IS MOON FEELING BLUE?

A minister in Japan with the Protestant,  United Church of Christ, late in 2001 received a special award.

The Nagoya Bar Association awarded the Human Rights Award, begun in 1989, to 53-year-old Rev.  Makoto Sugimoto.  The Association presented the award to Rev. Sugimoto in recognition of his work in helping over 350 people to leave Sun Myung Moon’s Unification Church (Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity also known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification - see TACL Nov/Dec 1997) over a 14 year period.

Rev. Sugimoto acknowledged acceptance of the award: ‘I accept this award on behalf of all others who are doing the same work as me.’

When Rev. Sugimoto began to speak on the manipulative practices of cultic groups in 1987 he began to receive a variety of threats in an effort to silence him.  As a result of this the media exposed what was happening and he began to receive requests for help and information regarding cult groups in Japan.

Those who threatened Rev. Sugimoto now probably wished that they had left him well alone.