Claim. Unlike the period before Jesus when entirely new religions had to be founded six centuries in advance, the Second Advent preparation does not require new religions — it only requires reviving existing ones, which is why Buddhism and Confucianism have survived until today.
Elaboration. Lee makes an asymmetric claim about the two messianic preparation periods (F. Law of the Period of the Number Six). Before Jesus, totally new religions and philosophies had to be established (sixth-century BC Axial founders). But before the Second Advent, ‘it was not necessary to establish totally new religions and philosophies six centuries before Christ at the Second Advent.’ Instead: ‘We need only to revive the already existing religions and philosophies.’
The evidence: ‘It is for that reason that such religions as Buddhism and Confucianism have survived until today.’ Their survival is providentially explained — they persist because they will be needed at the Second Advent for unification. Zoroastrianism, by contrast, was ‘replaced by monotheistic Islam in the seventh century,’ presumably because its dualistic theology was less suited to surviving into the unifying era.
The specific function of the Messiah at the Second Advent: ‘Christ at the Second Advent will solve all the unresolved questions of traditional religions and thoughts by means of the true love and truth of God. He will unify religions and thoughts, and will finally realize the unified world.’ The traditional teachings of love and truth, given through angels, are imperfect; only the Messiah’s absolute love and truth can ‘revive and strengthen’ them.
This is theologically distinctive: most Christian theologies treat non-Christian religions as either demonic, neutral, or independently valid (Vatican II). UT treats them as providentially preparatory and ultimately to be unified under the Messiah. It legitimizes interreligious dialogue (UPF, IRFF) while preserving messianic exclusivism. The Hindu and Far Eastern traditions are preserved by providence precisely because they will be needed.
The claim aligns with the unificationthought project of comparative religion in ch.10 and motivates the UC organizational focus on interreligious work. Critics from exclusivist evangelical critique traditions push that ‘unification of all religions’ is religious syncretism; critics from pluralist traditions push that ‘unification under the Messiah’ is exclusivism wearing dialogue clothes. UT does both simultaneously, which is structurally interesting and rhetorically contested.
See also. law-of-period-of-number-six-axial-age, mutual-righteousness-as-joint-ethics-superseding-religion, law-of-completion-through-three-stages