Press Release: Thousands of couples set to take part in the Family Federation for World Peace and Unifications yearly mass wedding ceremony
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thousands of recently engaged couples from around the world are preparing to converge on South Korea to take part in a large joint marriage ceremony arranged by the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification. The ceremony will take place on Wednesday 24 April 2024 at the HJ Global Arts Centre in Cheong Pyeong in South Korea.
It’s expected around 2000 people from 34 different nations will be attending, with most coming from Japan and Korea in addition to 43 International couples. From Europe there are 22 individuals participating in the Blessing, along with 2 couples who will be blessed at private ceremonies in their home countries due to special circumstances. The represented countries from Europe include Ireland, UK, Hungary, Russia, Italy, Germany, Austria, Croatia, Albania, and Ukraine.
The Blessing ceremony has long been a signature feature of the FFWPU which was founded by Sun Myung Moon, also known as Father Moon in Korea in 1954. The mass weddings in previous years have been held in sports stadiums and up until his death in September 2012 was presided over by Father Moon. The weddings are still presided over by his wife, Hak Ja Han Moon (or Mother Moon.)
The church’s mass weddings began in the 1960’s with just a few dozen couples getting married, but this has grown over the following years to the ceremony it is today.
Dr Michael Balcomb, Director of Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (UK)
“We are delighted to see so many couples from around the world come together to be blessed in marriage. Despite the current projection that 42% of marriages in the UK will end in divorce, with the most common time of 4 to 8 years after marriage, less than 16% of couples who received the Blessing during that period ended up divorcing.
It is a proud tradition and we are thrilled so many young people still wish to take part in the mass wedding. It is a unique experience which shows the love and commitment to not only each other, but to making a better world as a whole.”
22 year old Aryan Rai is travelling to South Korea for the holy marriage blessing ceremony;
“I'm super excited to attend what we call the Blessing. It's an amazing feeling to be able to follow my parents' example and experience this incredible joy and purpose that comes from receiving God's grace in marriage. I'm delighted to celebrate with members across the globe who share my values and ideals. Getting Blessed in such a public manner reinforces our mission to be families that live for the sake of the world instead of just thinking about our happiness as a couple.
Despite there being so many people, the Blessing is an exceptionally personal experience. As second-generation members, my fiancée and I have been striving our whole lives towards fulfilling this common dream of forming a God-centred couple. My fiancée is my world, and it is humbling to know Alicia wants to give her whole heart to me, her future husband.”
Media Contact
For further information or to book an interview please contact Emma Rushton at Roseleigh Media on roseleighmedia@gmail.com and copy in pr@ffwpu.org.uk
Interviews are available both before and after the ceremony with Dr Michael Balcomb, Director of Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (UK), and with a requested case study. Short video clips and pictures can also be made available.
Notes for Editor
• The Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, previously known as the Unification Church was founded by Sun Myung Moon in Korea in 1954.
• It became known as The Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU) in 1997 and aimed to be a new broader based evolution of the Unification Community as an alliance of people who generally share the vision of building God-centred families as the basis for healthy communities, stable societies and a peaceful world.
• When Sun Myung Moon, the founder, was just 15, Jesus Christ revealed to him that the end of the age was fast approaching. Moon took the revelation to churches in Korea but they were dismissive. He gained a small group of followers and preaching in the Communist-held northern part of Korea resulted in his being thrown into a harsh labour camp. On his eventual release, he fled as a refugee to South Korea, where he met his wife, Hak Ja Han Moon (or Mother Moon.) The couple were married in 1960 and continued their public ministry together.
• The church’s mass weddings began in the 1960’s with just a few dozen couples getting married, but this has grown over the following years to the ceremony it is today.