Sun Myung Moon
November 3, 1989
Opening ceremony for Seonghwa University
Chonan, Korea
True Parents pose with faculty and staff of the university. Dr. Yoon is standing immediately to Father's right.
I would like to express my appreciation to all our honored guests for attending this dedication ceremony of Seunghwa University. I congratulate President Yoon Se Won, the teaching staff, parents, students and all those who put their effort and hard work into building this university and making today's ceremony possible.
Seonghwa University was established in Chonan land in Chung Chong Do province. "Chung Chong Do" means human beings should have loyal hearts toward heaven and live purely. In this place mankind can attend and comfort heaven's heart.
"Chonan" means "three-way junction." Our church members often sing a folk song containing these words. We can view the birth of Seonghwa University as the realization of our long cherished desire. Just as the song expresses, Seonghwa University will expand infinitely toward the world.
My understanding of a university's purpose is to teach the utmost truth. What is this truth? First, you have to know heaven and God, the center of heaven, deeply. Second, you have to understand the center of the world, mankind, in depth. Third, the ideal world of God and man must be established. When we think about such big and important goals, especially how to relate to each other, we can conclude that love is the only key. Therefore, I have decided the goal of education here is to "love heaven, love people and love country." I have taught that true education practices these goals and have formed professors' and students' associations around the world.
Foundation Principle -- Love Heaven, Love People, Love Country.
Right now Korea, as well as the whole world, is in a state of confusion due to the decline of individual moral values. To help solve this worldwide dilemma, I have advocated to world scholars absolute values centered on love. I have also proclaimed the Headwing ideology to correct the wrongs of left and right. Through this type of education, the world is being directed toward the new goal of a world with God- centered values.
Professors associated with PWPA and ICUS over the last ten years, as well as students in CARP, requested that a world university be built in our homeland of Korea to fulfill this educational ideology. Therefore I have been trying very hard to establish a university for more than 10 years. After much suffering, we have now obtained permission from the Korean government to expand to a four-year university.
Now Seonghwa University, established with the educational goal to "love heaven, love people, love country," will become a world level university to thoroughly educate its students in how to remedy the evils of the democratic world, to critique and overcome the fallacies in communist ideology and to cultivate world-level leaders.
Thus, our homeland of Korea will produce world leaders who can realize a world of unity and peace, creating Heaven on earth. In addition, the unification of our homeland centering on Godism will digest the cultural differences of East and West, rich and poor, and North and South. Centering on love, we will build one peaceful world family.
You all now stand in the forefront of this great goal with hope and determination. I pray that with such national encouragement and support, Seonghwa University will leap into the world.
May God bless your families. Thank you.
The Purpose of Seunghwa University
Se Won Yoon
President of Seonghwa University
February 9, 1990
True Father speaks to faculty, students and guests on the occasion of Seonghwa University's opening.
We are so glad than you came to visit. For more than 10 years, Father has pursued the establishment of this school. But because of the special situation in Korea, especially opposition from the established Christian churches, we could begin to build this school only four years ago. Originally, we did not want this site for the school, but because of many circumstances, we needed to start building here. But after the school was started here, I realized that this is actually an excellent location. The name of the city here, Chonan, means place of heavenly peace. So, Father decided to establish a grand, international university here in Chonan and we bought a lot of land around this area.
Until now, we have accepted only 190 people each year for the theology department. But from next year, we will be able to receive 520 first-year students, 400 of whom will be in the field of science and engineering. We have plans for very rapid growth, expanding into 13 colleges with 60 departments, including Bachelor of Arts and science degrees. By the year 2,000, our goal is to have 20,000 graduates. Our hope is that half of them will be Korean students and half of them will be international students. We want to educate students from all over the world, through their studies and life here, to become people with an international consciousness and a vision for the future world. Through their experiencing international customs here, they will be qualified to become builders of the future world.
International University Model
We are now laying the groundwork for this international university. We are teaching the Korean students to open themselves to the world by offering intensive language courses in English, Japanese, Chinese and Spanish. We want to prepare the students so that they can listen to the lectures of, for example, Japanese professors who come here and teach in Japanese. Dr. Daniel Davies is here now, and he is teaching his classes in English. Two years ago, there were only two students who were able to listen to his lectures. But now, we have over a dozen students who are listening to and able to follow his lectures in English.
Our immediate project is to bring foreign students here and teach them an intensive Korean course so that within one year they can participate in the Korean study program, listening to lectures and doing their work in Korean. Students who come here to study the natural sciences will participate in a special Korean course so that in just six months they can follow Korean lectures. My own subject is physics, and my own experience was like that. I went to America knowing very little English, but after an extensive study course for six months, I was able to follow the lectures and do my physics studies in English.
We really want to make this into a model international university. Father has not only planned the international university here, but he already has a master plan for a worldwide university network, in Southeast Asia, Europe, America, Africa, South and Central America. So we will not only receive 10,000 students per year to study here, but we will also send out 10,000 Korean students to study at other campuses around the world. Then, no matter what campus they attend, they will have the same environment they enjoy here. I believe that when we create such an educational environment, then we are creating one unified world.
Because we are the model for this international chain of universities, we have to be very concerned with every aspect of our school here and go through a difficult course. I and the teaching staff are very much aware of this great mission that demands all of our attention, sacrifice and endeavor. So you can imagine how happy I am to see you here today. I feel your coming here is a milestone in the development of this university towards its goal as an international university.
Education Principle -- The relationship between God and man is the parent/child bond.
Teaching Students to Know God
So when you go back to your countries, please send us good students. We will make our utmost effort to receive these people here and educate them well. Right now, we are in the pioneering stage, so there are still many uncomfortable inconveniences to be overcome. Ten church leaders from all over the world, mainly from Europe, have arrived here and are starting the intensive Korean language course. Their accommodations are pretty austere, but I told them I am sure they will never forget their experience here and the lifestyle they were able to live. I really want everyone who comes here to never be able to forget their experience here. So I'm sure all those who study here will gain a strong conviction of the existence of God. They will receive a strong faith that not only does God exist, but that God is with us -- that He is always at our side and that He is accompanying us in our lives.
I hope the students who come here, come with the purpose to experience the living God, just as True Father is teaching us to know Him and to inherit His ideals and put them into daily life. I think that the students will receive the confidence that they can sacrifice and work for the establishment of the future world -- the Kingdom of God on earth. I believe with this kind of sense of mission, people can become the soldiers of God.
If this kind of academy for the army of God is only here in Chonan, would that be enough? No! I believe in all these countries that I just mentioned that a school for God's champions has to be established. Of course, this does not mean that only faith is taught, but all areas of knowledge are taught.
We will become the builders of the 21st Century. This is the time when we can really participate in the creation of new history together with our True Parents -- during the time that they are living on the earth. We have to realize how great our mission is because we can live at the same time as Father. The people of the following generation will not have the same opportunity. People who live ages from now won't have that opportunity -- only those people living at this time receive this special grace.
We will have to establish this school for God's soldiers during Father's lifetime -- not only here but all over the world. You will become the seeds for the establishment of these universities. So I hope that you will go back to your countries and plant this seed so that soon growth can come. Let's all make a concerted effort to take root, to sprout and to grow into strong branches and leaves and bloom so that soon our work can bear fruit. Because you have come here now, you have become those seeds and I hope you will help and cooperate in the establishment of the international universities that will be the foundation for the international unified world of the future. God bless you.
History of Seonghwa University
April 4,1982: The establishment of Seonghwa Foundation authorized.
December 27, 1985: The establishment of a 4-year college-level institute authorized (Department of Theology, matriculation, 40).
January 28, 1986: Dr. Se Won Yoon inaugurated as President.
January 30, 1986: The first freshmen (36 students) admitted.
March 3, 1986: Opening and matriculation ceremony.
January 19, 1987: Ministry of Education approves the granting of a degree equivalent to a university degree to our school.
January 27, 1988: The number of matriculated students allowed by the Ministry of Education permitted in the Department of Theology is 90, in Foreign Missions, 50, and in Social Welfare, 50.
March 20, 1989: Korean Language Education Institute established.
June 5, 1989: The title of the Foundation renamed to the Sun Moon Foundation.
September 25, 1989: The main building brought to completion.
October 28, 1989: Officially raised to the status of a 4-year college, and renamed Seonghwa University; the establishment of the Departments of Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Metallurgy, Chemical Engineering, Raw Materials Engineering, and Environmental Engineering.
November 3, 1989: Father gives opening address for Seonghwa University.