Meet Teddy. He grew up close to the family of the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, leader of the Unification Church, whose followers are known as “Moonies.”
“They were kind of like the boogeymen in town,” Teddy said. “It made me a little more paranoid going to school and I hid it pretty strongly. It was hard for me to focus because I was terrified people would find out.”
Sound clip from Episode 2
This was in the 80’s and early 90’s when the “Moonies” were in the news as brainwashed people to avoid. Teddy was afraid his teachers would say something to him.But other than the paranoia in class and a fear of Moon’s children, who Teddy said could be violent, he felt like he had a good life.
“We got to hang out on these beautiful properties,” Teddy said. “But the terms of that were like, ‘don’t tell anyone what’s going on in our church and don’t get too involved in the outside world. What we have is special and we have to protect it.”
Another clip from Episode 2. Panel from comic by Teddy Hose
Unfortunately, that protection came with guns. And the prevalence of guns in his community led to an incident that changed his family’s life forever.
What happened? When did Teddy leave the Unification Church and what is he up to now?
Find out on Tuesday, Oct. 1 on Episode 2, Part 1: “Guns, Guns and Marriage.” Download Generation Cult on iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify and other places you find podcasts.
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