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- This is a Korean name; the family name is Pak.
| Bo Hi Pak | |
|---|---|
| Hangul | 박보희 |
| Hanja | 朴普熙 |
| Revised Romanization | Bak Bohui |
| McCune–Reischauer | Pak Pohŭi |
Bo Hi Pak (born August 18, 1930, Korean: 박보희/朴普熙) is a prominent member of the Unification Church. He was a South Korean military officer when he joined the church in the 1950s. During the 1970s and 1980s, he served church founder Sun Myung Moon as his main English interpreter during speaking tours in the United States. He also ran several church-related projects, such as the Korean Folk Ballet; newspapers (notably the Washington Times), and the anti-communist organization, CAUSA International.
Some in the media dubbed him Moon's "right hand man",[1] (or similarly).[2] In Frederick Sontag's book, Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church, he called himself Rev. Moon's "left hand man".[page needed] He was appointed as president of the Unification Church International[clarification needed] from 1977 until 1991.[3]
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Publishing
He was the central figure in Moon's publishing businesses, including founding President and Publisher, the News World (later renamed New York City Tribune); founding President and Chairman of the Board, the Washington Times Corporation; and President, World Media Association.[3]
Fraser committee
In 1977/1978, Pak testified before the Fraser Committee in its investigation of the Unification Church. In response to the adversarial investigation, Pak wrote Truth is My Sword. Alexander Haig commented in the introduction: "From the battlefield of the Korean peninsula to the halls of the U.S. Congress, Dr. Pak's speeches mirror the convictions of an individual whose ardent sense of justice has always been the cornerstone of his advocacy of personal freedom and democracy."[4]
Severe beating by church member
In 1987 at a church gathering, a Zimbabwean Unification Church member known as the
North Korea
In 1994, Pak visited North Korea to attend the funeral of President Kim Il Sung, risking legal trouble by the South Korean government in doing so. In 1998 he visited again, leading a trade delegation representing Unification Church interests with the blessing of the South Korean government.[7]
Messiah (book)
In 2002, Pak published his book Messiah: My Testimony to the Reverend Sun Myung Moon,[8] which described Pak's forty year association with Rev. Moon, the Unification Church and his tenure at the Washington Times. Writing for the Unification Church, reviewer Paul Gottfried describes Pak's role as co-founder of the Washington Times:
- "Pak and the Reverend Moon had been eying Reagan as an American national leader from the mid-seventies on. What appealed to them about this figure was his unwavering anti-Communism; and in 1980, the Reverend Moon prodded News World into announcing Reagan's electoral victory on its front cover before the returns were in."[self-published source?]
Financial and legal trouble
On July 20, 2004 the Eastern Seoul District Prosecutor imprisoned Dr. Pak and charged him with financial fraud because he was unable to repay his debts to Korean businessmen.[9]
On August 17, 2005, Dr. Pak's daughter-in-law (Rev. Moon's second daughter), InJin Moon, wrote an open letter to members of the Unification Church to raise money to get him released. In the letter she wrote:[self-published source?]
As a daughter of Rev. Moon, moreover, I cannot sit quietly and watch the world belittle my father as a callous and an uncaring person. Ever since the first news break on Dr. Pak's situation, I have been bombarded with questions and looks of disbelief from numerous friends and associates who see my father as a man without principles for letting a loyal follower, a friend, and a member of the Reverend's family through marriage, sit and rot away in prison. They ask why my father cannot find it in himself to forgive and help his in-law. They ask why my father allows certain individuals to advise his every move to the detriment of the very religion he has founded. They say that my father is an insecure man destroying the very visible disciple who helped him, along with other faithful followers, build the church. They ask why Dr. Pak is denied the hope of forgiveness and deliverance. They ask why millions are raised and spent on the promise of buying one's salvation with no regard for thinking beyond one's immediate family and lineage. They ridicule our church's feeding frenzy in wanting to liberate ancestors when one of our Elders is trapped in prison in need of immediate and desperate liberation[10]
In 2006, Pak was released on probation after serving 2 years and 3 ½ months. On November 6, 2006, he sent a letter to be distributed by Unification Church publications worldwide to give an account of his experiences in prison. In the letter he wrote:
Being able to live to the age of 76 was already a great blessing, but in my physical condition, I could not conceive how I would be able to serve time in prison until I became 81. I thought of John the Baptist 2000 years ago. He came with the mission to bear witness about Jesus but ended up dying in prison. I, Bo Hi, have lived with the conviction that I was born with the mission of John the Baptist for the time of the Second Advent. If it was my mission and destiny to die in prison in order to indemnify the failure of the first John the Baptist, then I was resolutely determined to solemnly receive my fate.[11]
Notes
- ^ "Moon and his ballet stars", by Robert Black, The Telegraph, October 26, 2000.
- ^ such as "Moon's top deputy". "Church Spends Millions On Its Image" by Michael Isikoff, Washington Post, September 17, 1984; Page A01.
- ^ a b Appendix B: Brief Chronology of the Life of Dr. Bo Hi Pak, in Messiah: My Testimony to Rev. Sun Myung Moon, Vol I by Bo Hi Pak (2000), Lanham, MD: University Press of America.
- 1973 Principal, the Little Angels Arts School, Seoul, Korea.
- 1974 Principal evangelist and director general of the Sun Myung Moon Christian Crusade.
- 1976-1988 Chairman, Sun-Hwa Educational Foundation, Seoul, Korea.
- 1976-1990 President and publisher, the News World daily newspaper in New York City (later renamed New York City Tribune).
- 1977-1991 President, Unification Church International.
- 1977-Present Member of the Board, Unification Church International.
- 1978-1995 President, World Media Association.
- 1980-1992 President and Publisher. Noticias Del Muudo, New York Spanish-language daily newspaper.
- 1981-Present President, CAUSA International.
- 1982-1992 President, the Washington Times Corporation. (The Washington Times daily newspaper and Insight on the News weekly magazine, and World & I monthly academic journal
- 1982-1997 Chairman of the Board, the Washington Times Corporation.
- 1983-1997 Chairman, Association for the Unity of Latin America.
- 1986-Present President, Universal Ballet Foundation, corporate sponsors of the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, D.C.
- 1987-1997 President, Summit Council for World Peace.
- 1990-Present Chairman of the hoard and chief executive officer, Panda Motors Corporation in the United States, Hong Kong, and China.
- 1991-1994 President and publisher, Seyge Ilbo daily newspaper, Seoul, Korea.
- ^ Introduction, Truth Is My Sword Volume I: Collected Speeches in the Public Arena by Bo Hi Pak
- ^ Hong, Nansook. (1998). In the Shadow of the Moons: My Life in the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Family. Little, Brown. (ISBN 0-316-34816-3)
- ^ Theological Uproar in Unification Church; Rev. Moon Recognizes Zimbabwean as His Reincarnated Son by Michael Isikoff, Washington Post staff writer. Accessed Saturday, August 19, 2006.
- ^ Reverend Moon's Group Wants to Talk Investment: Seoul Nods At Church's Foray North Kirk, Don International Herald Tribune 1999-06-02]
- ^ Review by Paul Gottfried, Messiah, Volumes I and II (2002) by Bo Hi Pak; University Press of America.
- ^ case background
- ^ InJin Nim's Letter to Members at the Internet Archive
- ^ "Letter from Prison"
External links
- Book by James Gavin
- Messiah, a book about Sun Myung Moon by Bo Hi Pak
- Open letter to members of the Unification Church by InJin Moon
- Letter to Unification Church publications by Bo Hi Pak
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