LAST WEEKEND, two Harvard College professors and one Harvard Medical School faculty member attended the seventh International Conference on the Unity of Sciences (ICUS) in Boston, sponsored by Rev. Sun Myung Moon's International Cultural Foundation. A total of 65 academics--some of them Nobel laureates--came to the three-day convention from all parts of the world to partake in scholarly discussion groups.

The theme of the conferences--conducted in life sciences, physical sciences and social sciences--was "the re-evaluation of existing values and the search for absolute values." In addition to the 65 scholars sitting on discussion panels, another 400 came to participate. They talked about achieving new values in society, redefining the word "progress," and developing eternal, absolute values.

The small band of protesters outside the hotel charged that the convention was nothing more than an attempt to lend respectability to Moon's cause. Their suspicion is well-founded.

Quoted in a Unification Church publication, Master Speaks, Moon said: "The policy-makers in the background are the professors. Even though they represent the cultural field, more than anything else we need scholars in the scientific field. That's why we opened the Unified Science Conference in Europe last month...The scholars will set forth a subjective ideology, uniting the different fields into one. This will be the leading ideology of the world. We will surely influence the policies of the world in the near future."

The Congressional Subcommittee on International Organizations concluded that Moon had intimate ties with South Korean President Park Chung Hee's regime, and that Moon acted under the direction of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) on at least one occasion. Given the dubious political connections of Moon's movement as well as its expansionist goals, scholars who wish to participate in Moon-sponsored cultural activities should realize the ethical repercussions of their actions.

Scholars have been attending the ICUS convention since 1971 with the alibi that their participation does not aid or legitimize the Unification Church. They simply enjoy the banter, they say. But these scholars are gifted with a unique body of knowledge and concomitant respect. Consequently, they must bear the responsibilities inherent in possessing this unique quality. If they do not wish to aid the goals of the Unification Church as stated in Moon's dubious dogma, they should boycott the church's cultural activities.