11/13/09

Tim Folzenlogen’s 1994 letter to Rev. Sun Myung Moon regarding his son Hyun Jin Moon’s assault

Dear [Father][Sun Myung Moon],

I am writing to you about a couple of serious incidents which happened between Hyun Jin Nim and myself. It is very important to me that this situation be resolved.

I have been a member of the Unification Church for nineteen years. I went through Barrytown training, six years MFT and two years with OWP before winning Mr. Kamiyama’s blessing to pursue a mission relating to fine art in which I have a substantial background. Over the last ten years I have had a dozen solo shows in New York City, a number of shows in Japan and three shows in my hometown, Cincinnati Ohio. The subject of my last Cincinnati show was the testimony of my spiritual quest in life. In part, the show explained Divine Principle and the concept of True Parents. It was well received.

As an artist, I do a lot of creative writing both inside and outside of the movement. I send my writing out through mailing lists. My purpose is to make people think. Create give and take. Most recently, I wrote something entitled “WHY” (enclosed) which pertained, in part, to Jun Sook Nim’s speech in Harlem which I attended. I sent a copy to Jun Sook.

On the evening of December 31, I received a call asking that I come to Ossining to meet with Hyun Jin Nim. When I explained that I didn’t have a car I was told that someone would come and pick me up. I immediately showered, shaved, put on clean clothes and prepared a presentation containing my resume, a catalogue from my last show in Japan, and a collection of writings from my testimony show.

I presumed that he wanted to meet me in connection with my writing. I falsely assumed that he was intrigued with my writing and wanted to discuss it further.

When I entered the room, Hyun Jin Nim was meeting with a few Japanese members. He asked everyone to leave the room but me. He told me rather strongly to sit down. He told me to wipe the smirk off my face. I apologized and told him that I was not aware that I was smirking and certainly didn’t mean to be.

He then walked over, put his face close to my own and said “What was that piece of shit that you sent to my wife?” (This was the first I realized that Jun Sook was his wife.) I told him that it was something I wrote which was honest and sincere. He then punched me in the side of the head, knocking me off the chair and into the wall. He then proceeded to kick me in the ribs. I stood up and said “I’m outta here. I didn’t come here to be beat up.” He yelled at me to sit down. I told him I would sit down if he treated me with respect. He then physically threw me out of the office and kept screaming that I was “cut off”. As I made my way down the steps to leave the building I encountered the brother who had come to pick me up. He looked upset. He asked me if I believed what I had written. I told him that of course I did. He told me to go back up there and defend it. I told him that Hyun Jin seemed more interested in punching and kicking than talking. Just then Hyun Jin came flying down the steps and pushed me into several walls as I tried to make my way out of the building not knowing the way. No one came out to give me a ride home.

I made my way to the train station and, luckily, had money with me to get back to Manhattan.

The next day was God’s Day. I, of course, did not attend. Hyun Jin Nim gave the speech. In part, I’m told, he spoke about our encounter. Later that day I spoke with my spiritual parents and a trusted friend. I think we all agreed that Hyun Jin Nim’s behavior was out of line but that I myself may have erred in the protocol department in sending my writing to Jun Sook directly. Since she had never met me, I could see where she might misunderstand my intent. In the hope of having a future relationship with Hyun Jin Nim, and since I was not permanently injured, I decided to write an apology to him in which I accepted all the blame. He received it on the night of January 2 through my friend Edric Debos. He told Edric that he would like to meet me again the next morning. Edric said that he smiled and said that this time he only wanted to talk.

I met with Hyun Jin Nim for the second time in Ossining at 10:00 AM January 3 in his office. The meeting lasted approximately 30 minutes. Throughout the meeting I sat in a chair; he alternately sat, walked up to me, knuckled my skull, poked my forehead, slapped me upside the head and sat some more. Since it didn’t really hurt that much, I determined to endure it in the hope that if I could get through the meeting, I could then present him with my package containing my foundation (the resume, catalogue and written testimony). My hope was that he would then come to understand that I am not just a negative member, that I have something of value to offer, and then we could possibly meet again in the future and have give and take.

Throughout his “lecture” I must say that I was really shocked at how little he seems to comprehend of the internal heart of the Principle. The only time he mentioned “love” was in reference to the earlier beating. He told me that he was a good judge of character and could immediately see that beating was the only form of love that I could understand as I was so full of hate and resentment. (I personally do not feel that I hold any resentment towards anyone about anything.) He also, repeatedly, kept referring to me in the most vulgar of terms.

The gist of his lecture (as hard as it might be to believe) was that a life of faith is not supposed to make sense. He seems to think that the True Family can do no wrong and that our (we fallen people’s) responsibility is to unquestioningly follow. He wants us to be robots. He said that my writing makes people think, which causes them to have doubts, which makes them question True Family and so, obviously, I am Satan. He said that I had to promise him that I would stop writing. I told him that I would stop sending my writing to the True Family, but that the other people on my list were my friends. Brothers and sisters. How could he ask me not to have conversation? I told him that give and take was how I grew. I told him that I didn’t know how to stop thinking.

This would cause him to back off, but he would keep circling around and coming back to the point that I had to stop writing. At one point, he said that if he even got a whiff of the fact that I was writing again, he would “hunt me down.” He also repeatedly said that he would take away “everything” that True Parents had given to me. I don’t know what he meant by “everything”. The only thing he mentioned specifically was the fact that one of our businesses in Japan sells my paintings. (I’d like to add here that our business in Japan is very lucky to have my paintings to sell. They need me a whole lot more than I need them. If Hyun Jin Nim cuts that business relationship off, all he is hurting is that church business.)

Finally, he sat directly across from me with our knees touching. He asked me if I do Pledge Service every Sunday at 5 AM. I, honestly, said no. He then smacked me, extremely hard, in the left ear. I could immediately tell that he had done serious damage to the inside of my ear. I told him so. He told me that I still had another ear. I told him that I had to go see a doctor now. He asked me which was more important: a doctor or the Kingdom of Heaven? I told him that, at this time, a doctor was. I left the room.

I went directly to the Ossining Police Department and asked them if there is any time limit on filing an assault charge. They said no.

I then went to a local clinic and waited an hour only to be told that they couldn’t help me because the doctor was booked that day.

I then went back to New York and saw my own doctor. He said that I was very lucky, that I had a lot of trauma inside the ear but that he didn’t see any perforation. He gave me a couple of shots and two prescriptions. As I write this, I still have ringing in my left ear and cannot hear so well out of it.

………

Before Jun Sook’s speech in Harlem, I saw a video of Father’s life. In it, they said that Father’s family name in Korea meant “people who live without laws” meaning that they don’t need laws as they do no harm to anyone.

In this country, if you hit someone without cause, that’s called “assault”. Think about Hyun Jin Nim trying to explain his rational to a judge and you will quickly come to understand why so few join our movement these days.

………

Not that it should make a difference, but I was putting in eighteen hour days on MFT when Hyun Jin Nim was five years old. I try very, very hard to be True as I understand True to be. My relationship with God is the most important thing in my life.

Not once did Hyun Jin Nim ask me a question in which I was free to answer with any kind of elaboration. He never gave me a chance to tell him who I am or why I don’t do Pledge every Sunday at 5 AM. On neither occasion was I able to leave my presentation behind. In his eyes, seemingly, members only exist to be told what to do, or to be judged.

………

I am absolutely furious (righteous indignation; not resentment) about this situation and so many others like it that seem to go unquestioned by anyone. This kind of abuse of power and position is shameful and has no place in the Kingdom building process. We can’t build the Kingdom with force. Fear does not create unity.

I want this situation to be addressed in a way that will assure that it will not be repeated again.

I want an apology from Hyun Jin Nim and I want him to stay away from me and my family. No “hunting me down” thank you, as I will most certainly continue to think and express. If anyone thinks that my writing is wrong they need only point out to me where I err. I will be more than happy to meet with anyone to discuss anything.

I want him to keep his hands off my personal business dealings as they have got nothing to do with him. If Dumonde Fine Art (a branch of his business) wants to stop acting as the shipping agent for my paintings (from which they make money) I am more than happy to take over that aspect myself.

I want my status as a member in good standing of the Unification Church publicly understood.

I want to be financially reimbursed for my doctor bills, phone calls to my lawyer and my time which was wasted in going to Ossining.

I sincerely hope that all this can be satisfactorily resolved outside of the courts in an expeditious fashion.

I await a reply.

Sincerely,

Tim Folzenlogen

Tim was never answered. He sent this letter out to several leaders and influential members of the Unification Church. None could counsel him or answer him or simply respond.

This violent behavior is not unique of Hyun Jin nim at all. This is not an isolated case.

How well do you know your Moon?

11/14/09

Black Heung Jin nim

Heung Jin nim was a well-respected son in the True Family (Rev. Moon’s family). I guess every Moon child was respected at the time, even Hyo Jin nim, who was an excuse of a man who liked beating up his wife (even when she was pregnant) and fancied cocaine. Nonetheless, Heung Jin became one of the most influential and worshiped members of the True Family. His own death brought his fame to blow up. His picture hangs in cars today all over the world to “provide safety” for Unificationists. His story begins at his death at 17 years old from a car crash in which he supposedly moved the car in a certain direction where his friends were saved from a horrific death and he was taken as a sacrificial death. Heung Jin nim’s death was seen as “far greater importance than the crucifixion of Jesus Christ” by Colonel Bo Hi Pak. Heung Jin nim’s death was celebrated and seen as victorious by Church officials and new church holiday was declared to celebrate his victory. Soon enough people were claiming to be communing with Heung Jin nim, or even coming under Heung Jin nim’s control. Contradicting statements were coming out and he “spoke” through people with all different opinions and ideas. The greatest to be known, other than Dae Mo nim, was Black Heung Jin nim.

“In 1987 the Reverend Chung Hwan Kwak went to investigate reports that Heung Jin had taken over the body of a Zimbabwean man and was speaking through him. The Reverend Kwak returned to East Garden professing certainty that the possession was real. The African presented himself to the Reverend Kwak as the physical embodiment of Heung Jin’s spirit. The Reverend Kwak had asked him what it was like to enter the spirit world. The Black Heung Jin said that upon entering the Kingdom of Heaven, he immediately became all knowing. Without even meeting the man who claimed to be possessed by the spirit of his dead child, Sun Myung Moon authorized the Black Heung Jin to travel the world, preaching and hearing the confessions of Unification Church members who had gone astray…

He went to Europe, to Korea, to Japan, everywhere administering beatings to those who had violated church teachings by using alcohol and drugs or engaging in premarital or extramarital sex. Reverend Moon was using the Black Heung Jin for his own ends, just as he had used the American civil liberties community before him. No one outside the True Family was immune from the beatings. The Black Heung Jin was a passing phenomenon in the Unification Church. Soon the mistresses he acquired were so numerous and the beatings he administered so severe that members began to complain. He beat Bo Hi Pak-a man in his sixties-so badly that he was hospitalized for a week in Georgetown Hospital. Sun Myung Moon simply announced that Heung Jin’s spirit had left the Zimbabwean’s body and ascended into Heaven. The Zimbabwean was not quite so ready to get off the gravy train. At last sighting, he had established a breakaway cult in Africa with himself in the role of Messiah. In many ways, Hyo Jin’s abusive behavior was a natural response to the environment of coercion and control in the Moon household and the Unification Church.”
-Nan Sook Hong, former wife of Hyo Jin Moon

Black Heung Jin Nim beat members across the world to heal them of their sins. He’d be in rooms of hundreds of members and have the doors locked and lecture them and then make them confess their evils and each one of their sins and… beat the evil out of them. Black HJN grew in such power that he was given the chance to hear the confession of Colonel Bo Hi Pak himself and he beat him to a condition where Bo Hi Pak had to receive brain surgery.

When first arriving to East Garden, all of the True Family questioned Black Heung Jin nim. They asked him questions about his life as Heung Jin nim… he could not answer them all but others excused it as a spiritual issue. Some in the True Family were doubtful, but others like the lunatic Hyo Jin Moon celebrated.

Black Heung Jin was later denounced by Rev. Moon and said to have “the spirit of HJN leave him”. He continued his own form of Unificationism in Zimbabwe and had a revival of True Father’s spiritual practice of “pikareun”, where he had sex with female members of his church.

Black Heung Jin nim, or Cleophas, and his ministry and arrival were seen as a momentous event in Unification history at the time of his coming. Rev. Moon celebrated the man until Cleophas had grown to such power and that is when Cleophas became “wrong”. It really makes you think about the reality of Providence, the supposed foreknowledge of Rev. Moon… it makes you think… How well do you know your Moon?

11/18/09

Gambling is strictly prohibited by the Unification Church. Betting of any kind is seen as a social ill that undermines the family and contributes to the moral decline of civilization. Why was Sun Myung Moon, the Lord of the Second Advent, the divine successor to the man who threw the money changers out of the temple, spending hours at the blackjack table? The Reverend Moon was eager to explain our presence in a place I had been taught was a den of sin. As the Lord of the Second Advent, he said, it was his duty to mingle with sinners in order to save them. He had to understand their sin in order to dissuade them from it. Peter Kim sat there for him and placed the bets as the Reverend Moon instructed from his position behind Peter Kim’s shoulder. ‘So you see, I am not actually gambling, myself,’ he told me. Even at age fifteen, even from the mouth of the Messiah, I recognized a rationalization when I heard one.

Nan Sook Hong, ex-wife of Hyo Jin Moon

11/19/09

Drama with Hyun Jin!

Hyun Jin, or known in the business world as Preston, has been getting in drama. After returning from a year of exile in Montana and coming back to his family, he had to face the reality of losing almost all the power he held in the Unification Church. His youngest brother, Hyung Jin, has been handed control over the Unification Church internationally and has been given control over organizations that Hyun Jin once headed. A few years back many had seen Hyun Jin as Rev. Sun Myung Moon’s choice of successor, but things are not looking that way anymore. And it seems like Hyun Jin cannot take it… and he is hurt.

People are saying that as “an act of rebellion” he had fired top Unification Church members working at Washington Times and had them escorted out of the building by security guards. An act of rebellion? That is debatable. Still, though, UPI has been taken out of his hands… as well as the Universal Peace Federation. And it seems that Hyun Jin knows exactly what to do. The Global Peace Festival, a little celebration of religions and life and a nice subtle way to introduce the world to Moonie ideas, is becoming separate from the Universal Peace Federation and will have no affiliation with the Unification Church any longer. Hyun Jin will now run GPF conferences and events independently from the Church and Rev. Moon.

Hyun Jin has recently moved his whole family, including his daughter-in-law Jinhwa (Shinhwa) Yoshida to Seattle, and is currently not speaking to any Moon’s, especially not Rev. Moon or Hyung Jin or In Jin. Definitely not In Jin. Especially after she gave a sermon on a rebellious brother who takes over a garden even though it does not belong to him. In the sermon she says, “If this older brother had a bunch of friends who really loved him with all their might and all their heart, and these friends could see the situation realistically, and if they were really this brother’s friends, what should they do? The kindest things the friends could do is to tell him, ‘Older brother, I love you to death. You’re my best friend. But what you’re doing to your family and to your neighbors is just not right. I want to walk with you. I want to play with you. I want to be with you all the time, but because I love you I am going to walk away from you. I am going to leave you so that you can experience the consequences of your actions. Because if you were to take the fruits of my garden from me, I would not be a good friend, to pretend that nothing happened. I would be very upset, and I need you to know I am upset. And you need to know that your parents are upset. If I am your friend, I am going to give you the opportunity to work it out with your parents, to work it out with your younger brother, and I’m going to walk away from you because I truly love you.’That’s what a true friend would do.”

It is clear she is talking about the Hyun Jin situation.

There has been bragging about the unity in the True Family… what about Hyun Jin? What about Un Jin? Ye Jin? Yeon Jin? Jeong Jin? Kwon Jin? And how about Sung Jin? Sammy Pak? These guys matter, too, even if Rev. Moon had them as a result of an affair.

So the Church is in a mess. And it is coming to the public eye. Hopefully you Moonies will question yourself and I pray you may really seek to answer one question. How well do you know your Moon?

11/21/09

Vague email regarding True Family drama

A vague email is going out describing Rev. Moon’s Hoon Dok Hae recently.

“It seems that the basic flow is true. The following people were present in today’s Hoondokhae: Ki-Hoon Kim, Yong-Cheol Song, Sun-Jo Hwang, Chang-Shik Yang, Joon-Ho Seuk, Jeong-Ok Yoo, Jung-Soon Cho and the members from the southern region of Kyung-Gi. Right now Father has taken all the leaders who participated to Seok-Cho with him. Once they arrive at Seok-Cho and I can connect through telephone I will be able to have more detailed information. Because the worker who transcribes the contents of Hoondokhae is also en route with the group, I am thinking of receiving the initial contents from him when I get there. As you have told me, I requested for a dictation of today’s Hoondokhae contents. I will receive the overall material and organize it based on the contents that concern you first. They told me they can’t release any audio data externally.

Some people are saying that he did not mention Hyun Jin Nim directly. I heard from others that he gave the order to restore Rev. Kwak to all of his public positions, including WANGO. I was told that Mother argued with Father during Hoondokhae and she left the room; and I heard she did not go to Seok-Cho.

Following news…

After today’s morning Hoondokhae ended, Mother ordered the PeaceTV and History Recording Department to erase the contents of today’s morning Hoondokhae…”

It seems the decision to cut Hyun Jin and Rev. Kwak were not his… and that they were the Korean leaders. Is Rev. Moon in control? Why wouldn’t he be?

How well do you know your Moon?

11/25/09

Moonlight

I think this whole situation is comparable to Twilight. This Hyun Jin situation. You’ve got the cold-hearted In Jin as Edward, the somewhat wreckless Hyun Jin as Jacob and cute, naive Hyung Jin as Bella. Hyung Jin is trying to satisfy all sides and bring some kind of peace between everybody, but has to choose Edward.

Real shame. Even if Hyun Jin beat Tim Folzenlogen AND may of cheated on his wife, he is at least sincere and I think I gotta be on his team. I don’t want to curse so I will not talk about In Jin.

So what team are you? Team Hyun Jin or Team In Jin?

11/29/09

Is Hyun Jin really that bad?

There is a lot more happening than our eyes can see. And most visibly, right now, we can see Hyun Jin Moon being bashed and disliked and labeled “jealous” and “Cain”. But how much do we even know? Reports have been sent out by In Jin on several levels, through messengers like Dave Hunter, and through her own words. She called him misguided and blames Rev. Kwak for indoctrinating him… but is this all true? Is he misguided? Is he really trying to take over the church?

In Jin’s report was sent out as a chain letter and a lot of the First Gen don’t mind bashing Hyun Jin as “arrogant”, even after they clapped for his speeches and admired his work for the church for the last twenty years. And it is a fact that he gave his whole life to raise up the youth in the church and work towards accomplishing what is most important in the church: One Family Under God. He worked with people of all races and religions and helped many organizations and events that for the most part were successful.

Sure, there are a lot of conferences where people get inspired (and none of them are truly life changing), but the church’s charity and service grew tremendously in the last 20 years. And now most of these organizations that Rev. Kwak and Hyun Jin have raised up have been abolished by In Jin. The whole focus of the church has changed. It was once about being selfless and creating “One Family Under God” and now it is about perfectionism and excellence and it all sounds like it is copied from a New Age preacher. The church is selling itself out.

And where is Hyun Jin in all of this? Hyun Jin lost all his power and we only think it was because of Father’s direction, but trustworthy sources are saying that is false. It seems that Korean leaders who wanted Hyun Jin out of power put this order forth. Hyun Jin was doing a good job and was doing great leadership until he was sent to Montana for his little “break”. Why was it covered up so much? Why do we know so little about it? How come he was there? And soon after returning from his exile… he had lost all his power. All of his work for his whole life was taken by his younger brother, somebody active in the faith for only a few years. Hyung Jin, or “baldhead”, is not a bad guy and is trying to do the right thing… but does he deserve every single title in leadership? Does that make sense?

Many of you only know In Jin’s side of the story. Know this: You don’t know the full story. Don’t judge Hyun Jin so quickly, please.