Restoration work was in full swing when I visited the house on May 21. Members of the relics team were moving in items such as bookcases, a piano, framed pictures and other things used by “Neut Bom” (late spring) Moon Ik-whan (1918~1994) during his lifetime, and were painting to refurbish faded colors. Rev. Moon’s niece Moon Youngme, a member of the “House of Reunification” board, noted happily that “The specialists have done their best to preserve and look after the furniture and other things used by Rev. Moon.”
Rev. Moon lived at this place from the 1970s, when he was a professor of Hanshin University. After his departure from this world in 1994, Elder "Bom Gil" (spring path) Park Yong-gil, his wife, put up a signboard reading “House of Reunification,” and opened the house to the public. But after she passed away in 2011, the house was nearly neglected.
Rev. Moon’s daughter Moon Yeong-geum, director of the museum, explained, “Mother hoped this house would be used as a place for discussion and education toward reunification…We decided to open it as a museum as a deeply meaningful project to commemorate the centennial of Father’s birth.” The 25,000 some relics on exhibit in the museum include Rev. Moon’s letters, books, apparel, public statements and poems.
Reporter A-young Kim (singforyou@kmib.co.kr), with Marion Kim (marionkkim@icloud.com)
Photo by intern reporter Shin Hyeon Ga
Full Story in Korean:
[현장] 문익환 목사 통일의 꿈을 담은 집: 내달 1일 공개되는 ‘문익환 통일의 집’ 박물관
