New York, USA - "Have you heard about the peace generation?" the Lovin' Life Band asked delegates from 60 nations to the World Assembly of the Universal Peace Federation that opened November 21 at the New Yorker Hotel in Manhattan.
People of all ages exchanging business cards during the banquet at the Crystal Ballroom seemed to catch the spirit of a peace generation. Active in national UPF chapters, they had come to New York to network with each other and build momentum towards one family under God.
Dr. Bong Ho Kim, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Korea, expressed respect for the leaders in many fields who are working for peace. "At the recent G-20 Summit in Korea," he reported, "we heard that the economic challenges of our time cannot be solved by countries working on their own but only through cooperation with each other." He emphasized the importance of transcending nationality, ideology, and religion for the sake of peace.
In the 1980s, Japan was a world leader in many fields, but it has been declining. "Japan has had zero economic growth for the past 20 years," said Professor Masahisa Hayashi, an economist at Waseda University in Japan. His gave examples of declining economic vitality, entrepreneurship, and innovation of products and methodology. Of greater concern, however, is a serious lack of leadership. That's what appeals to him about Rev. Sun Myung Moon and the organizations he has founded.
"I appreciate the clear vision and firm religious commitment of UPF's Founder to one family under God," he concluded. Rev. Moon was the featured speaker at the main event of the Assembly November 22.
According to Dr. Chang Shik Yang, regional chair of UPF-USA, this is the first of three programs within the next ten days. This Assembly in New York and the succeeding ones in Las Vegas (November 27) and Seoul, Korea (December 4) are closing the year with a vision of
"God is Good," the Lovin' Life band sang in English, Spanish, Japanese, and Korean to an audience that included Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Sikhs and people of other faiths. The spirit of good will and brotherhood around the dinner tables were a sampling of one family under God.