the peninsula. His intelligence services must be aware of its influence in the highest circle of Korean society, let it be in the media, entertainment, academia, politics and business communities. He must also be aware that the largest grassroots movement for unification in South Korean history is an initiative I have founded called the Action for Korea United (AKU). Most importantly, the thirty thousand defectors that reside in Korea as well those in the United States and Japan have rallied around the Korean Dream and the AKU movement as their only real hope to realize unification and be reunited with their relatives in the North.

He must also be aware of my family legacy. The significance of my grand uncle’s, Rev. Moon Yoon-guk, role in the formation of the Korean Declaration of Independence and his leadership in the Sam-il movement for liberation. He knows about the history of my father, the late Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon, and his grandfather, Kim Il-Sung. Although my father devoted his entire life to fight the evils of communism, after experiencing its horrors in a North Korean concentration camp in Hungnam, in order to open a path toward unification, he was willing to go, in 1991, to the very regime that had tried to kill him and his family countless times and had perpetrated such great evil on the Korean people and nation. His fearless courage and utter sincerity in his convictions was said to have moved even Kim Il-Sung to the point that he told my father that he was the only one that he could trust outside the North.

So, it is fair to say that the unrivaled vision for a unified Korea is the Korean Dream. It is just a matter of time when it takes hold in the hearts of all Koreans as well as inspire countless others around the world. The Korean Dream was meant to be shared and owned by all who seek to fulfill its goal. I have often quoted Chingis Khan who is reputed to have said: “If one person has a dream, it is just a dream, but if all people have that dream, it becomes reality.” If the dream for a unified Korea I outlined in my book, Korean Dream: A Vision for a Unified Korea, was shared and owned by all Koreans, I know that unification will certainly come. Just as the collapse of the Berlin Wall came without any warning, so too will Korean unification.

 

The Korean Dream

The Korean Dream seeks to create a new nation, aligned with the aspirations of our ancestors throughout our five-thousand-year history, to fulfill the Hong-Ik Ingan mandate of Heaven. It clarifies the “foreign construct” of the Cold War framework that the peninsula has been struggling with for the past eight decades and recognizes the shortcomings of both South and North Korea. The only way to break out of that framework is the formation of a new nation that harkens back to the hopes of the Sam-Il movement that launched the modern era for our people. But, unlike the geo-political circumstances that hindered our forefathers’ dreams, today we carry the moral authority as the only people that has been deprived of the opportunity to shed the colonial legacy and ideological divide of the 20th century.

The creation of the nation of our dreams will be a prerogative that the world would fully embrace and support. It would also address the fundamental political, social and economic issues plaguing the South and free the people in the North from bondage under the Kim regime. Unification will be a marriage made in Heaven since the very thing the ROK needs to maintain the Miracle on the Han is what the North has. It will provide an additional 25 million people who speak the same language and share the same culture while substantially increasing our workforce and our domestic consumer markets with young people that can fuel a second miracle.

This will be necessary to support the transition of our economy from a primarily export- driven to a balanced one. It would also provide tremendous opportunities in infrastructure as well as other developments, stimulating the stagnant construction industries in the South. It will provide a host of strategic rare earth minerals and other natural resources the South doesn’t have. In addition, it will open the peninsula up and connect it to the rest of Asia, sharing borders with China and Russia; thus, further stimulating trade and other opportunities.

Most importantly, it will unite our divided people and families that have suffered far too long. It will finally bring an end to the legacy of colonialism and the Cold War that led to our division and open a new era in the history of our people and civilization. For, the nation that arises out of the ashes of the past will be a model nation that marries the best of Korea with the modern world and be the inspiration for all developing nations in the southern hemisphere that have had a similar history. As the Nobel laureate poet Rabindranath Tagore prophesied in poetic prose: “In the Golden Age of Asia, Korea was one of the lamp-bearers, that lamp awaits to be lighted once again for the illumination of the East.”

That light is the Korean Dream, and the light-bearer will be our new nation aligned to our providential calling of “living for the benefit of humankind.”

 

Conclusion

Today, South Korea stands more divided than ever. The political machinations and scandals surrounding the impeachment of the former president are a national disgrace and are exacerbating that divide. The only movement that can unite the disparate factions of the ROK is AKU and the Korean Dream movement for unification.

That is why I propose that the current government: 1) adopt the Korean Dream vision since the former government already adopted its platform, 2) dissolve the Ministry of Unification and install a non-governmental advisory committee in order to take the politics out of the unification agenda, and 3) make the Korean Dream vision a mandatory curriculum in all primary and secondary schools.

The unification agenda can and will be the issue that brings Koreans together. I pray that this current regime will receive Heaven’s wisdom and seek to heal the fissures and wounds of our broken land.

Ladies and gentlemen, it is especially in times of crisis that we can see clearly the path we must take. We live at a historic crossroads in a time when the fate of the peninsula and our people lie in our hands. Today, we are celebrating the 80th anniversary of Korean liberation from Japanese rule. The number eight represents a “new beginning.” As a man of deep faith, I believe that divine providence is guiding us to undo the mistakes of the past and lead our people to the promised land of unification centered upon the Korean Dream.

We represent the Korean people on the peninsula and around the world. Unlike our ancestors who were shuttlecocks in the field of great power politics, we will not be trifled with and succumb to the whims of others. In line with the aspirations of our ancestors, we will spread the Korean Dream vision to every corner of this land as the Sam-Il movement did more than a hundred years ago. We will empower every Korean, in the North, South and Diaspora to be the owner of this dream and join us in realizing it together.

Those of you who pledge to stand with me to realize the Korean Dream rise and shout Aju. Aju. Aju.

May God bless you and your families.

The GPF Chairwoman Dr. Junsook Moon’s speech was delivered in her stead by the Global Peace Women International President, Ms. Hanako Taura.

In 2023, the bi-annual Global Peace Convention was held as a series of interactive events, forums, and programs under the theme, “One Family Under God: Vision for National Transformation and a Civilization of Peace.” Unlike previous Conventions, the program’s concurrent sessions were held in an hybrid online and in-person format, which allowed for wider global engagement over a six-week period spanning from November 1 to December 14, 2023. The culminating events of the Convention were held in Manila, Philippines from December 10-14, 2023.

Find a transcript of Dr. Junsook Moon’s speech below. 

Congratulations. We have accomplished a lot during this convention. Over the last month, guided by the theme “One Family under God: A Vision for National Transformation and A Civilization of Peace,” we envisioned how we will transform our nations and regions – our families and our consciousness – to build an era of peace.

In this beautiful nation of the Philippines, we are affirming that just as you have made a nation of a thousand islands – beneath the differences of our diverse cultures, languages, faiths and backgrounds – we are all one family, connected by a common spiritual origin, our shared humanity and a mutual commitment to a vision of peace and prosperity for all.

We opened the convention in November, right after Dia De Los Santos, when you traveled many miles to your hometowns to honor your ancestors. And we are closing not long before Christmas, when your family members come home from around the world, taking time to invest in faith and family.

Each of our cultures and faiths have similar traditions that acknowledge the centrality and sanctity of family, which is what I want to speak with you about today.

One family Under God: Faith, Family and Service

As my husband, Dr. Hyun Jin Moon, noted this morning, we stand at a turning point. The vision of One Family Under God is inspiring a global movement for peace, asking us to re-envision how we relate, organize, do business and transform nations. The infrastructure for lasting peace starts in our hearts and in our families. Therefore, it is imperative that we open the way for more women and families to sit at the peacebuilding table.

Recognizing this, we founded Global Peace Women in 2011. Our work has helped women embrace and contribute their unique capabilities to cultivate peace at home and in their communities, nations and world, and recognize the family as a foundational element in peacebuilding.

Guiding our efforts has been Global Peace Foundation’s values-based approach to peacebuilding that engages faith, family and service.

Faith traditions have articulated universal principles and shared values that undergird peace. By faith humanity has drawn closer to the source of truth and goodness, the force of human progress, the origin of our inalienable rights and freedoms, and our immutable value, our creator, God, and the enduring aspiration of global peace and prosperity. Therefore, it behooves us to engage people and communities of faith in this ongoing pursuit for peace.

As faith has led in the discovery of the principles and values of the vision of One Family Under God, family is where we translate them into relationships. The family is sacred – the most basic human social unit where life begins and is nurtured, and where we form our primary relationships that define how we relate to ourselves and the world.

And in service, we affirm our interconnectedness as one family and our capacity to look beyond personal interests and challenges to live for a greater good. It is the starting point of relationships of trust and mutuality. Furthermore, service empowers our agency, the power of the human spirit to change our reality through affirming peace and substantially expressing true love.

Faith, family and service connect us to the fundamentals of peace – principles and values, relationships, starting from the family, and ultimately the origin of this vision, that which holds this vision together, God, our Creator.

Peacebuilding and the Family Imperative  

The state of our world today could draw dark clouds of fear and hopelessness. However, I found that no tempest can quell the spark of peace that burns in the hearth of the home, steady and ready to light the way. “Peace begins in the home,” coined in the formative stages of Global Peace Women, reminds us of this elementary place of peacebuilding – the family.

The family is a deeply personal, first-hand experience of peace. Investing in our children is investing in the future good of humanity, a very real affirmation of the infinite value and unlimited potential that resides in each person. Moreover, the extended family connects three generations: past, present and future, shedding light on what is most important our lives. At the end of the day, beyond accolades, wealth and titles, what remains are the people we have raised, the relationships and love that we have cultivated, and the legacy of good that we leave.

A family that pursues the dream of One Family Under God, puts the greater good, a shared good, first. This common ground,forms a foundation for men and women to build and grow together, not in competition but in complementarity. Like in marriage where a husband and wife commit to each other to form a family, bring new life into the world, and raise children who can become virtuous citizens who carry on the quest for global peace through generations – their differences become the most important aspects of their partnership.

Men and women were designed beautifully different. We need each other to see the whole picture of peace: sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, mothers and fathers. We can uplift both men and women, honoring their innate God-given value and empowering each to contribute their unique and complimentary gifts to a greater good.

Women, as mothers, wives, sisters and daughters, we touch all lives. We are central to peace, in the family and world. Our empowerment starts, not with skills but with character, starting from our service-mindedness. We can be agents of peace when we aspire for big dreams – the biggest dream being the aspiration of One Family under God, starting in our families.

Just as the peacebuilding work of Global Peace Foundation within communities and nations is guided by universal principles and shared values, so too are relationships that engender peace at home. Our families need faith and service-mindedness if we are to raise true peacebuilders who will build communities, institutions, industries, societies and nations of a world of peace for all.

Family and National Transformation

Let me draw on a real example. My husband has advanced models of national transformation throughout the world – in Paraguay and on the Korean peninsula. He always starts with a vision which serves as a nexus to strengthen social cohesion, build consensus around shared values and elevate the moral and innovative leadership of the people. This lays the foundation for good governance and transparency, which is necessary for sustainable and equitable economic development.

Last year, Action for Korea United launched a three-year campaign to raise 10 million Korean Dreamers who pursue the Korean Dream, a vision of a free and unified Korean that can serve as a beacon of peacebuilding for the world. The Korean Dream is grounded on the ethic of hongik ingan, that calls the Korean people to live to benefit all humanity.

A crucial part of this endeavor is strengthening the Korean family, which has been a stronghold for Hongik Ingan, preserved in traditions and virtues handed down through generations. One such example is the special ceremony for a child’s first year birthday, dol. The baby chooses three objects that signify how they will contribute to humanity. For example, a brush means they will bring wisdom to the world, a rope means they will have a long life to do good, rice means they will bring prosperity, a book means they will seek truth to enlighten the world. This beautiful tradition calls a child, even from age one, to nobly live in service to humanity.

However, the pursuit of material development and prosperity has weakened the family and subsequently the social fabric of South Korea. Elderly are left to fend for themselves, the birth rate is one of the lowest in the world, while the suicide rate ranks in the top five. Youth are afraid to get married because of high cost of living and difficulties in finding and building lasting relationships of trust between men and women.

This is a far cry for the Korean extended family model of the past, where children were a blessing and every family member knew they had a special and important place. It was not perfect, but it honored principles and virtues that are important foundations for national transformation.

Korea’s quest for peaceful reunification based on the Korean Dream holds important lessons for peacebuilding and self-determination, particularly for emerging countries in the Global South. There are timeless jewels in our cultures that we must fuse in the foundations of national development. As we advance models of national transformation and pursue a civilization of peace –  we must recognize that it cannot happen without our families and without God. 

Launching a Movement of Service-Minded Youth for Global Peace

Today we can see the labors of love from such families, as we launch a groundbreaking initiative – the Global Peace Corps.  

A generation of youth is spearheading this global effort to champion the vision of One Family under God. You are the people power that will set a high standard of selfless service, peacebuilders who will redefine the landscape of our world. You have the potential to tackle the most critical issues of our time: break down barriers, uplift, protect and engage every person, men and women so they can actively participate in peacebuilding, and inspire and someday even birth and raise subsequent generations of peacebuilders. From the bottom up and top down you are setting in motion the mechanisms for peacebuilding. I’m sure your parents are very proud.

Closing

There is so much hope. Dr. Moon always reminds us, “Dreamers are the ones who change the world.” And this room is full of dreamers from around the world, from all generations, and coming as families. Let’s commit to this sea change, from the Philippine Islands to the world, bringing this vision of peace, the vision of One Family Under God into reality, starting in our homes.

May God bless you and your families.      

Thank you very much.

The culminating events of the 2023 Global Peace Convention were held in Manila, Philippines from December 10-14, 2023. The Main Plenary was on December 13th, during which Dr. Hyun Jin Preston Moon delivered the keynote address.

In 2023, the bi-annual Global Peace Convention was held as a series of interactive events, forums, and programs under the theme, “One Family Under God: Vision for National Transformation and a Civilization of Peace.” Unlike previous Conventions, the program’s concurrent sessions were held in an hybrid online and in-person format, which allowed for wider global engagement over a six-week period spanning from November 1 to December 14.

Find a transcript of Dr. Moon’s speech below.

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen.

Mabuhay!  Thank you for joining us here in Manila, Philippines for this very significant Global Peace Convention, our first with an in-person gathering since the COVID pandemic. How much the world has changed in the meantime!

I want to thank all our partners and stakeholders here and from around the globe who are adding their insights and expertise in the key issue areas that we are tackling together. And I especially want to express my great appreciation to our Filipino hosts, colleagues, long-time friends and volunteers for their spirit, sincerity and dedication to the cause of building One Family under God.

The theme for this Global Peace Convention – as well as for every one of our Conventions going forward – is “One Family under God: Vision for National Transformation and a Civilization of Peace.” I ask you all to pause for a moment and reflect upon the scope and significance of that theme. Some might think it far too ambitious, but the world is in crisis and calls for a great vision to chart a path forward.

The Cold War and Loss of Spiritual Roots

Ladies and gentlemen, we see confusion and conflict all around us today, in domestic and international politics, economics, religion, and the realm of ideas. Old certainties are being called into question everywhere, and the methods of the past are proving incapable of meeting the challenges of the present. The world of peace and harmony that we hoped would emerge in the last decade of the 20th century with the collapse of the Soviet Union has failed to appear.

The roots of this confusion lie in the over-simplified framework of the Cold War. It was framed as an ideological war between two competing political and economic systems – democracy and free markets on the one side and tyranny and communism on the other. The West proclaimed the end of the Cold War as the triumph of their systems over its rivals, often over-emphasizing their merits.

However, those victorious voices had forgotten the spiritual foundations upon which westerndemocracy stood. There is no inherent virtue in either democracy or capitalism, for they are systems. It is the aspirations, principles and values that one pours into them that instills theirunique quality. In the case of the West, it was its Judeo-Christian heritage that defined its unique character.

In the absence of an overarching and unifying moral vision, democracies and free markets simply become an arena where competing interest groups game the system and vie for an advantage at the expense of their rivals. The potential for “mob-rule” and the tyranny of the majority had always been a weakness of democracy going all the way back to the ancient Greeks and later the Roman civilization. There have been many examples in the modern era where democratically elected governments have gradually extended their power and became autocratic regimes, most notably the rise of the Nazi party during the Weimar Republic in Germany.

The American Founding and God’s Sovereignty

The American Founders understood that the success of any political system was intimately tied to the moral character of its citizens. John Adams, the second U.S. president, famously said,“Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” The 4th U.S. president, James Madison wrote that the Constitution requires “sufficient virtue among men for self-government,” otherwise, “nothing less than the chains of despotism can restrain them from destroying and devouring one another.”

Such views were the common understanding among that generation who were heavily influenced by Enlightenment philosophers. They find their clearest expression in the second paragraph of the United States Declaration of Independence, in which America’s Founding Fathers sought to assert their freedoms in the face of an obdurate British monarchy.

There they explained the foundation of their claim, declaring that all human beings are “endowed by the Creator with certain unalienable rights” among which are “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” These immortal words articulated a fundamental truth: that our essential rights and freedoms come from a transcendent Creator, and that no human institution or government can revoke or restrict them.

Without recognizing a transcendent source for these ideals, imperfect human beings and their institutions will inevitably curtail them, citing some greater collective purpose decreed by the almighty state. The American founders clearly understood such flaws in human nature; they countered human claims to ultimate authority with the “sovereignty of God.”

The United States thus became a new type of nation, founded upon an idea, rooted in the Judeo–Christian principles that permeated the culture. That founding idea was the political expression of a deeper understanding of the relationship between God and human beings – that we are created in the image of God, who is the Source of our value and unalienable rights.  The American aspiration to become One Nation under God, and thus be the “land of the free,” was directly linked to the understanding that freedom is the God-given right of all people.

God and the universal principles He created must be at the center of human existence. Recognizing and living by those principles creates true human value and dignity. That is the attainment of true freedom, and the meaning of living under the sovereignty of God. 

The Current State of Conflict and Confusion

Assertive statist regimes such as China and Russia clearly reject this framework and actively challenge it. Despite the end of the Cold War and dissolution of the Soviet Union, both governments uplift the power of the state above all else, with little regard for the rights of their own citizens or even of their neighbors.

Such systems cannot be sustained indefinitely. In the end they undermine their own authority by exercising it with total disregard for their citizens. Nevertheless, they remain a constant threat to peace and freedom, and their advances make it more important than ever for democracies to affirm the source of true freedoms and rights.

“One Nation under God” was meant to be a model on the national level of the world God desires—where people of all religions, nationalities, races, cultures and ethnicities could live together as one. In America today we are witnessing what happens when “under God” is taken out of daily life. Society loses its moral compass, as well as its sense of absolute values rooted intruth, righteousness and goodness. Losing its unifying center, it fragments and devolves into different identity groups fighting each other for power.

The same phenomenon is happening on the global level. Globalization promised to deliver a future of peace and prosperity, but it was focused purely on material values and needs. Understandably, it faced a serious backlash, because it failed to recognize the importance of the moral and spiritual dimension necessary for an ethical and cohesive global society.  As a direct result, religiously framed extremist and reactive nationalist movements have sprung up among groups who fear that globalism will erase their cultural traditions and local identities. That is why the world is fragmenting around us, lacking any overarching, harmonizing vision.

One Family under God: Forging a New Global Identity

Clearly, we need to forge a new global identity that can embrace and harmonize the positive elements of more localized identities. Such an identity must be rooted in the universal principles that all the great spiritual and ethical traditions share.

The world’s great cultural spheres stand upon the foundation of the major faith traditions such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Confucianism. The elements of truth which they express was a cohesive force that bonded local societies to have civilizational impact.  The time is ripe for a movement that can unite these traditions on universal principles and values and establishes a similar civilizational impact on a global scale; that builds on the American ideal of One Nation under God and expands it to build One Family under God on the world level.

We all share common DNA. Beyond our external differences, we are, essentially, all members of one human family who share the same origin, the Creator God. Our Convention theme is bold. It is visionary. It is challenging. It can be a powerful catalyst for what humanity needs today: A transformative movement aligned with universal principles that renews hearts and minds, inspiring vibrant new and lived experience of how we relate with each other – to our fellow human beings, to the varied cultures of the human family, to the natural world that sustains us, and, ultimately, to the One God who is the source of our being and in whose image we are made.

All of these aspirations are contained in our simple yet profound vision statement “One Family under God.”  The pursuit and achievement of these aspirations can lead to the transformation of nations, guided by transcendent principles and the values grounded in them, and the emergence of a civilization of peace. The vision of One Family under God shows us the pathway to true global unity in diversity and is the basis for future peace and prosperity.

Building Models for National Transformation

Realizing such an auspicious dream is no simple task; it takes concerted action by those who embrace the dream and make the cause their own. Already the work is underway, through the initiatives of Global Peace Foundation and our many partners, developing effective models to transform communities and nations. Those initiatives are engaging moral and innovative leaders and utilizing a multisector, values-based approach with remarkable impacts, demonstrating that the vision of One Family under God can indeed be the catalyst to transform nations.

Here in the Philippines, GPF has long worked with the Department of Education and other stakeholders to infuse character education, youth leadership development, and service learning into the educational experience of Filipino students. Philippines is becoming a global leader in transforming education. Just yesterday here at the Global Peace Convention, key educators announced the launch of Transforming Education 2050, a new global initiative promoting a practical plan for equipping the new generation to become moral and innovative citizens.

On the divided Korean peninsula, tremendous momentum is building for major breakthroughs for peaceful reunification, based on the Korean Dream framework as outlined in my book of that name. The Korean Dream movement that I am guiding is spearheaded by Action for Korea United (AKU), a coalition of civil society activists, organizations, NGOs and associations that represents millions of South Koreans. To date, we have more than a thousand partners united in the largest grassroots movement for unification in the history of South Korea.

Central to our work around the world is engaging youth and building character, and I have always stressed the importance of learning through experience. At our first Global Peace Convention in 2009 held here in Manila, I called for the creation of a Global Peace Corps. And I am very happy to announce that today we are launching that Global Peace Corps to be an important force in transforming nations and addressing global challenges.

The goal for Global Peace Corps is to tap into the idealism of youth and give it the tools to become the moral and innovative leaders who can promote social transformation through service, development, and peacebuilding projects.

As a first major initiative beginning in 2024, I am calling for Global Peace Corps volunteers to support the Korean Dream campaign for building a new Korea that is free, unified and a global model for peace. Imagine if young leaders from throughout Asia and around the world go to Korea and join with Korean youth in this great cause; amazing breakthroughs are possible, with enormous positive impacts for peace and prosperity for the region and entire world.

A unified Korea in which the vision of the Korean Dream is given practical expression will be a new nation of high ideals.  It will be a powerful witness to the fundamental principles expressed in the U.S. Declaration of Independence as well as being deeply rooted in its own historic cultural identity. In short, it will draw on the best lessons from the West while also looking to the ancient wisdom of Asia for new insights in the 21st century.

Conclusion

Today we stand at a crossroads that will impact the future in profound ways. The choices we make today about the principles and values that will direct our lives, societies and nations, will determine whether humanity takes the path toward peace and human flourishing, or to further conflict and chaos.

In particular, the true spiritual leaders among the great faith traditions should take up this charge as a divine commission. I challenge such leaders to come out of their separate religious boxes and work together to make the world of God’s original ideal a reality.

The work of the Global Peace Foundation, motivated by our compelling vision and rooted in universal principles and values, is more needed today than ever before. We have made important strides in our foundational work so far. Now I urge you to redouble your commitment to building a future where the ideals and principles we uphold are put into living practice. The time is short. The need is great. Let us take up our tools and get to work.

Thank you and may God bless you and your families.

October 2, 2023
Seoul, South Korea

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen:

It is a great honor to address such a gathering of patriotic Koreans and supporters of peaceful unification. I would particularly like to recognize General John Tilelli who led the U.N. Command and the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces here. Your service, General, is a fine example of the Korean and American people’s commitment to defend freedom and democracy on this peninsula. I also want to thank my good friend, Ed Feulner, founder of the renowned Heritage Foundation and a lifelong friend to the Korean people. Thanks also to the Honorable Kim Jin Pyo, Speaker of the Korean National Assembly, as well as Honorable Lee Myoung Soo, Honorable Baek Seung Joo, and Honorable Seok Dong Hyeon. I want to thank all of you, the leaders in the field, who are spreading this Korean Dream, not only among the Korean people, but around the world.

Korea’s Destiny Rooted in Our Origins

Ladies and gentlemen, to build a bright future we must draw upon our past. Tomorrow, we celebrate Gaecheonjeol, Korea’s Foundation Day. This is not the anniversary of the founding of the Republic of Korea, or even of the Korean Declaration of Independence. Instead, it marks the beginning of our 5,000-year history in ancient Gojoseon and characterizes that moment as “the opening of heaven.”

Thus, we the Korean people, from our very origin, have been endowed with a special destiny to live by heavenly principles and ideals, and to represent them to rest of the world. We trace these principles for creating a just and harmonious society to the founding figure of Dangun. Most notable among them is Hong-Ik Ingan — “living for the greater benefit of all mankind,” that has been a spiritual touchstone and a guiding light throughout our Korean history.

Let us fast forward a little over four thousand years from ancient Gojoseon to the early 20th century. That same sense of a special destiny was still alive and was expressed in the spirit of Korea’s Sam Il independence movement and the aspirations of its Declaration of Independence.

The Hopes and Ideals of the Sam Il Movement

The 1919 Sam Il movement, directed against Japanese colonial rule, was the first mass, non-violent protest movement in history. Ten percent of the population took part. They marched for the principles expressed in Korea’s Independence Declaration that was inspired by, then, US president Wilson’s views on colonized nations after the end of the World War I.

Certainly, they wanted an end to Japanese colonial rule. But, more than that, they sought to create a new nation that lived up to the highest ideals, rooted in Hong-Ik Ingan. They even envisaged a free Korea working together with Japan for the benefit of the region and the world.

The independence leader, Kim Ku, expressed that sense of the Korean people’s special calling in his essay, “The Nation I Dream Of.” There he wrote, “I wish my nation would be a nation that doesn’t just imitate others, but rather it be a nation that is the source of a new higher culture; that it can become the goal and example for others. And so true world peace would come from that nation… I believe that this is the Hong-Ik Ingan ideal of our national ancestor, Dangun.”

What became of those hopes and ideals? The path of our special destiny passed through bitter suffering. The Korean people endured oppressive foreign rule that sought to extinguish Korea’s distinctive culture and identity, including even our ancestral names. This experience has a parallel to the people of Israel during the centuries before the birth of Jesus Christ. They, too, suffered under foreign rule and brutal attempts to force them to renounce their divinely ordained way of life, a witness to the One God.

The end of the Second World War brought liberation and with it a brief window of opportunity to achieve the Sam Il movement’s hope for a free, unified, and independent Korea to be established. Tragically, however, that moment passed, and the land that was made whole became divided, as well as its people.

The ROK was established unilaterally in the South, to be followed quickly by the DPRK in the North. Both sides wanted a unified Korea, but their respective visions for it were radically opposed and irreconcilable. The DPRK, true to its guiding Marxist ideology, tried to impose its vision of unity by force. As we all know, the resulting war killed millions of Koreans and left this Peninsula devastated.

The Miracle on the Han and Its Cost

The post-war response in the South was to build a country strong enough to resist future attacks. The result was the Miracle on the Han, the fruit of the resilience and enterprise of the Korean people when given a degree of freedom to flourish. The growth from a poor, war-torn, agricultural economy to an advanced industrial and technological one in just 50 years is unprecedented in human history. It was indeed a miracle.

But it has come at a great cost. The materially prosperous society that was created had shallow spiritual and cultural roots. Koreans have caught the disease of a purely secular consumer-based materialistic society that has infected the West, and its consequences are the erosion of traditional Korean identity and culture.

We see the evidence of this in the disturbing social trends of the cosmopolitan South which has the lowest birthrate in the world; the rise in divorce and suicide rates; the largest unemployment rate for college graduates amongst developed nations; and the subsequent fall in marriage rates among young people; as well as the growing number of elderly living – and dying – alone, unthinkable in the Korea of my youth.

At the same time, South Korea faces a more belligerent North Korea with ever-growing and diversifying nuclear capabilities in an increasingly unstable geopolitical environment. This situation demands a response. We cannot be complacent nor stand still while our house and its neighborhood are burning around us.

Korea’s Two Challenges

Koreans today have two major, interconnected challenges. One is the re-unification of our traditional homeland. That is the only viable solution to the threat of the Pyongyang regime.

It must be driven by a civil society movement of Koreans, in the South and the diaspora, with broad international support. Inter-governmental talks alone will never lead to unification. For over seven decades, it has achieved nothing to date except to help create a more powerful nuclear-armed North Korea.

The second challenge is for free Koreans to rediscover their Korean identity and reconnect with the destiny we are called to achieve. That is the precondition for overcoming the first challenge. We are one people. Koreans in the North are our brothers and sisters who have been denied their most basic human rights.

They struggle to feed their families and get basic medical care for their children while their leader rattles his nuclear missiles in the face of the world. They are not citizens but slaves of the state who have no choice in how they are ruled. We, their brothers and sisters in the South, must be their voice. Otherwise, how can we expect to enjoy the blessings of prosperity while members of our Korean family endure such suffering?

The Korean Dream and My Family’s Commitment

I launched the Korean Dream movement to offer a vision for the present age that connects with Korea’s founding ideals, manifested in the noble aspirations and sacrifice of the Sam Il Independence movement.

I owe this to my ancestors. I come from a family line that has been deeply committed to Korea’s independence and re-unification. My great-grand-uncle, Rev. Moon Yoon-guk, was a Christian pastor who deeply believed in the providential destiny of the Korean people and saw Pyongyang as a new Jerusalem, like many of his time did. He donated his entire family’s savings to the Korean Provisional Government in Shanghai, even though it caused them tremendous hardship. He helped to draft the Independence Declaration and was severely tortured by the Japanese police for his independence activities.

As a young boy, my father, the Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon, was deeply inspired by the words and example of his great uncle. Throughout his tumultuous adult life, he devoted himself heart and soul to the vision of a world that lives as “One Family under God,” a vision rooted in Korea’s providential destiny. In 1991, he traveled to Pyongyang via China to meet North Korea’s first ruler, Kim Il Sung. Since he was well-known as a fierce critic of Marxist ideology, there was no guarantee he would ever return from the DPRK.

Nevertheless, he boldly urged Kim to abandon his “Juche” ideology and acknowledge the providential mandate of the Korean people to create an ideal nation centered upon God. My father’s ground-breaking visit opened the door to the North in the 1990s, where significant developments in inter-Korean relations materialized: such as the efforts to unite divided families from the Korean War; open industrial and commercial investments; and led to the first visit by the South Korean president; as well as the DPRK’s agreement to comply to nuclear safeguards with the International Atomic Energy Agency. Tragically, however, these breakthroughs were later reversed, leading to today’s volatile and dangerous situation.

This is my family’s legacy that I have inherited. I wrote the Korean Dream to revive the spirit of our ancestors and to bring to fruition the unfulfilled hopes that they lived and died for. It stands as a monument of our filial devotion to their noblest ideals and a pledge to see them fulfilled in our lifetimes.

The Global Struggle over Universal Values

The future of Korea is being shaped within a global context that is increasingly dominated by a struggle over fundamental principles of freedom and basic human rights. The outcome of that struggle will have immense and far-reaching implications.

The most striking aspect of today’s geopolitics is the reemergence of nation states that aggressively assert their power, both domestically and internationally. Russia invaded Ukraine, seeking to impose Putin’s version of history on its neighbors by force. Similarly, China has declared its right to rule Taiwan, pressuring other nations to sever ties with that nation, and threatening to seize it by force.

The resulting global tension is not primarily about political or economic primacy. It arises from a historic clash over fundamental principles and values. Xi Jinping and Putin do not believe in the universal values of western liberal democracies. As long ago as 2013, Xi issued a directive on ideology that required university professors and journalists to avoid “seven unmentionable topics.”

These included topics such as universal values, press freedom, civil society, citizens’ rights and the independence of the judiciary. Today he calls these values a Western rhetorical ploy to impose its hegemony on the rest of the world. For him, everything is ultimately about a struggle for state power.

Contrast this with the worldview articulated in the United States Declaration of Independence. It did not simply list its complaints against the various excesses of the British monarchy. Rather, it began by stating the fundamental principles that guided its founding. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights[…] that to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

The contrast with the views of Xi Jinping could not be more striking. Western democracies were created based on the principle that every human being has rights and freedoms that come from the Creator. These are universal and eternal, and cannot be abridged by any state power or institution. In short, the nation state does not exist to be served by the people, but to uphold and preserve the fundamental God-given rights and freedoms of their citizens.

This war of ideas is at the root of the existing geopolitical conflict. Its outcome will determine whether future generations will live in nations and regions that honor and protect universal values rooted in the classic liberal democratic ideas of “inalienable” rights and freedoms, or not.

This challenging geo-political reality is compounded by the eroding moral authority of the US and Europe as they struggle with their own basic founding values. The very spiritual underpinnings of western democracies are being undermined by neo-Marxist ideology couched under the thin veneer of “critical race theory” and progressive post-modern thought. What is more troubling, however, is that this new orthodoxy is being exported to the rest of the world. Ironically, those who condemn the colonialism of the past are the same ones who are now trying to impose a radical cultural colonialism that dissolves the ethical fabric that binds traditional religious communities together the world over.

The Global Significance of Korea’s Role

In this environment, Korea has a pivotal role to play. A unified Korea in which the vision of the Korean Dream is given practical expression will be a new nation of high ideals. It will be a powerful witness to the fundamental principles expressed in the U.S. Declaration of Independence as well as be deeply rooted in its own historic cultural identity. In short, it will draw on the best lessons from the West while also looking to the ancient wisdom of Asia for new insights into the 21st century.

A unified Korea, that recognizes unalienable rights and freedoms endowed by God, will be a model nation and a catalyst for advancing a new civilization in the most dynamic region of the world. As I emphasized in the Korean Dream, it can draw upon the deep ethical roots of the Hong-Ik Ingan ideal, as well as rekindle the social strength and moral order of the Korean extended, multi-generational family that is essential in building harmonious, cooperative communities, and societies. With that underpinning, coupled with the fortitude and resilience of the Korean people, it will become a transformative force for good in the world.

Already, South Korea is unique in being the only aid recipient nation to become an aid donor. The future unified Korea will become a moral leader by overcoming the challenges of its own division as well as offering other nations a model of development, especially in the Global South. It offers a successful model of transformation from a poor, agricultural economy into a technologically advanced and diversified modern one; although, like many of those nations, it suffered the same exploitative colonialism and ideological past that led to its own civil war.

Social and Economic Benefits of Korean Reunification

Reunification based on the Korean Dream framework will restore basic human rights and freedoms to the DPRK and bring peace and security to the Peninsula. In addition, it will create long-term economic benefits. The North has significant, untapped mineral resources, including strategic materials that the South has the know-how to extract. Overcapacity in sectors such as major infrastructure construction will find a natural new market to grow upon unification.

The difficult circumstances of young people in the South will also be significantly improved. The South’s increasingly aging population with a diminishing youth demographic portends an unsustainable economic reality, as the increasing welfare burdens will be borne by a decreasing tax base. The North’s population, however, is the inverse of the South. Therefore, unification will not only bring peace but will solve the social economic challenges, especially of the South, but of both Koreas.

In addition, the process of developing North Korea and gradually integrating it into the South Korea’s economy will open many new opportunities for new creative enterprises that will harness and reward the talents of youth here in the South and in the North. Supporting the Korean Dream will benefit, not only the Korean people and nation as a whole, but also those young people who are seeking and looking for brighter prospects on this Peninsula.

A Call to Action for Korea

Ladies and gentlemen, a dream needs a movement of committed, united people to become a reality. Action for Korea United is where such people are gathered together. It is the most significant civil society movement in South Korea working for unification today. It is a dynamic people-power alliance of over 800 civil society groups, overcoming the many obstacles to unite Koreans throughout the South and in the diaspora in a common cause.

Yet, we have a big dream with ambitious goals. This forum and tomorrow’s public rally are the first stage of a campaign to spread the Korean Dream among the Korean people everywhere. It will culminate in 2025, on the 80th anniversary of Korea’s independence from Japanese colonial rule when our people had – for the first time – the possibility to fulfill the Sam Il aspirations of creating an ideal nation in line with Hong-Ik Ingan.

Millions will mobilize at public gatherings in towns and cities across the South and throughout the diaspora, calling for a free and unified Korea rooted in the Korean Dream that will finally achieve the hopes and dreams of our ancestors and the movement for independence: the Sam Il movement. The sound of those united voices, rooted in the Korean Dream, will reverberate across the 38th Parallel that divides the peninsula like the trumpet blasts of Joshua’s Israelites that tore down the walls of Jericho.

The Korean Dream can unite all Koreans. It is where we will find and fulfill the unique national destiny to which we are called as a people. This goal needs the support of dedicated activists and thought leaders such as yourselves. I urge you to become the true owners of the Korean Dream. Become the patriots who can bring to fruition the hopes, aspirations and destiny of our people by creating an ideal nation that can be the light that will illuminate the world in this century and beyond.

May God bless you and your families. Thank you very much.

2023 Global Peace Leadership Conference Indo Pacific

Keynote Address

 

Welcome & Greetings

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen:

It is my great honor to be with you here in India, the cradle of an ancient spiritual civilization in the heart of Asia.

I want to thank my good friend Dr. Markandey Rai, chairman of GPF India, as well as our convening partners, the Indian Council for International Cooperation, Manav Rachna University, and Yuvsatta Youth for Peace, for organizing this important convening. So, give them all a round of applause.

I am also pleased to acknowledge the many important Indian spiritual teachers as well as key leaders from around the Indo-Pacific region, including Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, Mongolia and Africa. Please give them all a round of applause.

Your participation is very meaningful as this vast region will play a central role in determining the future direction of humanity and the prospects for peace and prosperity in this region.

State of the World Today

Ladies and gentlemen, the world is in crisis.

The rise of “Woke” politics is challenging the traditional Judeo-Christian values and classic liberal views of the West and its institutions from within. There is an alarming cacophony of conflicting ideas about society and the human condition, from the nature of the state to individual identity and gender relations. The result has been widespread political and social instability, uncertainty, and moral confusion.

The liberal ideals of western democracies rooted in individual freedoms and “inalienable” rights are being undermined for the sake of collective conformity with almost religious fervor. Although the end of the Cold War revealed the evils of socialism and communism, a new secular Marxist worldview is taking hold in the West, uprooting its values, norms, traditions and institutions.

This unfortunate reality is eroding the common ground upon which society can stand as both progressive and traditional sides become more polarized, creating an untenable situation. This “Woke” orthodoxy is not content just to undermine the traditional values upon which Western democracy stands, sowing discord within. It seeks to export its ideas to other cultures such as those of India, East Asia, and traditional African societies and twist their values into its own distorted image.

In the realm of geopolitics, we are witnessing the rise of assertive statist powers that are prepared to impose their will on their neighbors, reminiscent of the actions taken by totalitarian regimes of the last century that led to two World Wars and the Cold War. The invasion of Ukraine by Russia was a shock to most in the West that had become complacent about Putin’s ambition to restore the territorial influence of the former Soviet Union. Heading into the second year of the war, there seems to be no end in sight for the near term as Ukraine seeks to regain its lost territories and Russia fortifies its positions.

Here in Asia, China has made it clear that it is prepared to violate Taiwanese sovereignty, even by force, under its “One China” policy. That is why so many experts are concerned by the war in Ukraine since many believe that Chinese authorities are studying that conflict and its implications for their invasion of Taiwan. The US has preempted that concern by showing its commitment to the island’s defense through the well-publicized visit of the former Speaker Nancy Pelosi last year and the recent meeting with the current Speaker McCarthy and Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen.

The threat to Taiwan and China’s intent on controlling the South China Sea, the world’s most vibrant trade route, through the creation of military island bases has raised alarm among all its neighbors in the Pacific. These provocative moves have led the US and its allies to join in a variety of new organizations. The Quad treaty of the US, Australia, India and Japan, advanced by the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, was considered the “Asian NATO” in response to the rising threat of China. The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity of 2022 represented fourteen regional nations with a combined economic output of 40% of the world’s GDP as a counter to China’s efforts to economically influence the region.

These developments and President Xi Jinping’s recent visit to Russia and the Middle East are beginning to solidify the emerging lines between the free world and the world under Chinese influence.

The Rise of the Indo-Pacific and the Need for Guiding Spiritual Principles

Ladies and gentlemen, the tides of history are shifting from the Atlantic sphere to the Indo-Pacific. 

In this geopolitical environment, any nation that cherishes the ideals of fundamental freedom and human rights would clearly be wise to align with the US and its democratic allies. For the threat that China poses is the rise of totalitarian statist regimes that challenges the ideal of liberty. It is important to note that, although China has adopted some aspects of a market system, it never relinquished its one-party communist rule or the Maoist revolution; and it never embraced democracy nor the ideals of liberty that form the foundation of the free world.

Given this threat to liberty, the confusion being spread by the “Woke” Left in all western democracies is even more alarming. At no time in human history should the West be clearer about its core values and whence its freedom and rights derive. Many of the activists living in the West, however, take them for granted, failing to recognize the hard-won religious and philosophical milestones, rooted in the Judeo-Christian ethic, that gave birth to them.

The formation of the United States of America in 1776, through its Declaration of Independence from the British empire, planted the seeds of those ideals with its pregnant second sentence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

The foundational premise in those immortal words is that human freedom and rights come from the transcendent power of God, our Creator, and not any human authority or institution; and that they are “unalienable.” In our current global circumstances, there is an urgent need to clarify and uplift that time-honored universal spiritual principle. It is important that we understand which ideas will lead to a peaceful, harmonious future and which will dissolve social bonds, leading to chaos and anarchy.

What is important to note is that all democracies are not truly free, as was the case in ancient Greece and even the Roman Empire; nor are they immune from the tyranny of mob-rule. Such spiritual principles provide the much-needed compass to navigate through rapidly changing norms and guide humanity toward God’s original ideal, which I believe, is rooted first and foremost in families centered on the original, creative love of God. We do not have to look far to find evidence of these universal principles. 

We can find them in the great faith traditions that have preserved, taught, and practiced those time-honored traditions that point to the innate value of human life and the proper order in human relationships, especially in the family, as well as to virtues by which to live. Throughout history, God has inspired the founding of various faith and wisdom traditions to elevate human consciousness and cultivate ethical civilizations. 

It should be people of faith who lead the world to peace. I believe the vision that can unite and inspire humanity to transcend all the walls of division is none other than “One Family under God.” All faiths should cooperate and adopt this vision to build a world free of conflict, reflecting the highest spiritual ideals, rooted in universal principles and values that reflect God’s truth, righteousness, goodness and love for all humanity.

Only then will we be able to harness the power of faith to transform the world and build true everlasting peace and harmony for all. We can no longer afford to proclaim that we are all “One Family” while continuing to live in our separate boxes.

The Non-Violence Paradigm and its Korean and Indian Roots 

Ladies and gentlemen, my homeland of Korea and India share a special relationship in history that will have important implications for this century.

There is a historic connection between our two countries that goes back two millennia. In the first century CE an Indian princess, known here I believe as Suriratna, sailed to Korea, married King Suro and became the queen known to us Koreans as Heo Hwang-ok. There are memorials to her in both our countries. That marriage alliance tied our ancient civilizations and made clear that there were significant connections between our two countries at that time and ever since.

In the last century, the Korean Sam Il independence movement, launched in 1919 while the Paris Peace Conference was being held after World War I, influenced Indian independence by introducing the platform of mass non-violent protest rooted in universal spiritual truths. Two million Koreans on the peninsula, ten percent of the population, engaged in peaceful protest over two months, making it the largest demonstration of non-violent resistance up until that time.

It was in 1920 that Ghandhi then formulated satyagraha or “truth force” that became the governing philosophy behind the Indian non-violence movement. In 1929, Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, a leading thought leader of Indian independence, met with Korean students in Japan and was deeply moved by the undying aspirations of the Korean people. He immortalized those aspirations in a famous quatrain called “Lamp in the East” describing Korea as one of the ancient sources of light in Asia, waiting to be relit “for the illumination of the East.”

The main impetus for independence movements in both Korea and India in the early 20th century relied on their own ancient spiritual traditions. In the case of Korea, it was motivated by Hongik Ingan that mandated the Korean people to “live for the benefit of all humanity;” and for India, it was vasudaiva kutumbakam that proclaimed that “The World is One Family.” As a result, both movements were not driven simply by resentment toward the colonial power. Certainly, they wanted to be free of foreign rule, but each had a greater vision of a peaceful and harmonious coexistence with their oppressors as well as their neighbors after independence.

Later, this approach became the inspiration for Martin Luther King Jr and the American Civil Rights movement. Dr. King applied the spiritual principle of non-violence to prick the conscience of a nation. He looked to America’s founding creed of equality to hold the nation to account for its moral failure in its treatment of black Americans. His historic “I Have a Dream” speech did not simply condemn the injustice but called all people to renew their commitment to those founding ideals.

Similarly, in South Africa, Nelson Mandela adopted the principles of non-violence rooted in universal truths while he was in prison for his attempt to violently overthrow the apartheid government. There in prison, he learned to forgive his oppressors and later worked with then President de Klerk, in the early 1990s upon his release, to dismantle the system of segregation. He became the first president of a multi-racial South Africa in 1994 and played a central role in reconciliation between the races, being globally recognized for his work and statesmanship. 

Due to our two countries’ important legacy in shaping the most significant movements for freedom, equality and human rights of the 20^th century, I believe that our destinies, those of Korea and India, are intertwined. We have an even greater role to play in this century, as the world stands on the precipice of war and chaos. Our unique spiritual heritage and history of non-violence place us in a unique position to champion peace in the Indo-Pacific region, here in the southern heart of Asia and the pan-Pacific rim to the east, and eventually the world. 

Let me share something else that our two nations have in common. Korea is a 5,000-year-old civilization. Yet, throughout our entire history, we never invaded any of our neighbors. We were attacked and invaded over 900 times throughout the course of our history, but we never attacked our neighbors. But, because of the spiritual principles of Hongik Ingan, we internalized that suffering to be able to love humanity because of the providential mandate in our founding to live for the benefit of mankind.  That is the power of spiritual principles, our unique spiritual heritage. Let us never forget that.

The Korean Dream and Launching of a New Era

Ladies and gentlemen, before we can open a new chapter in the story of this region, we must bring a close to the last vestige of the 20th century’s tragic legacies of colonialism and Cold War geopolitics that remain on the Korean peninsula.

It is deeply ironic that the nation which initiated the paradigm of non-violent mass protest rooted in universal truths remains divided to this day, unable to realize the aspirations of the Sam-Il movement from more than a century ago, when every other colonized people, as well as nations in the Soviet sphere of influence, were eventually able to achieve national sovereignty and unification. Thus, Korean reunification is of utmost importance in setting a new precedent for peace in Asia and the world.

I have developed a new vision for unification called the Korean Dream. Unlike past efforts, it draws upon the ancient Korean philosophical ideal of Hongik Ingan, which precedes the current ideological division by millennia, to tackle the present challenge. It was the impetus behind the high moral ideals of the independence movement and gave all Koreans a sense of providential purpose to create a model nation that could “benefit all mankind.” It challenges the divided peninsula to discard the foreign construct of division and recognize its common identity and destiny.

In order to do this, I plan on relaunching the paradigm of the Sam-Il movement to bring about unification. To that end, I have created Action for Korea United (AKU), a coalition of civil society activists, organizations, NGOs and associations that represents millions of South Koreans. To date, we have more than a thousand partners united in the largest grassroots movement for unification in the history of the two Koreas.

We plan to hold peace rallies in the South that will climax in 2025 with a massive event for unification that will highlight the 80th anniversary of Korean independence from Japanese rule. Dreamers are the ones who change the world. Imagine if tens of millions of Koreans on the peninsula and the diaspora as well as supporters from around the world gathered their collective voices to demand the peaceful unification of Korea. Surely, the metaphysical and physical wall that divides the peninsula will fall and a new era will dawn for the Korean people, the Indo-Pacific and the world.

I hope and trust that the spiritual and thought leaders here will recognize the moment and give your support for the Korean Dream. The rising prominence of India in this region is evidenced by its role in hosting the upcoming G-20 meeting, drawing upon the rich heritage of Indian spirituality to create the theme of “One Earth, One Family, One Future.”  It is also noteworthy that India is convening the “C-20” of civil society counterparts to G20, giving substance to spiritual principles and values by promoting the essential value of service and the ethos of one family.

This is highly significant because of the clear recognition that politics, economics, and technology alone are inadequate to resolve the many challenges facing the world today. These challenges arise, at root, from a clash of fundamental worldviews that can only be effectively addressed by drawing on deep and ancient spiritual traditions and the universal truths they embody.

What is most important is that we recognize the universal principles that are manifested in these traditions. We are all essentially connected in the one human family, and we are one family because of our shared origin in the Creator God. Our inherent value and fundamental rights are endowed to us by God.  To encapsulate these truths in a way that all can easily grasp, I have long advocated a simple yet profound vision statement – One Family under God.

A Call to Action and New Delhi Declaration

Today, young leaders, spiritual leaders, scholars, and others from civil societies across the Indo-Pacific region have taken ownership over the vision of One Family under God.

You have concluded important discussions on its implementation in areas related to youth, education, values-based peacebuilding, and the environment. I look forward to the New Delhi Declaration you are issuing today that will outline specific initiatives that will give substance to the noble theme of this GPLC Indo-Pacific.

Today, I am announcing that the Global Peace Foundation and its partners will establish the Indo-Pacific Leadership Forum to further implement this movement fostering one global family, guided by traditions and values shared across all the cultures gathered here.  I have asked Dr. Markandey Rai to organize and lead this initiative and invite your contributions from across the nations of the Indo-Pacific.

The Leadership Forum will work in this region in a similar way to the Latin American Presidential Mission that I founded. Through it, public-minded former presidents work for the benefit of Latin America through promoting peace, cooperation among countries and spiritual and material development of the people.

I hope that each one of you will become peacebuilders in your respective spheres of influence and join with us in the great movement for global peace.

Let us all commit to become the moral and innovative leaders who invest our passion, energy and talent to serve the greatest good -for the benefit of all humanity, that together, step by step, we can finally realize the greatest dream of all, the dream of One Family under God!

Thank you, and may God bless you and your families.

At the Action for Korea United Festival on August 15, 2022, twenty thousand Korean citizens pledged to build a grassroots base that would gather 10 million people by 2025 to mark the 80th anniversary of Liberation Day. Throughout the month of February 2023, AKU held four regional rallies in Busan, Honam, Chungcheong and Daegu as part of the build up towards 2025. The final victory celebration for the series of rallies took place in the capital city of Seoul on February 21 with key leaders of the growing grassroots, civil society-led movement to realize the Korean Dream.

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It is a tremendous honor for me to be here, to be able to speak to all of you today. You represent the leadership of this nation. I’m not talking about the leaders in government, but leaders of Korean society. You represent the Korean people.

The reason why I embarked on this tour this year is to build the momentum for not only the gathering later on this year but for this entire 10-million campaign.

Why is this 10-million campaign so significant? I believe I have already told the leaders, especially of some of the associations, how significant that event will be. It will be the most significant event not only of that year but will resonate throughout this entire century.

One of the things that we have to understand is that the Korean people also set a tremendous precedent in the beginning of the 20th century, at a time when we did not have a nation, but only a dream. A dream that one day we will be able to realize the providential mandate rooted in Hongik Ingan, in building an ideal nation.

When the door was opened by the President of the United States at that time, Woodrow Wilson, through the League of Nations and also his proposal that all colonized nations should eventually have a pathway to national sovereignty, Korea was the first nation to rise up to take on that call.

The Samil movement was not a movement just relevant for Korea and for Koreans but became the inspiration for every single nation in the 20th century that sought independence and their own national sovereignty. It was the voices of the Korean people, not any leader, but the Korean people that rose up at a time of hopelessness and gave the world inspiration that eventually set the precedent for the first half of the 20th century. The Samil movement did not just shake this peninsula but the region and the world.

Today we stand in the 21st century. Many thought that the 21st century would be much better than the 20th century, and yet, look at the quagmire that the world is in today, with statist powers on the rise, of China and Russia reminiscent of the ideological divide of the Cold War of the last half century. With the war in Ukraine, we also realize that these nations are no longer working on an ideological level but now are even willing to exercise and utilize their military might. Even in this region in the world, China makes no bones about its threat to even take Taiwan by force.

So, although humanity has made tremendous progress, the world is still a dangerous place, faced with many travails. Yet at the same time, it can be an opportunity for the world to see a glimpse of hope of what this century could usher in and bring for humanity – like our ancestors did a hundred years ago.

A people with no nation, a people with no identity, holding on to our Hongik Ingan ideal and the providential mandate that we believed God had given to us, to create a nation that can benefit all of humanity; holding on to that dream, the Korean dream, that inspired a century. That spirit shall be revisited on this land once again, through this 10-million march. Aju? We shall raise the voices of the Korean people once again – the forgotten people who need hope not only for themselves but through their hope and their courage can bring hope to the rest of humanity.

Let us, as Koreans, show the world, as well as our fellow Koreans in the North and around the world in the diaspora, that we stand together as one, and we go back to our founding visionary mandate to build an ideal nation, the Korean dream, that will bring us out from this morass.

You have to remember that there are larger forces at work. As you know, I’m a man of deep faith. I come from a very, very faithful family. I believe that each and every one of you are gathered here for a reason and a purpose, that you are providential figures that are now at a critical juncture and inflection moment in the history of our people that have received the clarion call to be the owners of this dream and to inspire your Korean neighbors and to give them the hope that they need to empower them, to be the owners of this dream, so that collectively, our voices together can shake this peninsula, this region, and the world. Aju?

That is what this movement is about.

Remember what I always quote from Genghis Khan. That if one person has a dream, it is but a dream. But if everyone shares in that dream it will become a reality. For those who still need convincing, let me just tell you this: in history all the major movements for transformation never happened on the top. It was always a grassroots movement of the people that brought about the fundamental transformations of events that nobody believed could actually happen. In the 1990s, who would have believed that the Soviet Union would collapse? They were at the height of their powers. Who would have believed that the Berlin Wall would come down?

It is dreamers who are willing to put their neck out on the line and recognize that there are moments in history – inflection moments in history, consequential moments in history – that calls upon us to act, that calls upon us to become the owners. And this is that moment for the Korean people.

This time I visited four major cities, but I was telling many of the top leaders that usually in order for me to go and speak I need to have at least a minimum of 10,000 people, and that I want you to bring more young people because if you bring more young people and they take ownership over this Korean dream it will light it on fire. There are those who say the Korean young people are not interested in unification. Just bring them to my rally and let them hear my speech. Then you will see whether or not they will be the owners of the Korean dream.

Before I go, I want to leave every one of you with a challenge.

My challenge is this. This time next year, I will do these regional rallies again, especially in preparation for the million campaign later on that year. My challenge to each and every one of you is that in every single one of those locations, you have to have a minimum of 10,000 people and you have to bring many young people. That means your sons and your daughters! [Korean: Can you do that?]

I gave you that challenge. Those of you who will take ownership and will make an even greater preparation as we roll up this campaign for next year, stand up and say Aju! Aju! Aju! Aju!

At the Action for Korea United Festival on August 15, 2022, twenty thousand Korean citizens pledged to build a grassroots base that would gather 10 million people by 2025 to mark the 80th anniversary of Liberation Day.

Taegu was the fourth in a series of regional events held throughout Korea to start this work. Thousands gathered in on February 18, 2023, to expand the grassroots, citizen-led movement in the region.

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I was told that Taegu is the city and the region where great Korean patriots grow. I guess I came to the right place to give my message today.

We are living in the most consequential moment in modern Korean history. The only nation that has not been able to resolve all of the travails of the last 20th century is this nation of Korea. And yet, still today, as we’re approaching our 8th decade since liberation, still, this peninsula is divided; our people are divided.

Yet, this is a time in which the Korean people can show the world, just like it did a hundred years ago in the beginning of the 20th century, that we can set a new precedent for this 21st century. I’m sure that many Koreans are not aware that the March 1st Independence Movement of 1919 did not just affect this nation of Korea, but the entire world. We were the first people to rise to the call that all nations should be able to determine their own national sovereignty, challenging the imperialistic order of the early 20th century. That message, that precedent was not lost on this peninsula, it reverberated throughout the course of 20th century history, where all the national movements for national sovereignty were inspired by the March 1st Movement.

In three years’ time, including this year, we’re going to prepare the foundation for tens of millions of Koreans, not only in South Korea, but all around the world, to rise up and to declare to the world our demand for unification based upon the Korean Dream.

The voices of the Korean people that sparked the movement for national restoration in the 20th century shall not be forgotten to the world.  But that voice shall be found again in a new generation of Koreans, in a new century that will bring peace not only to the Korean peninsula, but to the region and to the world. That is the Korean Dream.

Now, I’m going to teach you a new word today. It’s a word that my father used, because more than anything that you should get today is that “I need to become the owner of the Korean Dream.”

Instead of saying “[Korean: I need to become the owner.]” All you have to say is “Aju.” So if I ask you, “Do you want to be an owner? Yes or no?” All you have to say is “Aju.” [Korean: Let’s try once. Aju!] [Aju!] Remember the quote I used to open my book, a quote by another Asian leader that basically transformed the last millennium of human history. It is a quote by Genghis Khan. He said, “If one person has a dream, it is but a dream. But if everyone can share in that dream it becomes a reality.” The Korean Dream is not the dream of just one man, one family, it is the dream of the entire Korean people and all of humanity.

It is rooted in the DNA of the Korean identity that goes back 5,000 years. As a student of history, one should know that the Korean founding is special among all the ancient civilizations in the world. The Hongik Ingan ideal was a providential mandate given to us by God to create a model nation that can be the benefit for all humanity. Among all the ancient civilizations, there has been none which had such lofty ideals such as this.

When I shared the Hongik Ingan ideal to even the top leaders of America, who basically pride themselves as champions of fundamental freedom and human rights, they were blown away that an ancient civilization 5,000 years ago had this founding vision. They were blown away, because they thought that such ideas were the province of the modern era that was led and founded by the United States. No. This root was part and parcel of the identity of the Korean people and the Korean civilization – 5,000 years ago. It had been the founding vision that led the Korean people to seek truth, righteousness and goodness. Although Korea was invaded more than 900 times throughout its history, it never invaded its neighbors. It’s because of the Hongik Ingan ideals. It is part and parcel to our Korean identity.

I have come here to Korea to once again reawaken that DNA that is latent in each and every one of you.  Aju! [Aju] For once that DNA reawakens within each and every one of us, and we become owners of the Korean Dream, then, we shall set the precedent for peace in this 21st century, an era that is beginning to look very dangerous in the world today.

Then, those of you who want to become the owner of the Korean Dream, stand up! Raise your hand and say, “Aju! Aju! Aju!” [Aju! Aju! Aju!] [Korean: Thank you.]

At the Action for Korea United Festival on August 15, 2022, twenty thousand Korean citizens pledged to build a grassroots base that would gather 10 million people by 2025 to mark the 80th anniversary of Liberation Day.

Chungcheon region was the third in a series of regional events held throughout Korea to start this work. Thousands gathered in on February 11, 2023 to expand the grassroots, citizen-led movement in the region.

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[Korean: Hello! Before I begin, I have a request. I will speak in English because it is more comfortable. Is that ok?] I want to thank all of you for coming today. First of all, there are too many VIPs that are gathered here today that I cannot recognize all of you so, I want to give all of you a round of applause.

The most important thing for you to take away from this gathering today is that “I have to become the owner of the Korean Dream.” 

There is a quote that I often use, a quote from Genghis Khan. Throughout history – he is the most consequential figure of the last half millennium. Basically, that quote summarizes a truth that was realized in human history –which is, “If one person has a dream, it is but a dream. But if everyone can share in that dream it can become a reality.”

Are we dreamers that are gathered here today? Yes or no? [Yes!] Then I guess I’ve come to the right place. Because I am the biggest dreamer of all, for I authored the Korean Dream, which is not only for Koreans but for the entire world.

What if I was to tell you that the Korean Dream is a dream not just for the Korean people, but a dream that can inspire all humanity in the most consequential moment of human history?

At a time when humanity faces tremendous dangers, with the rise of statists powers such as China and Russia threatening their neighbors even with war. For a generation that grew up in the Cold War, we thought that with the end of the Cold War, that there would be an era of peace. And yet, today, in the 21st century, we face even greater threats that existed in the 20th century.

In this time, humanity needs hope, a vision that can bring us from this malaise and bring a possibility of peace in the future. Humanity needs a vision. And what is that vision? The Korean Dream. [Applause]

Before I came here to Korea to start this tour, I had a private conversation with one of the most influential academics in Washington, DC. I had a chance to tell him about the AKU movement, which is the most significant grassroots movement for unification in the history of South Korea. 

There is a Ministry of Unification here in South Korea. Many people in South Korea talked about unification, but there was never a grassroots movement that represented all of the free people like we have today with AKU – never in the history of South Korea. So I told him, “What happens if we are able to mobilize, three years from now, tens of millions of not only Koreans in South Korea, but maybe in North Korea, all the Koreans in the diaspora communities of the United States, China and abroad. What will happen if we are able to mobilize tens of millions of Koreans based upon one common singular vision?” He said, “That will be the most significant, consequential event in the 21st century.” [Applause]

And I told him, “That is what I plan to do.” [Applause]

We are living in the most consequential moment of Korean history.

It was Einstein said that if you do the same effort and expect a different result, that it is insanity. And yet, for more than 70 years, now approaching 80 years, the same approach to unification has happened where we expected the two governments of North and South Korea to somehow come to an agreement upon unification without any hopes or idea of what that unification will bring. The Korean Dream changes all of that.

Its thesis is that we need to create a new nation that is rooted in the Hongik Ingan ideal that goes to our 5,00-year history and past, rooted in our providential, heavenly mandate to create an ideal nation that can serve all humanity. That was the inspiration behind our long history, the inspiration of our independence movement, of which Kim Il–Sung was a member.

Remember, both South and North Korea has its roots in the independence movement, laying claim to that entire history as well as the identity of the Korean people. An identity that is special among all the civilizations of the world that aspired for the highest, most lofty ideals that resonates with our modern values of fundamental human rights, and fundamental freedoms, 5,000 years ago. That is the Korean Dream, [Applause] that guides, through the history and the plight of the Korean people that will be liberated and free upon unification. That will be the example and the story that the world is looking for to find its way from this quagmire it is currently in today.

I’m going to teach you a word today. The thing that you have to take away from this gathering today, more than anything, is that you have to become owners. [Korean: You must become owners.] [Applause] So remember what I said, what Genghis Khan said, “If one person has a dream, it is but a dream. But if everyone can share with that dream, that will become reality.” I’m going to teach you a word, “Aju.” Much simpler to say, “Aju” than [Korean: I’m going to become an owner.] 

This is a word that my father created to basically summarize the fact that you are becoming an owner.

So, do you want to become an owner? Yes or no? Aju! [Aju!] Aju! [Aju!] Aju! [Aju!] 

Ooooh! I was told Cheonahn has tremendous patriots. I guess I was told something that’s truthful. [Applause]

To me, this gathering here is a small gathering. There was a time where I would not go and give a public message unless it was a crowd of 10,000 or more, because I was in such high demand. So, if I was to challenge you – I never will leave without a challenge – if I was to challenge you – if you want me to come and speak to you again, one year from now, then you must gather at least a minimum of 10,000 owners of the Korean Dream. Can you do that? Yes or no? [Yes!] [Applause.]
[Korea: In that case,] I heard that President Seo Inteck is famous for giving the Korean Dream lectures. I want to challenge all of you to become better lecturers of the Korean Dream than President Seo Inteck. Can you do that? Yes or no? [Applause] Aju! [Aju!] Aju! [Aju!]

So those of you who want to become that owner and to re-spark that Korean Dream DNA in your Korean neighbors, stand up. Aju! [Aju!] Aju! [Aju!] Aju! [Aju!]

[Korean: Thank you.]

 

At the Action for Korea United Festival on August 15, 2022, twenty thousand Korean citizens pledged to build a grassroots base that would gather 10 million people by 2025 to mark the 80th anniversary of Liberation Day.

Honam was the second in a series of regional events held throughout Korea to start this work. Thousands gathered in on February 4, 2023 to expand the grassroots, citizen-led movement in the region.

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I’d like to give a message that’s challenging, but at the same time that’s inspirational. But I want to first ask for permission that I could use the entire stage. I’d like to engage all of you, if that’s okay?

We live in the most consequential moment within the history of the Korean peninsula. In a world that’s plagued with tremendous crisis, especially with the rise of statist, absolutist powers right on our doorstep. The potential threat of nuclear annihilation. There are many dangers in the world today and yet, because of that contextual environment, there is the opportunity for people to recognize that there must be another way; that the status quo has not achieved to the great aspirations of our forefathers or even the aspirations that we might hold dear.

I believe it was Einstein who said that, “The definition of insanity is to do the same thing and hope for a different outcome.“ And yet, look at the efforts for unification. We are close approaching 80 years after the liberation of the Korean people from the Japanese Empire in 1945.

The dream that had inspired the liberation movement was rooted in the Hongik Ingan ideal of creating a modern, ideal nation, not just for the Korean people, but to inspire the rest of the world as to what human potential could be; what a true nation could resemble. This defined the uniqueness and the greatness of the Korean people.

As a student of history, one knows that all great civilizations have their beginning story. Yet there is only one nation amongst all the vast nations that existed in the world that had such a lofty aspiration as the Korean founding. So if you look at the entirety of human history, Korean founding ideals stand unique and special amongst all the ancient civilizations of the world.  And what was that founding ideal? Hongik Ingan: to build a nation not just for the Korean people, but for the inspiration of all of humanity.

That is why the history of the Korean people has never been a history of oppression but seeking peace, seeking truth, seeking righteousness, and seeking goodness. Our people have been invaded more than 900 times and yet we never invaded or oppressed our neighbors.

Why was that? Because of the Hongik Ingan ideal that is etched in the DNA of our very Korean identity. In this world today, that’s plagued with such tragedy, such potential violence, as well as such travesty, it is a vision, it is an idea rooted in the highest and the great expression of our human experience that will uplift humanity from this quagmire and uplift them, to once again dream, to once again hope. And what is that vision? The Korean Dream.

Now I’m going to teach you a new word today, because even if you might not get everything that I say today, there’s one thing you absolutely need to take away, because we are making history.

Like I said, this is the most consequential moment in the history of the Korean people, especially this generation. We are making history.  Nobody believed that there could be a grassroots movement, citizen-led movement for unification . And yet, here we are. I look at each and every one of you as the seed of this historic movement that will move this nation of Korea and the rest of the world. The true test of ownership is for you to be the owner of this word, and I’m going to teach it to you today. It’s called, “Aju.” Now what does Aju mean? My father coined this term as a very quick way of saying, ”I will be the owner.” Aju.

Because the Korean Dream has to be your dream. It can’t be Dr. Moon’s dream. It can’t be my neighbor’s dream. It has to be your dream. It has to be the dream of your family.  It has to be the dream of your children, your grandchildren. Because that is what makes us Korean, that is tied to our 5,000-year-old legacy, with the most lofty, inspirational founding ideal of Hongik Ingan. [Korean: Can you all become the owners? [Yes!] Can you become the owner? [Yes!] Can you become the owner?] [Yes!] Ooooh.

This Korean Dream vision is not only a vision that I’m sharing with Korea today, especially for the AKU movement, but is actually being shared around the world. As many of you know, the Korean Dream book is a bestseller in the United States. Actually, in most of the Asian Studies schools, they study this book.  This book was actually required reading for every new officer suggested by the Defense Department. So it’s very important worldwide. But who do you think it has to move the most? [Korean: The Korean people. Us. We must become the owners.]

So we have a huge goal – an outrageous goal – that in three years time, in celebrating the 80 year anniversary of liberation, that it won’t pass by as a forgotten moment in history, but will be a defining moment not only for the Korean people and the Korean peninsula, but the entire world. We’ll be making a bold-faced statement to the world, that we have not forgotten unification. But most of all, we have not lost our Korean identity rooted in the Hongik Ingan ideal. That although our leaders might have failed us, we as the Korean people, we have solidarity behind the singular vision that will ultimately unify our homeland. [Korean: Do you want to become the owner?] [Yes!] [Korean: Do you want to become the owner?] [Yes!]

That is what this movement is about. I especially want to challenge all of you, as owners, to be able to move ten people that you know. I want you to study the Korean Dream book so that you can give the type of lectures that Seo Inteck, the President of GPF Korea, can give. [Korean: Can you do this?] [Yes!] If you can do it, by being an owner and if you can do that, you will be a leader that makes history in the most consequential moment in the history of humanity and especially this nation. Aju? [Aju!]

You know, people might say that this Dr. Moon, he comes to speak to the Korean people in English. He’s like a banana. Yet, if you hear the content of my speech, there is no one who is more Korean than I am. At this time, Korea needed an outsider, so-called outsider, to come in with the vision that will reawaken their true Koreanness. Someone who, at a young age, at four years old, left his homeland of Korea, went to a completely foreign nation, received tremendous persecution and prejudice on every single level, and yet held on to his Korean identity and his roots in this nation so preciously that he had not forgotten how precious and how great God has blessed our people. That seed, the Korean Dream seed, that was within me that allowed me to overcome all the trials and tribulations is the same seed that exists in every single one of you. And it is my God-given mandate to awaken that seed in every single one of you and to rise at this moment and realize a long list of aspirations of our people to create a model, ideal nation as a unified nation, North and South. [Korean: Can we do this? Aju.] [Aju!]

So, I cannot leave without a challenge. So I have to make a challenge for you today. Can you become the owner of the Korean Dream and move this nation as part of the most historic and consequential movement in the history of our people, to bring about unification and create a new nation that can be the inspiration for all humanity, leading the world out of this quagmire of destruction and hopelessness and getting hope, once again, rooted in the Korean Dream? If you want to become an owner – stand up! Stand up! Raise your hands and say, “Aju! Aju! Aju!” [Korean: Thank you!]