In the Shadow of the Moons:
My Life in the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Family

by Nansook Hong, ex-wife of Rev. Sun Myung Moon's eldest son
Synopsis: Hong, who arrived in the U.S. from Seoul as a 15-year-old bride handpicked by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon for his son, shares her story of 14 years of harrowing abuse at the hands of Hyojin Moon, and her eventual escape to make a new life.

Excerpts:

The following excerpted paragraph summarizes Nansook's report of her husband Hyojin's behavior:

No one lived her belief in forgiveness more openly than I. Hadn't I forgiven Hyo Jin when he left me for another woman weeks after our wedding? Hadn't I forgiven Hyo Jin when he gave me herpes? Hadn't I forgiven Hyo Jin when he took up with prostitutes? Hadn't I forgiven Hyo Jin when he squandered hundreds of thousands of dollars that had been intended for our children's futures? Hadn't I forgiven Hyo Jin when he beat me and spat upon me? Hadn't I forgiven Hyo Jin when he abandoned me and our children for a life of drug and alcohol abuse? Hadn't I forgiven Hyo Jin when he took a lover on the day I brought our newborn son home from the hospital? -pp.213-214

Another passage describes the afternoon right after their wedding, before the evening reception:

Hyo Jin insisted we have sex. I begged him to wait until the night - True Parents expected us to be ready to leave within the hour - but he would not be put off. I did not want to be naked in front of him. I slipped into bed to remove my clothes, a practice I would continue for the next 14 years. I had read the books my mother gave me, but I was totally unprepared for the shock of sexual intercourse. When Hyo Jin got on top of me, I did not know what to expect. He was very rough, excited at the prospect of deflowering a virgin. He told me what to do, what to touch. I just followed his directions. When he entered me, it was all I could do not to cry out in pain. It did not take very long for him to finish, but for hours afterwards, my insides burned with pain. "So this is what sex is," I kept thinking.

I began to cry, from pain, from exhaustion, from shame. I felt we were wrong not to wait. Hyo Jin kept trying to shush me. Didn't I enjoy it? he wanted to know. It was very "ouchy", I told him, using a little girl's word for a woman's pain. He said he'd never heard that reaction before, confirming all the rumors I had heard in Korea. Hyo Jin had had many lovers. I was shocked and hurt that he would confess his sin in such a callous and cavalier manner. I wept even harder, until his sharp tone and angry rebuke forced me to dry my tears. At least I now knew what sex was and who my husband was. It was horrible; he was no better. -pp.88-89



Click here for a review by Eugene Curtin, a journalist in the midwest, and a member of the Unification Church.


To find out more about In the Shadow of the Moons: My Life in the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Family by Nansook Hong, just click on the title for more information. This book can also be ordered from Amazon.com, the world's largest bookstore.





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