A Parallel Life Story
Sun Myung Moon&Hak Ja Han Moon
One was born in 1920 in Japan-occupied Korea. The other in 1943, also in the North. Their lives ran on separate tracks for forty years — until April 1960. This is what each of them was doing at the same dates, drawn from their two autobiographies.
Rev. Sun Myung Moon
1920 – 2012
Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon
1943 – present
父
Rev. Sun Myung Moon
1920 – 2012 · Korea
"As a Peace-Loving Global Citizen"
母
Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon
1943 – present · Korea
"Mother of Peace"
Japan-occupied Korea
Korea had been under Japanese rule for ten years. A year earlier, the March 1st Movement had filled the streets with calls for independence.
Jan 6 (lunar) · Feb 25
Born in Sang-sa Ri, Jeong-ju
Second son of Kyung Yu Moon and Kyung Gye Kim, born into a Presbyterian-Christian farming family with deep roots in the independence movement.
The Moon family home in Sang-sa Ri, Pyong-an Province.
1920
He · 0She · —
Context
Her mother is six years old
Hong Soon-ae (b. 1914) is growing up near Anju, in a Korea where speaking Korean in school is becoming punishable.
Context
A 14-year-old boy in Jeong-ju
Already known as "Osan's Little Tiny-Eyes," stubborn, attached to the forest, distributing food to poor neighbors.
1934
He · 14She · —
Mar 5
Her parents marry
Han Seung-un (a teacher) and Hong Soon-ae wed. They will live mostly apart for the next nine years, each absorbed in their religious life.
Apr 21 (Easter)
Vision of Jesus on a Korean hillside
At age 16 (Korean counting), Jesus appears in prayer and gives him his "heavenly mission." He will spend the next nine years preparing in silence.
1982 painting by Shigeyoshi Watanabe of the Easter 1935 vision.
1935
He · 15She · —
Context
Not yet born
Her grandmother Jo Won-mo and mother Hong Soon-ae are part of the Holy Lord Church, a Korean revival movement that will later prophesy "the Lord will come from the East."
Mar 8
Graduates Kyeongsung Institute, Seoul
Third graduating class. He soon sails to Japan to study electrical engineering at Waseda Technical High School.
1941
He · 21She · —
Not yet born
World War II
The Pacific War is in its third year. Both Korea and the diaspora live under wartime emergency rule.
Sep 30
Graduates in Tokyo & returns to Korea
Crosses the war-torn straits back to Korea. He will later say his Japanese years were spent secretly helping the Korean independence underground.
1943
He · 23She · 0
Feb 10 · Jan 6 (lunar)
Born in Anju, South Pyong-an
Born at 4:30 a.m. at 26 Sineui-ri — the same lunar birthday as Rev. Moon (Jan 6, lunar). Her mother had waited nine years for her birth.
May 4
First marriage, to Sun Kil Choi
A wartime ceremony in Seoul. The marriage will not survive the upheavals of the next decade.
1944
He · 24She · 1
Context
1-year-old in Anju
Her great-aunt Kim Seong-do, founder of the Holy Lord Church and a key shaper of the family's spiritual life, has just died in police custody at age 61.
Liberation
On August 15, Korea is suddenly free of Japan — but immediately split at the 38th parallel between Soviet and American occupation zones.
Aug 15
Liberation Day
After 35 years of Japanese rule, Korea is freed. He soon travels north into Pyongyang and begins preaching.
1945
He · 25She · 2
Aug 15
A 2-year-old in newly liberated Korea
Her mother and grandmother offer prayers of thanksgiving — they will spend the next years searching for the prophesied Lord.
Aug 11
First imprisonment, Pyongyang
Rival ministers, suspicious of his teaching, write letters to the new Communist authorities. He is taken into custody.
1946
He · 26She · 3
Aug
Mother & grandmother travel to Pyongyang
Searching for the messianic figure their church had prophesied — they would not find him then.
Feb 22
Arrested again — sent to Heungnam
Sentenced to five years' hard labor in a North Korean fertilizer-plant prison camp. Few who entered Heungnam survived.
1948
He · 28She · 5
Autumn
Escape from North Korea
5-year-old Hak Ja Han is carried on her mother's back across the 38th parallel — a 200 km flight to the South under cover of night.
Korean War
The North invades on June 25. Within months, both their lives are upended again.
Oct 14
Liberated from Heungnam Prison
U.S. forces bomb Heungnam the night before his scheduled execution. The prison walls fall, the guards flee, and he walks out — two years, eight months after entering.
The U.S. bombardment of Heungnam that opened the prison gates.
1950
He · 30She · 7
Jun 27
War breaks out as her family flees Seoul
Under a gentle summer rain, the North Korean army advances on the capital. She is seven years old.
Jan 27
Arrives in Pusan (Busan)
After a 500-mile journey south on foot and by train, he builds a hut of mud and U.S. ration cartons on a hillside, and begins preaching.
The mud-and-cardboard church on the hillside of Pomil-dong, Busan.
1951
He · 31She · 8
Jan 4
Second flight from Seoul
Chinese forces drive the UN line back south. Her family is displaced again.
Context
Persecution reaches extremes in Pusan
Ministers from rival churches launch a campaign against his "heretical" group. He closes the hut and rents space.
1953
He · 33She · 10
Context
A 10-year-old refugee
Living in southern Korea, attending school as the war winds toward an armistice.
May 1
Founds the Unification Church
The Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity is established in the Seongdong district of Seoul. The name "Unification Church" was given by others.
1954
He · 34She · 11
Context
Moves to Jeju Island with mother
Her mother's search for the prophesied teacher continues. They live a quiet refugee life on the southern island.
Jul 4
Police raid Chung Bu station; jailed
Charged with draft evasion. The case sweeps up four other church leaders.
Oct 4
Released and acquitted
1955
He · 35She · 12
Feb
Returns to Seoul from Jeju
Her mother and grandmother bring 12-year-old Hak Ja Han to the capital.
Dec 15
Mother finds the Cheongpa-dong church
After a decade of searching, her mother finally meets Rev. Moon. She joins his small church almost immediately.
Jul
First missionary sent to Japan
Bong Choon Choi crosses the Korea Strait to start the Japan mission.
1958
He · 38She · 15
Context
A 15-year-old church member
Already noticed by senior members for her quiet sincerity. Her mother is now a leading figure in the small church.
Jan
First U.S. missionary
Young Oon Kim sails to America. The church now has missions in Korea, Japan, and the U.S.
Helping members plant rice in Yamok, Kyeonggi Province, spring 1959.
1959
He · 39She · 16
Spring
Enters St. Joseph's Nursing School
16-year-old Hak Ja Han begins training in Seoul. She will not graduate — within a year, Rev. Moon will ask her to marry him.
Hak Ja Han (left) with classmates at St. Joseph's Nursing School.
The Holy Wedding
After forty years of separate lives — twenty-three of his, seventeen of hers — they meet in February and marry in April. From this point forward, almost every event is shared.
Mar 27
Engagement to Hak Ja Han
Engaged at 4 a.m. on the first day of the third lunar month. He sets no wedding date — he simply calls her two weeks later.
Apr 11
Holy Wedding
A two-part ceremony — western attire, then Korean traditional dress — at the Cheongpa-dong church. The Blessing becomes the centerpiece of his ministry from this day on.
The Holy Wedding, April 11, 1960 — western ceremony.
1960
He · 40She · 17
Feb 26
Meets her future husband
First meets Rev. Moon as winter withdraws. He asks her mother's permission soon after.
Apr 11
Holy Wedding at age 17
She leaves nursing school for a public, often-criticized life of ministry. She would later say the night before, she dreamed.
The Korean ceremony — second part of the April 11, 1960 wedding.
Context
Cheongpa-dong HQ property restored
A former Japanese army site is purchased for 720,000 won. The church now has a permanent home.
1962
He · 42She · 19
May 5
Little Angels of Korea founded
On Children's Day, Mother Moon helps launch the children's dance troupe that will later perform for Queen Elizabeth II and the UN General Assembly.
—
First world tour — 40 countries
"My suitcase was packed for the first time…" Visited Jerusalem before the Six Day War, climbed 40 holy mountains, established a global mission network.
1965
He · 45She · 22
Autumn
Little Angels' first overseas tour
The children's dance troupe performs in the U.S. and gives a celebrated concert at Gettysburg.
—
Second world tour
Japan's membership had grown enormously. Toured the major universities of Czechoslovakia and the Soviet bloc, sowing the seeds of the later "Butterfly" underground missionaries.
1969
He · 49She · 26
—
First trip across the ocean to Japan
The beginning of Mother Moon's independent international ministry — leaving the young children behind in Korea.
America Years
The family moves to the United States. They will spend the next 14 years based at Belvedere in Tarrytown, New York.
End of year
Moved his ministry to the United States
Said America was "in moral decline" and that he came as a "fireman." Settled at Belvedere.
1971
He · 51She · 28
Dec
Arrived in America with the children
Joins her husband at Belvedere. The Moons would live in the U.S. for the next decade and a half.
Oct 1
Day of Hope tour begins at Carnegie Hall
First stop of a 21-city U.S. speaking tour (concluded January 29, 1974).
The Day of Hope tour: "Christianity in Crisis — New Hope."
1973
He · 53She · 30
Context
Raising the children at Belvedere
A mother of seven by this point, and visibly pregnant with her eighth, while her husband tours the country.
Feb 1
Meets Nixon at the White House
At the height of Watergate, Rev. Moon publicly says "forgive, love, unite." The visit makes him a household name — and a controversial one.
With President Richard Nixon, White House, February 1, 1974.
Sep 18
Madison Square Garden rally
Fills MSG for the "New Future of Christianity" rally.
1974
He · 54She · 31
Sep 18
Onstage at Madison Square Garden
Public partner in the U.S. ministry — the role she will inherit a decade later, alone.
Jun 7
World Rally for Korean Freedom, Yoido Plaza
A vast anti-communist rally in Seoul — over a million attendees.
Sep
Founds Unification Theological Seminary
In Barrytown, upstate New York — Catholic, Protestant and Jewish faculty side by side.
1975
He · 55She · 32
—
Dispatches missionaries to 120 nations
Three missionaries per country — a defining cohort, called the "1975 generation," sent in groups of Japanese, German, and American volunteers.
U.S. Bicentennial
Two massive rallies bracket the bicentennial year — Yankee Stadium in June, the Washington Monument in September.
Jun 1
Yankee Stadium "God Bless America" rally
45,000+ in the stands. Said the Statue of Liberty wept when she saw the moral decline of America.
Sep 18
Washington Monument rally
Roughly 300,000 attend on the National Mall. Newsweek lists it among the major events of 1976.
Aerial view of the crowd at the Washington Monument, Sept 18, 1976.
1976
He · 56She · 33
Apr–May
Leads the worldwide membership in prayer
Coordinates the global devotion that prepared the way for both rallies.
May 17
Founds The Washington Times
After The Washington Star folds, he launches a new conservative daily in the U.S. capital.
May 18
Convicted in U.S. federal tax case
Accused of not paying $7,500 in taxes on church interest income. The sentence is later upheld by the Supreme Court.
Oct 14
6,000-couple Blessing at Jamsil Gym, Seoul
Marriage Blessings become the public centerpiece of his ministry.
1982
He · 62She · 39
Oct 14
Co-officiates the 6,000-couple Blessing
"I accomplished one of my promises to Heaven," she would later write.
Nov 24–27
12th ICUS, Chicago
Hosts the International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences.
Context
Death of eldest son Heung Jin
Killed in a car accident in Connecticut at age 17. The first family tragedy of many.
1983
He · 63She · 40
—
In Kwangju at the Victory Rally when she hears
Receives the news of her son's fatal crash from across the world.
Jul 20
Imprisoned at Danbury, Connecticut
Begins an 18-month sentence at FCI Danbury. Members protest worldwide; the U.S. government calls it a routine tax case.
1984
He · 64She · 41
Jul 20
"A day I wish I could erase from history"
She takes over most of her husband's public duties for the year-plus he is incarcerated.
Sep 2
Co-hosts 13th ICUS in Washington, DC
Steps fully into the role of international convenor.
Aug 20
Released from Danbury
13 months after entering, he returns to lead the movement.
1985
He · 65She · 42
Aug 13–17
2nd Professors World Peace Academy
Convenes scholars from across the Cold War divide.
Oct 30
6,500-couple International Blessing
Pioneering Korean–Japanese intermarriage as reconciliation. The Summer Olympics open in Seoul the same month.
A large indoor Blessing Ceremony in Korea, late 1980s.
1988
He · 68She · 45
Oct 30
Co-officiates the 6,500-couple Blessing
A model marriage between former enemies — Korea and Japan.
Feb 1
Founds Segye Ilbo daily, Seoul
Korean-language counterpart to The Washington Times.
Visiting a precision machine shop in Germany, 1989.
1989
He · 69She · 46
Nov 3
Travels through East Germany
On the eve of the Berlin Wall's fall — six days before it comes down.
Cold War Ends
After spending years funding anti-communist work in the U.S. and helping Eastern European underground churches, the Moons meet the man who let the Soviet Union dissolve.
Apr
Meets Mikhail Gorbachev in Moscow
At the World Media Conference inside the Kremlin. Asks for "freedom of religion in the Soviet Union."
With Mikhail and Raisa Gorbachev — Moscow, then again in Seoul.
Sep 30
South Korea–USSR establish diplomatic relations
A goal he had publicly pushed for years.
1990
He · 70She · 47
Apr 9
Beside Gorbachev at the World Media Conference
Present at every meeting.
Spring
Little Angels perform in Moscow
The first Korean cultural troupe to perform in the Soviet capital.
Dec 6
Meets Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang
Risked his life by entering the country that had once tried to execute him. They discussed nuclear weapons, family reunions, and the peace of the peninsula.
With Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang, December 1991.
1991
He · 71She · 48
Dec 6
Returns to her homeland for the first time
Steps onto North Korean soil for the first time since fleeing as a 5-year-old in 1948.
Context
Washington Times 10th anniversary
The U.S. paper had become a Washington fixture.
1992
He · 72She · 49
Apr 10
Founds the Women's Federation for World Peace (WFWP)
150,000 attend the inaugural rally at Seoul's Olympic Stadium. The start of Mother Moon's own global organisation.
Sep 24
113-city world speaking tour
Speaks at 113 locations in a single global tour — declaring the "Age of the Mother."
Mar 24
Hosts Gorbachev again — this time in Seoul
Reception for Mikhail and Raisa Gorbachev at the Little Angels Performing Arts Center.
Jul 8
Death of Kim Il Sung
The North Korean leader dies; the peninsula enters a fragile new phase.
1994
He · 74She · 51
Jul
Founds the Youth Federation for World Peace
Launches YFWP in Washington, DC.
—
Creates Aewon charity in Korea
A "garden of love" for service projects nationwide.
Context
Continuing the global circuit
Speaking, meeting heads of state, expanding the family of "Federation" organisations.
1995
He · 75She · 52
Sep 13
Meets George and Barbara Bush
The Bushes spoke at WFWP events that year and the next.
Nov 18
Visits a social welfare center in Accra, Ghana
Part of a 17-nation Latin America and Africa tour the same year.
Age 76 — no recorded event this year
1996
He · 76She · 53
Autumn
Travels to Bolivia
An experience she would later describe as transformative for her South America ministry.
Aug
King salmon fishing in Kodiak, Alaska
Said the future of the world lay in the oceans. Spent summers fishing with members and training them in seamanship.
Kodiak, Alaska, August 1998 — fourth from left.
1998
He · 78She · 55
Context
Little Angels perform in Pyongyang
The first purely private South Korean cultural delegation to perform in North Korea.
New Millennium
A new century, and a new project: he proposes a religious assembly inside the United Nations.
—
Proposes a religious assembly at the UN
In Manhattan, announces a vision for an inter-religious council inside the United Nations.
2000
He · 80She · 57
Age 57 — no recorded event this year
Sep 11
"Utter horror" at the World Trade Center attack
Said the day exposed how religion can be weaponised — redoubled his interfaith work.
2001
He · 81She · 58
Age 58 — no recorded event this year
Jun 4
Pelé visits the Moons in Hannam-Dong
The Brazilian football legend pays a courtesy visit. The Moons would later sponsor international youth tournaments.
Pelé visits Hannam-Dong, June 4, 2002.
2002
He · 82She · 59
Age 59 — no recorded event this year
May 19
Asks Christians to de-emphasize the cross
Part of the Middle East Peace Initiative — a stunning ask for a Christian-rooted movement.
Dec 22
Multi-faith Middle East summit
Christians, Muslims, Jews and others gather under one banner of peace.
2003
He · 83She · 60
May
ACLC clergy march at the Field of Blood, Jerusalem
A symbolic burial of the cross.
Aug 5
Opens the World Peace Center in Pyongyang
The North Korea opening grows out of the 1991 Kim Il Sung dialogue.
Sep 23
Addresses delegates from 194 nations
Manhattan Center, New York — the UN-reform vision in concrete form.
2007
He · 87She · 64
Age 64 — no recorded event this year
—
Survives a helicopter crash
The helicopter goes down suddenly near Cheongpyeong. He walks away.
2008
He · 88She · 65
Age 65 — no recorded event this year
Mar 1
Signs the foreword of his autobiography
"As a Peace-Loving Global Citizen," written at Cheongpyeong at age 89.
Family portrait, January 1, 2009 — even this does not include everyone.
2009
He · 89She · 66
Age 66 — no recorded event this year
Ascension
After a sudden chest illness, he passes away on September 3. From this moment, Mother Moon leads the global movement alone.
Aug 12
Discharged from hospital
Returns home from a severe chest cold. His wife and family are at his side.
Sep 3
Ascends at age 93
Laid to rest at Bonhyangwon on Mount Cheonseong. The seonghwa marks the end of an era.
2012
He · 92She · 69
Sep 3
Becomes the sole leader of the movement
Inherits the global ministry — and the Vision 2020 timetable her husband had set for it.
Age 95 — no recorded event this year
2015
He · 95She · 72
Aug 28
Inaugural Sunhak Peace Prize
Established to honor those expanding peace for future generations — laureates include Anote Tong and Modadugu Vijay Gupta.
Age 96 — no recorded event this year
2016
He · 96She · 73
Jun
40th anniversary of the Yankee Stadium Rally
Returns to Belvedere for a reunion — many participants are now grandparents.
Nov 30
Founds the International Association of Parliamentarians for Peace
IAPP launches with U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch and lawmakers from dozens of nations.
Age 97 — no recorded event this year
2017
He · 97She · 74
Feb 3
2nd Sunhak Peace Prize
Awarded to Dr. Sakena Yacoobi and Dr. Gino Strada.
Age 98 — no recorded event this year
2018
He · 98She · 75
Jan 18
First Africa Summit, Dakar, Senegal
Hosts heads of state from across Africa at the Abdou Diouf Conference Center.
Jan 19
Visits the Door of No Return, Gorée Island
A pilgrimage to the historic slave-trade departure point.
Age 99 — no recorded event this year
2019
He · 99She · 76
Jun 7
Africa Blessing Festival, Orlando Stadium, Soweto
On the eve of a major Blessing — visiting the site of the 1976 student uprising.
Aug 11
Dedicates the HJ International Cultural Center
A new home for the movement's cultural work in Korea.
Nov 19
Asia Pacific Summit opens in Cambodia
Begins a 40-day course of summits across Asia and Africa.
Dec 7
Marriage Blessing in Palau
Wraps the year-long global Vision 2020 campaign.
Age 100 — no recorded event this year
2020
He · 100She · 77
Feb
Signs the preface of "Mother of Peace"
Her autobiography is published — seven years after her husband's ascension, and the last 40 days of 2019 having tested her health.
Every entry is drawn from As a Peace-Loving Global Citizen (2009) and Mother of Peace (2020). Photos extracted from the two PDFs.