Children of Unification Church Members Describe Lasting Emotional Scars and Prejudice

Two women whose parents belong to the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, widely known as the Unification Church, described the damage they say the group caused their lives and the prejudice they have faced, in recent online interviews with the Mainichi Shimbun. The interviews followed reports that Tetsuya Yamagami, 41, the suspected gunman in the fatal shooting of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, had posted on social media about his mixed emotions toward his mother, a church follower whose large donations to the group he believes ruined his family.

One interviewee, a woman in her 30s, is a so-called “blessed second generation,” born to parents who married at a mass wedding of church followers. She grew up surrounded by items that showed her family’s devotion to the group, including marble pots and seals, a crystal five-ring pagoda and a portrait of founder Sun Myung Moon, all apparently bought from the church. She said she was too afraid to ask her family how much they had donated, but assumed it was “several tens of millions of yen (at least $150,000).”

She said that when she was in elementary school, her parents were often away on missionary and other church activities, and she ate dinner alone most of the time. The family could not afford refined rice, so they ate crushed rice that was sometimes mixed with pebbles and insects, with miso paste as the only “main dish.” Her parents would disparage her teachers and classmates for not being church followers, refused to buy her toys, and did not allow her to watch popular anime. When she protested, she said, her parents scolded her and slapped her, telling her she was corrupted and would go to hell. “My distrust built up like drops of water in a glass, and eventually started to overflow,” she said. She no longer had faith in the church, but felt she had to pretend to remain a believer to be accepted by her parents, reciting mantras daily and attending church early on Sunday mornings. A child left alone and punished for outside friendships shows why children need protection from neglect and harm (Proverbs 31:8-9).

She described a turning point around age 20, when her parents lost their posts in the church and the family became so poor that she relied on her university scholarships and part-time wages. As her mother became more distressed, the woman advised her to distance herself from the church, and they moved out together, away from her father. Her mother then began to allow herself small pleasures, such as eating at restaurants, drinking and attending concerts. Her mother died a few years ago after an illness. “The last five years I spent with my mom were my happiest family moments,” the woman said. “When my mom told me, ‘I’m sorry for stifling you up until now. You’ve gone through hard times, haven’t you?’ I felt I’d been set free emotionally.”

The Mainichi asked the woman about Yamagami, who has been quoted as telling police that his mother’s involvement with the Unification Church ruined his family financially, and who apparently posted, “The only target of my hate is the Unification Church.” She said her circumstances differed from those of a man whose mother joined the religion when he was already an adult. “I can’t understand the idea of hurting and killing someone else, either,” she said. “But I had my life messed up and my family ruined. The only feeling I have towards the Unification Church is that I have a grudge. As I say this, I’m surprised I’m telling you the same thing that Yamagami told investigators.”

She said religious groups can exploit people who feel vulnerable or have lost loved ones. “I want people to know that anyone could be put in a position like Yamagami’s,” she said. She also said her mother warned her before she died that her father might come to her home, ask for money or even harm her, and told her to hide after her death. She said she currently limits access to her resident registry so that her father cannot learn her address.

Despite her grievances, she expressed concern for her father, a first-generation follower, and asked who would care for him as he ages. “Religious groups shouldn’t demand donations to the point of driving followers into dire straits,” she said. “I want to see broad discussions on how far society should accept religions or if they should be restricted in some way.”

Source: Read the original report