Unification Church

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Guy Lived Rent-Free in NYC Hotel for 5 Years, Then Took It Too Far

Prosecutors say Mickey Barreto tried to claim ownership of entire New Yorker Hotel building

(Newser) - For five years, a New York City man managed to live rent-free in a landmark Manhattan hotel by exploiting an obscure local housing law. But prosecutors this week said Mickey Barreto went too far when he filed paperwork claiming ownership of the entire New Yorker Hotel—and tried to charge...

Japan Weighs Moving Against Unification Church

Government is investigating fundraising activities

(Newser) - Japan's government, which is investigating the Unification Church's fundraising practices in light of the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, is considering going to court to have the church dissolved if the evidence gathered is convincing. A Japanese newspaper, the Asahi Shimbun, reported that government officials said...

Unification Church May Be Source of Suspect's Grudge

Mother of man held in Abe's killing is a member

(Newser) - The Unification Church confirmed Monday that the mother of the man accused of killing Shinzo Abe is a member, raising the possibility that it's the organization against which the suspect held a grudge. Japanese police have said the suspect told them he was motivated by a grudge against a...

The Ballet School Was Missing $1.5M. The Story Gets Stranger

A convicted embezzler is again at the center of a financial mess

(Newser) - They gave her a second chance. Bad idea, perhaps. The New York Times reports on the financial mess the elite Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, DC, finds itself in: As the paper puts it, the school is "recovering from one of the bigger embezzlement scandals in the history...

More Details Emerge in Dutch Farmhouse Mystery

Father charged with 'deprivation of liberty'

(Newser) - A second suspect has been arrested in the baffling case of a family kept in a farmhouse in the Netherlands for nine years—and he's part of the family. The 67-year-old father was arrested Thursday and faces charges of deprivation of liberty, abuse, and money laundering, Deutsche Welle reports....

With Bullet Crowns and AR-15s, Church Ceremony Riles Town

Offshoot of Unification Church slammed by locals for 'scary' event

(Newser) - Worshippers wearing crowns made of bullets clutched AR-15 rifles, drank holy wine, and exchanged or renewed wedding vows in a commitment ceremony at a Pennsylvania church Wednesday, prompting a nearby school to cancel classes. With state police and a smattering of protesters standing watch outside the church, brides clad in...

3,500 Moonie Couples Get Hitched

First mass wedding since death of church founder

(Newser) - They definitely do: The Moonies have staged their annual mass wedding, joining some 3,500 couples in matrimony in a South Korea stadium, reports Sky News . The group nuptials were the first since the death of Unification Church founder Rev. Sun Myung Moon in September, and were presided over by...

Unification Church Founder Rev. Moon Dead at 92

Sun Myung Moon died at a hospital owned by his church

(Newser) - The Rev. Sun Myung Moon, the self-proclaimed messiah who turned his Unification Church into a worldwide religious movement and befriended North Korean leaders as well as U.S. presidents, has died, church officials said Monday. He was 92. Moon died Monday at a church-owned hospital near his home in Gapyeong,...

Rev. Moon Hurt in Copter Crash
 Rev. Moon Hurt in Copter Crash 
Jul 19, 2008 10:05 AM CDT

Rev. Moon Hurt in Copter Crash

Founder of Unification Church, 88, apparently has only slight injuries

(Newser) - The Rev. Sun Myung Moon, founder of the Unification Church and leader of the so-called Moonies, was among 16 people injured today after his helicopter crashed and burst into flames in South Korea, the BBC reports. The controversial religious leader—traveling with his wife, 11 family members and three crew...

Moonie Scion Is Gun Magnate
Moonie Scion
Is Gun Magnate
Sep 22, 2007 3:20 PM CDT

Moonie Scion Is Gun Magnate

Reverend’s son Justin has built a lethal—and godly— weapons business

(Newser) - The son of aging messianic leader Reverend Sun Myung Moon is the frontrunner to take over the Unification Church. Meantime, he’s built Kahr Arms—which makes some of the smallest and most lethal guns. One of 13 children, young Justin Moon was encouraged to be violent, Portfolio reports, and...

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