Freedom on Trial: The Mother of Peace and the Global Fight for Religious Liberty
Every democracy claims to defend freedom, but only one nation in history — the United States of America — was founded on the revolutionary truth that human rights come from God, not government. Lose that truth, and freedom becomes an illusion.
Today, that illusion is being tested — not in a dictatorship, but in South Korea, where Dr. Hak Ja Han, the Mother of Peace and co-founder of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, has been unjustly detained.
A Mother of Peace, Imprisoned for Her Faith
At 82 years old, Dr. Han has devoted her life to advancing world peace, family values, and interfaith harmony. She has met with presidents, prime ministers, and religious leaders across the globe — always preaching reconciliation under God.
And yet, in September 2025, the South Korean government jailed her on vague financial charges, ignoring her frail health and long record of global peace activism. Supporters and observers alike are calling it what it appears to be: religious persecution disguised as prosecution.
Despite undergoing heart surgery earlier this year, Dr. Han has been denied bail. To many, this reveals a deeper motive: to weaken a faith community by attacking its spiritual mother.
“Freedom Without Truth Is Chaos”
Rev. Dunkley, recalling a sermon by Pastor Rob McCoy — Charlie Kirk’s pastor — explained why this moment matters beyond one individual or one movement:
“We managed to get in touch with Pastor Rob McCoy in Busan and went to hear him preach,” Dunkley said. “He preached that the church is the conscience of the nation and that freedom without truth is chaos. We lose our freedom the moment we fear government more than we fear God. That’s when we lose our freedom!”
“It’s not the government’s right to make that choice for you,” Dunkley continued. “It doesn’t matter what country you’re in. Only we, children of God — citizens of every nation — can make the choice whether we depend on God, depend on government, or someone else. It’s our choice.”
That truth lies at the heart of this crisis. Freedom detached from faith decays into control. Democracy without moral conscience becomes tyranny by bureaucracy.
The Difference America Made
As Rev. Dunkley reminded his congregation, not all democracies are created equal.
“Several countries have adopted the same democratic apparatus,” he said, “but there’s something different because the genesis of America — unlike the genesis of every other nation in human history — was built on freedom, specifically religious freedom. The freedom for us to be able to express and relate to God, our Heavenly Parent, in our own way.”
America’s founders declared that “all men are created equal, endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.” That one phrase changed the world. It proclaimed that freedom is divine — not a gift from rulers, but a right from God.
“Our government,” Dunkley added, “is built on the understanding that each individual is created by God. We are created beings, made in heaven — not made in China, not made in America — made in heaven.”
A Call to Courage and Conscience
Dr. Han’s detention is more than a legal battle; it’s a test of faith for every believer who values liberty. When a democratic nation treats an elderly woman of peace as a criminal, it reveals how fragile freedom becomes when the government forgets its limits.
Around the world, people of all faiths must speak out — not only for Dr. Han, but for the universal right to worship freely, without fear.
Freedom is sacred. Faith is essential. And the church must remain the conscience of the nation.
Stand With Freedom. Stand With Faith.
The story of the Mother of Peace is a warning — and a call.
When governments believe they can stand between God and His children, freedom dies.
But when believers remember that their rights come from heaven, not the state, freedom lives again.
Stand with freedom. Stand with faith. Be the conscience of the nation.