On September 28 UTS Provost Thomas Ward was invited by ICERM, a United Nations NGO, to be its Annual Conference’s Keynote Speaker at Manhattanville College. Dr. Ward, who has a long history of participation in international education and peace initiatives, was also presented a special award for his “Outstanding Contributions of Major Significance to Global Peace and Development” by Dr. Basil Ugorji, the President of the International Center for Ethno-Religious Mediaton (ICERM), which holds Special Consultative status with the United Nations’ Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). In his...

Melanie Komagata, a student in the UTS Master of Arts in Peace Studies visited the UTS New York City on Friday August 26, UTS Fall Onsite Registration Day, with her husband TaeJun Moon. Ms. Komagata joined the UTS Master of Arts in Religious Studies program in September 2021 and decided to join the Master of Arts in Peace Studies program in spring 2022 once it received approval by the New York State Department of Higher Education. Ms. Komagata, who is from Switzerland, did her Bachelor degree in International Relations and as well as a Master degree in Asian Studies at the University of...

Unification Theological Seminary plans to close its Master of Religious Education (MRE) program and remove it from its Inventory of Program Offerings as of August 31, 2023. Students who remain in this program must complete all requirements for the MRE program by August 31, 2023 or transfer into a different UTS degree program, which may not accept all of the MRE credits that a student has earned. Early UTS students who were awarded the Diploma of Religious Education and wish to convert it to a Master of Religious Education have the 2022-23 academic year to complete any outstanding...

UTS full-time faculty and staff participated in a one-day retreat at East Garden in Irvington, NY, preparing to welcome the incoming class for the academic year 2022-2023. In addition to a tour of the UTS Founders’ home, there were presentations from President Walsh on his vision for UTS going forward, Dr. Ward outlining the development of Academic Affairs, Dr. Mickler on Administration and the UTS Self Study, Dean Steven Boyd and Dean Ute Delaney on Enrollment Management, and Christina Miyake, Ken Sohn, and Henry Christopher on Communications, IT and Advancement. Following a...

Unification Theological Seminary is excited to announce the launching of a new YouTube series, Home of Thought: Perspectives from the Unification Theological Seminary. The purpose of this series is to introduce UTS staff, students, and alums who have interesting projects to the public. The series does not focus only on theologians or academic presentations, but also hopes to spotlight service projects, human interest stories, and other interesting works. The hope is to begin building an informational library of sorts – the Unification perspective on different topics. The first...

Family remains a pivotal value for many students at UTS: Five Unification Theological Seminary current students and recent graduates were among the 2,100 couples who participated in the recent Hyojeong Cosmic Marriage Blessing on April 16. As is the tradition of the Unification Church, the Holy Marriage Blessing ceremony was broadcast live from Gapyeong, South Korea. Many couples traveled to Seoul for the Blessing, while others recited their marriage vows at the satellite events that took place simultaneously around the world. Please join us in celebrating the marriages of these...

Spiritual Connections: Living in the Flow of God’s Love Nora Martin Spurgin Circle of Angels Press, 201 pages, 2022, $15.95 This is an engaging spiritual autobiography of Nora Spurgin, who joined the Unified Family in New York in 1967, and served in many central positions as the movement led by Reverend Sun Myung Moon developed into a new global culture. Nora’s identity is shaped by her connections to others in her lifelong pursuit to be in the flow of God’s love. Her story begins with her ancestors who came to America for religious freedom. Her sixth great grandfather authored...

On Saturday, May 28, 2022, Unification Theological Seminary (UTS) held its forty-sixth Commencement in New York City. For the first time since 2019, graduating students, alumni, faculty, family and friends gathered in person to celebrate the graduating class of 2022, as well as the classes of 2021 and 2020. Dr. Chungsik Yong, Regional President of Family Federation North America and UTS board member, gave the keynote address. “Now you are going into the world. The present war in Ukraine is a terrible reality, but it’s only one example of conflict and disharmony at every level of human...

On Tuesday, April 19, Unification Theological Seminary held a virtual Faculty Roundtable event where Dr. Andrew Wilson, Director of Scriptural Research and Professor of Scriptural Studies, spoke on “The Victory of the Cross.” Dr. Wilson’s approach to Scriptural Studies is theological and ecumenical. His Old Testament courses explore what the scriptures mean and have meant to diverse communities of faith—the people of ancient Israel for whom they were written, the early Christians who read them in the light of Christ, and today’s believers—Jews and Christians of all...