Religions are like tributaries of a river. As the river flows downstream, the number of tributaries decreases and all eventually combine into one river.
Religions are like tributaries of a river. As the river flows downstream, the number of tributaries decreases and all eventually combine into one river.
Sun Myung Moon
Tributaries of a River
Topic: Interfaith Pathways
“There are many religions in the world. Humanity is divided, so it is natural for religions to differ by ethnic group. Because different peoples’ history, environment, cultural background, customs and practices are all so divergent, there must be many denominations. They exist in order to draw people together and focus them on a single purpose.
We can compare this to a river. Religions are like tributaries of a river. As the river flows downstream, the number of tributaries decreases and all eventually combine into one river. Likewise, the world’s numerous religions are combining into one mainstream that, in the end, comes to remain in the place where all attend God in their heart and occupy the love of God.”
Sun Myung Moon (born January 6, 1920, in Jeongju, in what is now North Korea – died September 3, 2012, in Gapyeong, South Korea) was a Korean religious leader, entrepreneur, and founder of the Unification movement. Raised in a rural Confucian-Christian household during the Japanese occupation of Korea, Moon’s early life was shaped by hardship, devotion, and a strong sense of spiritual calling. As a teenager, he experienced a profound vision in which he believed Jesus commissioned him to complete the work of restoring humanity to unity with God. This revelation became the foundation of his lifelong ministry, devoted to the ideal of universal peace and the healing of the relationship between the divine and human families.
In 1954, after enduring persecution and periods of imprisonment under both Japanese and communist authorities, Moon founded the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity in Seoul. His teachings—later presented systematically in the Exposition of the Divine Principle—offered a reinterpretation of Christian theology emphasizing God’s parental love, human responsibility, and the sanctity of marriage and family. Central to his vision was the belief that love is the creative force of the universe and that humanity’s purpose is to build a world reflecting the oneness of God’s heart. Through international missions, interfaith dialogue, and mass wedding ceremonies symbolizing global reconciliation, Moon sought to transcend divisions of race, religion, and nationality.
Beyond his religious work, Moon established numerous organizations in education, media, culture, and humanitarian service, aiming to foster dialogue, moral renewal, and peace. He and his wife, Hak Ja Han Moon, were regarded by followers as the “True Parents,” embodying the ideal of restored unity between men and women, heaven and earth. While his movement inspired both devoted commitment and significant controversy, Moon’s influence on global religion, culture, and peace initiatives remains substantial. His life reflected an unwavering pursuit of the vision of one human family under God—a vision he advanced with conviction, discipline, and enduring faith in the transformative power of divine love.
Cham Bumo Gyeong
Moon, Sun Myung, and Hak Ja Han Moon. Chambumo Gyeong. Seonghwa Chulpansa, 2015, Page 1244.4 [Sun Myung Moon, Chambumo Gyeong].
Sun Myung Moon
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Sun Myung Moon, Additional Quote
“As far as I know, God is not sectarian. He is not restricted by minor details of doctrine. We should quickly liberate ourselves from theological conflict which results from blind attachment to doctrines and rituals, and instead focus on living relationships with God. In my view, we urgently need to purify the religious atmosphere into one in which believers can have living faith and every soul can communicate with God. In God’s parental heart and His great love, there is no discrimination based on color or nationality. Today God is trying to embrace the whole of humankind as His children. Through inter-religious dialogue and harmony we should realize one ideal world of peace, which is God’s purpose of creation and the common hope of humankind.”