Unification Seminar

The Unification Church purchased the former St. Joseph’s Normal Institute, a novitiate and high school in Barrytown, New York, run by the Christian Brothers, a Roman Catholic lay order, on January 21, 1974. The purchase included 250 wooded acres bordering the Hudson River 90 miles north of New York City and the historic Massena House, a Hudson River mansion originally constructed in 1796, where 10-year-old Theodore Roosevelt spent the summer in 1868. True Father had been searching locations up and down the Hudson River suitable for educational purposes. The Barrytown site met one of his criteria with mountains, water and woods all visible. True Father reportedly visited the site seventeen times before deciding on the purchase. The “Founder’s Rock” marks the place where he decided. The property initially served as a site for 3-, 7- and 21-day workshops. It later hosted 40-day and 120-day workshops for overseas missionaries and “Barrytown Pioneers.” Unification Theological Seminary (UTS), which now offers fully accredited bachelors, master’s and doctoral degree programs, opened its doors on September 20, 1975, and has graduated some 1,500 students. In recent years the Barrytown facility has hosted matching convocations, Blessing education workshops, and sports festivals.