Rev. Sun Myung Moon
As a Peace-loving Global Citizen is the autobiography of Rev. Sun Myung Moon, the founder of the Unification Movement. It was published in 2009 in both Korean and English by Gimm-Young Publishers of Seoul, South Korea. The book was released in South Korea on March 9, 2009 and debuted at #3 on the Businesss bestseller's list. It has ranked in various bestseller lists since then and was ranked 15th on the General bestseller's list as of October 14, 2009.
Great Opportunity in the Oceanic Era
I have visited Korea’s southern coast many times in an e"ort to #nd the place that could become the center of a Paci#c civilization, and I believe that Yeosu and Sooncheon are suited to the task. !e sea o" the coast of Yeosu is tranquil, clear, and mirrorlike. It is where Admiral Yi Soon Shin dealt the Japanese a heavy defeat in the late 1600s, and it is also where he died in battle. Yeosu has a great history of sea battles, and it is also the point where the Youngnam and Honam regions meet. It is at the end of the foothills of Mount Jiri, where le.ists and rightists fought each other following the Korean War. In this sense, it is a land imbued with the pain of our people. Sooncheon Bay, famous for its reed beds, has a beautiful and world-famous ria coast. Out on the sea there, with its clear waters that shimmer in the sunlight, we can catch many di"erent types of #sh. Abalone and brown seaweed grow in the tranquil waters of the bay. !e large tidal $ats are #lled with cockles and other types of shell#sh and small octopus. I have been out on the seas in that area and also climbed the mountains, and it is clear that this is a beautiful land that has everything necessary for the coming Pacific age.
I am now developing Korea’s southern coast, with the focus on Yeosu. As a part of the preparations for this, I have been to Geomun Island and other islands in the area and lived there for several months. I consider people who live there, farming and fishing for the past several decades, to be my teachers. I ate and slept in humble inns as I studied everything in detail. I didn’t just study books. I went everywhere, using my eyes and feet to check everything. As a result, I now know what kinds of fish can be found in what area of the ocean, what kind of net needs to be used to catch them, what kinds of trees grow in the mountains, and which home on the island has an old man living alone after having suffered a stroke.
The day I finished my studies of the southern coast I took the village mayor, who had been helping me, on an airplane to Alaska. He had taught me everything he knew, so I wanted to return the favor by teaching him what I knew about Alaska. I went fishing with him in Alaska and told him about the different kinds of fish and how they can be caught. Even if I know only a little about something, I don’t feel comfortable unless I share it with others.
