'Moonies' leader fighting for life
Unification Church founder the Rev Sun Myung Moon is fighting for his life in hospital, suffering from pneumonia.
The Rev Joshua Cotter, vice president of the Unification Church USA, said today Moon, 93, was admitted to the hospital in Seoul, South Korea, on August 13 and was in a critical condition in an intensive-care unit.
He said church members were praying and fasting for his quick recovery.
A memo sent to church officials said Moon "was pushing his limits in carrying out his schedule" when he fell ill. It said his wife and children were by his bedside.
Moon founded the controversial Unification Church in Seoul in 1954. The church, whose followers were nicknamed "Moonies", gained fame in the 1970s for holding mass weddings.
Its business empire includes The Washington Times newspaper and the New Yorker Hotel in Manhattan.
