As one of the most talked-about figures, Sun Myung Moon has built a significant fortune. Our team analyzed the latest data to provide a clear picture of their income.
What Was Sun Myung Moon's Net Worth?
Following his escape from Hungnam, Moon became a vehement anti-communist. Believing that the Cold War was the final battle between God (democracy) and Satan (communism), he founded the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity in Seoul in 1954. At his church, Moon spread conservative messages that emphasized Christian, family-based value systems. He went on to co-author with Hyo Won Eu the theological textbook for the movement, translated in English as "The Divine Principle of Exposition of the Divine Principle."
Among its many notable aspects, the Unification Church is particularly infamous for its "blessing ceremonies," mass wedding events during which thousands of couples are "married" all at once. Emphasizing conservative Christian morality, these ceremonies are intended to bring the participating couples into God's lineage while reasserting the central importance of the family as the key to peace on Earth.
(EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images)
Sun Myung Moon was born on January 6, 1920, in Chongju, North Pyongan Province, in what was then Japanese Korea. He was the younger of two sons in a farming family that comprised eight children in total. Initially followers of Confucianism, the family converted to Christianity when Moon was ten, and subsequently joined the Presbyterian Church. As a young adult, Moon studied electrical engineering at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan. In 1947, he was convicted by the government of North Korea of spying on behalf of South Korea; as a result, he was sentenced to five years in the Hungnam labor camp. When United Nations troops raided the camp during the Korean War in 1950, Moon managed to escape and flee to Busan, South Korea.
Through the Unification Church, Moon was heavily involved in both business and politics. Among his endeavors, he founded the Korean Culture and Freedom Foundation, the Professors World Peace Academy, the Little Angels Children's Folk Ballet of Korea, and the Universal Ballet. Moon also founded the South Korean organization Tongil Group, which facilitates business in the tourism, pharmaceuticals, and publishing sectors; and News World Communications, an international news media corporation that used to own the Washington Times.
In 1971, Moon relocated to the United States. The following year, he founded the International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences. In 1974, he drew significant backlash when he asked American members of the Unification Church to supportRichard Nixonduring the Watergate scandal by fasting and praying for the embattled president in front of the United States Capitol. Greater trouble came to Moon in 1982, when he was convicted of intentionally filing false federal income tax returns. Consequently, he was fined $15,000 and sentenced to 18 months in prison, 13 of which he ultimately served.
Other Political and Business Endeavors
Trouble in the United States
Sun Myung Moon was a Korean religious leader, businessman, and media mogul who had a net worth of $900 million at the time of his death in 2012. Sun Myung Moon was best known for founding the Unification movement and authoring its conservative theology of the "Divine Principle." In 1982, a decade after having moved to the United States, he was found guilty of deliberately filing false federal income tax returns and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Moon founded News World Communications, an international news media company that founded The Washington Times. He also founded Tongil Group, which is involved in manufacturing, tourism, publishing, and pharmaceuticals. Moon was a leading figure in the new wave religious movements of the 1960s and 1970s. His followers were called Moonies, and they considered Moon their "True Father." Some considered him a cult leader. Sun Myung Moon passed away on September 3, 2012, at 92 years old.
Ultimately, Sun Myung Moon's financial journey is a testament to their success.
Disclaimer: All net worth figures are estimates based on public data.
