Sun Myung Moon (1920-2012) was a Korean religious leader who founded the Unification Church, formally known as the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, in Seoul, South Korea, in 1954.[1][2][3][6] Born on January 6, 1920, into a farming family in what is now North Korea, his family converted to Christianity when he was a child; at age 15, he claimed a revelation from Jesus tasking him with completing the unfinished work of salvation, leading him to develop the Divine Principle, a core text blending Christian teachings, Eastern mysticism, and anti-communism.[1][2][3][5] Moon studied electrical engineering at Waseda University in Japan in the 1940s, cooperated briefly with Korean independence activists, and married his first wife in 1944 before leaving her to preach.[1][2] Imprisoned multiple times by North Korean communists in the late 1940s for "disturbing the social order," he endured torture at the Hungnam labor camp until his 1950 release by UN forces during the Korean War; he then trekked south to Busan, building the church's first structure from discarded boxes.[1][2][3][4] A staunch anti-communist, he viewed the Cold War as a divine struggle, with Korea as the frontline.[1] In 1960, Moon married Hak Ja Han in a "Holy Marriage" ceremony, seen by followers as restoring humanity to God's lineage; they had 14 children.[2] He expanded globally, sending missionaries to Japan in 1958 and the US in 1959-1965, unifying groups there by 1971 amid controversies over recruitment and finances.[2][4][6] Notable ventures included sponsoring the 1982 film *Inchon* (a critical flop) and founding Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma soccer club in 1989, which won multiple South Korean titles before its record fell in 2020.[1] In 1991, he met North Korean leader Kim Il-sung, promoting reunification despite past imprisonment.[3][4] Moon positioned himself as the "Lord of the Second Advent," overseeing mass blessings for followers.[6] He died in 2012 at age 92; his wife and family lead the church and affiliates like the Universal Peace Federation today.[3]