Heung Jin Moon
|
|
Heung Jin Moon was the second son of Reverend Sun Myung Moon and Hak Ja Han, the leaders of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification.
He was a quiet and reserved boy who loved taking care of stray cats and fixing up old cars, as well as riding horses.
In December 1983 his car hit a jacknifing truck on an icy highway. He swerved to take the brunt of the impact on himself, reportedly saving the lives of his car's passengers. After weeks in a coma, he died on January 2, 1984, a day regarded as his "ascension" into Heaven by Unificationists and observed as an annual church holiday: the "Day of the Victory of Love".
Moon's death came before his planned marriage to ballerina Julia Pak. According to the tenets of his religion only married couples may enter the highest level of heaven. Therefore his parents conducted a posthumous marriage ceremony three months later, February 20, 1984.
Unificationists generally interpret his death as saving the life of his father, whose assassination by leftist terrorists was foiled on the same day as the accident. They also generally regard him as "king of the spirits" in the spirit world, conducting seminars in heaven for departed souls who led lives of religious or political significance.