Ho Yeow Sun Singer-wife of a prominent pastor faces criticism over her high-profile celebrity lifestyle.

Singer-wife of a prominent pastor faces criticism over her high-profile celebrity lifestyle.

WHEN Singapore church leader Ho Yeow Sun decided to pursue a secular singing career in 2002, no one quite expected the move to prove so contentious down the years even though the career switch was not usual by any standard.

A music director and counsellor with the non-denominational City Harvest Church for a decade before she struck out for the music world, her fledgling pop career was acclaimed a success but took a turn towards controversy when the Singaporean media reported that the church was updating members on Ho’s career moves and offering her albums for sale.

Ho’s foray into entertainment has been controversial as she is not just a former church leader. Her husband is Reverend Kong Hee, City Harvest’s founding pastor and one of the keenest supporters of her pop music career.

Media interest in Ho over the years did not lessen as she has attracted adverse reactions over her daring dress sense as she attempted to break into the US music market after she had released five best-selling Mandarin albums.

Ho, or Sun Ho as she has fashioned herself in the States, faces criticisms that have largely pivoted on her status as a pastor’s wife as well as her intimate involvement with a church for more than a decade. Some have asked how she could be so liberal in her dressing when she is so steeped in religion.

When it emerged that she has been living in a S$28,000 (RM65,000)-a-month house with a swimming pool in Los Angeles while pursuing her American ambitions, critics asked if it was right for a former church leader and a pastor’s wife to be leading the high life.In Ho’s case, the question is really about whether it is appropriate for a pastor’s wife and a church leader to be a pop singer and a celebrity.

Her supporters have countered that there is nothing wrong with living the high life as she is a successful singer and celebrity, and suggested that Singaporeans should be proud of her accomplishments, which include having four singles reach the top of the Billboard charts since she began her American conquest in 2004.

They also point to her humanitarian work, which included donations towards the building of some schools in China as well as her trip to Haiti after the Jan 12 earthquake to perform relief work there. Proceeds from her album sales also go to charity.

It is clear that there is usually great tolerance when celebrities who practise a religion use their fame and influence in support of it.

Richard Gere, for instance, is a tireless supporter of Tibetan Buddhism and has been very vocal in his support for the Dalai Lama, even speaking out against China for what he views as the repression of Tibet.

His religious involvement has done no harm to his acting career. In fact, Gere’s fans as well as his fellow actors have been known to be influenced by his beliefs.

However, one of the crucial reasons it is all right for celebrities to be religious is that they are seen as moving towards the light, that is, many see it as a sign of their efforts to better themselves, especially as they are often engaged in humanitarian work through their religions.

After all, celebrities are closely associated with the leading of ostentatious, extravagant lifestyles with liberal and hedonistic tendencies. So religion is good for them.

There are also cases where religious figures such as Billy Graham, an American radio and television Christian evangelist, acquire celebrity status and even appear on entertainment programmes. But they are on the programmes to discuss moral and theological issues, so there is no disconnect between their religious and celebrity roles.

On the other hand, a pastor’s wife and former church leader who becomes a pop singer and a celebrity is seen as moving away from the light; that is, many would see it as a sign of a descent into a decadent life, despite the humanitarian work Ho continues to perform.

It really doesn’t help that Ho dresses sexily, makes music videos that raise temperatures, and seems to be revelling in the celebrity lifestyle. Or that she is living in a house where the monthly rental is the equivalent of some Singaporeans’ annual income.

To be fair, there have been celebrities who have led scandal-free lives and done their part for charity, but in general, the entertainment world is not known for being a place for the virtuous.

In this day and age, no one expects their religious leaders to be leading simple lives with no material wants and needs. Few would begrudge them a comfortable life. But for a religious leader, albeit a former one, to become, or to want to become, a celebrity of the Hollywood kind is deemed to have crossed the line.

Before he was Reverend Kong Hee

SINGAPORE - At a Raffles Institution Class of 1980 reunion five years ago, he was on the receiving end of friendly jibes. "Never knew you could do this, man," former schoolmates kidded Reverend Kong Hee (picture), who by then had established City Harvest Church as a rapidly growing entity.

"Most of us were very happy for him, and he extended an invitation for every one of us to go to his church to listen to him. All we needed to do was call his secretary, and he would arrange the seats for us," said an ex-schoolmate who attended RI and Raffles Junior College with Rev Kong from 1977 to 1982.

Before he became the face of one of Singapore's megachurches, Rev Kong was just one of the boys in a top school. But it was not as a bookworm that buddies remembered him

According to two former schoolmates, he was easygoing, playful and enjoyed sports and life. He was in RI's swimming and water polo team, and sported chlorine-bleached hair.

"He fell into the tall, dark and chlorinated-hair category," one schoolmate quipped, a stark contrast with Rev Kong's description of himself during a 2005 media interview as having been short, fat and ugly in secondary school.

After graduating in 1988 with a degree in computer science from the National University of Singapore, the young man who planned to be a missionary in the Philippines, worked for a short stint at a local Anglican church, according to the biography on his website.

But then he started City Harvest with 20 people in 1989 and was ordained at Bethany Christian Centre two years later. It was as a Christian youth leader working with students, that Rev Kong met his future wife Ho Yeow Sun, then a student at Anglican High. They married in 1992 and now have a son, Dayan, five.

She went on to become a pop singer in the media limelight, crossing over from church music director to chart-topper in the Chinese and American markets, while her sexy outfits set tongues wagging.

In contrast to the reams written about her, little can be found in local news archives about Rev Kong, though in the Christian community he made a impact with laser shows, blog and cable television programme.

Over the years, church members came to regard him as "visionary" and "passionate". Himself a businessman - in 2005, he took himself off the City Harvest payroll when he and his wife set up Skin Couture, and later added two more boutiques - he connected with followers like Elim Chew.

The 77th Street founder recounted how, when she was at her "lowest point", drained by the challenges of expanding her streetwear company into the unfamiliar China business environment, Rev Kong was constantly in touch and encouraging her.

Though frequently overseas - whether speaking at churches overseas, or visiting his wife and son in the US - he would call bereaved members of his flock. Ms Chew, who has known him for 20 years, said he recently postponed a flight to Los Angeles so as to pray for her friend's sick grandmother.

At services, church members say, his family seems a picture of intergenerational bliss, with his parents and in-laws in attendance. "When you look at them, you feel like they're the ideal family," said Mr Kelvin Chew, 38, a cell group leader.



WORKING FOR A PERFECTIONIST

Nonetheless, Mr Chew admitted: "He's a perfectionist. Working with him is not at all easy. You have to work even harder because he's so sharp. A slight mistake and he'll be upset, and that's how he moulds most of us to be sharper."

There was the church's anniversary celebration at the Singapore Indoor Stadium a few years ago, when the sound crew could not get things right and the backup vocalists could not hit the right tone. The crew had to rehearse "again and again", with the session ending close to midnight.

But Mr Chew also insisted, it was in this same vein that Rev Kong spurred many in his congregation, like himself, to further their studies and improve themselves.

While some have criticised Rev Kong's approach to Christianity as too extravagant or aggressive, supporters argue that it is refreshing and relevant to the young. Lasers, projectors and lights are used at services, and the recent five-day Asia Conference hosted by the church included a beauty pageant.

The youths "really like him", said a church member of two years. "They really take his words to heart ... they would thank him for believing in them, enabling them to excel in their studies."

Might this adoration verge on idolatry?

"It could veer toward (being) unhealthy," said the member. "Maybe they idolise him, but in my opinion, if you idolise a good role model, I don't see anything wrong with that. I would say they respect him."

The spotlight on both the church and its founder has been intensifying in recent months - for example, when he announced in March its indirect purchase of a stake in Suntec Singapore's convention centre. Then came murmurs from netizens accusing him of plagiarising other authors' words in his daily devotionals.

Rev Kong has since explained on his blog that the devotions consist of notes recorded over the years "as well as select readings of other Christian authors who inspire me", and that the oversight in crediting these sources was because the devotions were originally meant for internal circulation.

Then came news on Monday of the investigation into individuals and companies linked to City Harvest for alleged misuse of funds. Seventeen individuals, including Rev Kong, were questioned by the Commercial Affairs Department.

According to Ms Chew, the pastor has since been uncontactable. But church members have rallied behind him, remembering how his words had spurred them on.

When Ms Nanz Chong-Komo's retail venture failed in 2003, it was Rev Kong who inspired her to write a book. "The moment he knew my One.99 shop was going to close, he asked me, 'What have you learned? Write it down! Take this as tuition lesson of a lifetime!'" she said.

Are Singapore Mega Church Or Money Making

A couple sold their condo so they could contribute to “a new home for God”, but the arrival of ultra-modern, high-tech, mega-bucks religion has also left many Singaporeans uneasy.

AS SINGAPORE was waking up one recent morning, investigators were swooping on the homes of a senior pastor and 16 others related to a charismatic church.

The commercial crime officers searched the office of the controversial City Harvest Church (CHC) and carted away a large amount of financial records and computers.

The 17, including 45-year-old Senior Pastor Kong Lee, were taken away for questioning as part of a government investigation into complaints of misuse of church funds.

It is one of the biggest investigations of a religious institution here in recent years. No one, however, has been arrested.

CHC is the latest of a series of controversies involving high-profile leaders of religious or charity bodies in Singapore.

Since 2004, three of them – a Catholic priest, a top Buddhist monk, and a national charity figure – had been convicted and jailed. This has made the Kong Lee investigation a top story here.

CHC, which has 33,000 followers, shocked the country in April when it announced that it had bought a S$310mil stake in the premier Suntec Singapore building.

The authorities said the raids had nothing to do with that, and an official of the Council of Churches said the inquiry was neither “related nor initiated due to the Suntec deal”.

The central figure of the mega-church is the evangelistic Kong Lee, a type of Christian preacher that long flourished in America but is only now appearing in predominantly Buddhist Singapore.

These preachers conduct services in ultra-modern surroundings with high-tech lights and rock music to spread their faith, and in the process have turned religion into a mega show-business.


The controversy over CHC is the latest of several in recent years involving money collected by religious and charity organisations.

Details of the raids were sparse, but unconfirmed reports said that Kong Lee was picked up in his posh Somerset condo at 6 am on Monday and questioned for 18 hours.

The office premises at Suntek were raided at 7am as soon as a staff opened the door. It was searched and a large number of documents and computers taken away.

How can a 45-year-old man raise so much money and do such a mega-deal, something that even tycoons cannot?

Has economic pressure pushed more Singaporeans towards religion for spiritual solace or is it the hypnotic environment and the sleek preaching? No one really knows for sure.

For an answer, I watched several videos of how the man worked his magic on the crowd as he appealed for building funds.

In a plush auditorium equipped with state-of-the-art audiovisual systems, he mesmerised his followers.

Amid colourful lights and loud music that resembled a pop concert rather than a religious gathering, Kong Lee appealed to housewives and families to help him build “a new home for God”.

Schoolchildren were asked to donate their Lunar New Year ang pows. In the background a giant screen flashed photographs of people putting money into a box.

The pastor took the microphone to thank recent contributors, who included a couple selling their 5-room public flat to downgrade to a 3-roomer, to offer S$20,000 to the church building.

Another was a young man who sold his favourite motorcycle and donated the entire proceedings. With each name mentioned, the audience cheered.

It led a cynic to comment: “They have turned religion into show business, like America’s TV evangelism.”

There are several other mega-churches with evangelical and fund-raising abilities, posing potential problems for this multi-religious country.


One is The New Creation Church, which plans to invest S$280mil to build a mega-complex with a lifestyle-entertainment-cultural theme.

With some 22,000 members, the church raised eyebrows when it was reported that its charismatic preacher was paid a salary of S$500,000 in the last financial year.

The investigation into CHC came seven months after a top Buddhist monk, Venerable Shi Ming Yi, was convicted of misusing donated money and sentenced to nine months’ imprisonment (reduced to six on appeal).

The 2009 trial of the English-educated, high-living Buddhist monk who owned three properties and loved luxurious cars showed how far the money culture had spread in Singapore.

In his trial, the 48-year-old monk told the Court that “we live in a modern world ... no longer like what it was in the past”.

When asked to elaborate, the monk said: “If people earn more, they will spend more. Many religious people, not just myself, are very different now.”

Other high profile prosecutions were:

> Catholic priest Father Joachim Kang was sentenced to seven-and-half years’ jail in 2004 for embezzling S$5.1mil in church funds.

> T.T. Durai, former National Kidney Foundation CEO, a public charity, was jailed for three months for falsifying invoices.

Singaporeans blame the greed on a materialistic society rather than just the priests and monks, who are also humans like us.

However, some call for a strict separation between religion and business.

One writer had a message for entrepreneurial pastors: “If you want to make money, go and become a businessman; don’t do it by pretending to offer your parishioners a service. It will destroy their trust.”

Individuals, firms linked to City Harvest Church under probe

SINGAPORE : The founder of City Harvest Church and 16 other individuals and staff involved in the handling of the church’s financial affairs are being investigated by the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD).



Police confirmed on Monday evening that Reverend Kong Hee and 16 others are assisting in an on—going investigation arising from complaints made to the Commissioner of Charities (COC) on the misuse of church funds.


CAD officers in the morning visited various premises, including the homes and offices of the individuals involved. They secured items such as financial records and computers for their investigation.

As to how long the investigation will take, the police have given the assurance that while it will be thorough, it will be without undue delay.

Earlier in the afternoon, the COC and CAD said in a joint statement that they were investigating some financial transactions involving several individuals and companies related or connected to the church.

They assured the public that despite ongoing investigations, the normal services and religious activities of the City Harvest need not be disrupted.

City Harvest is one of the largest churches in Singapore, with a congregation of over 30,000 who regularly pack its venues at Jurong West and the Singapore Expo during sermons.

The church’s reach online is even greater — through live webcasts, podcasts and its own broadcast channel. Much of it is driven by its charismatic founder, Reverend Kong.

The pastor keeps a Facebook page that has over 30,000 fans, and has his own YouTube channel. He lives in the US with his son and wife, Sun Ho, a successful pop singer.

This is not the first time City Harvest Church has made headlines. It was just in March that eyebrows were raised over the church’s S$310 million stake in Suntec City Convention Centre, and the Commissioner of Charities was called in to investigate.

In a statement to MediaCorp, the charities watchdog stressed that this round of investigations is not related to the earlier Suntec case.

It added that the case involved more than just City Harvest — it included companies and individuals connected either directly or indirectly with the church. That is why, it said, the police have to be involved.

Depending on the findings, the charity’s trustee may be suspended.

The statement continued: "While there was a governance review conducted on City Harvest Church in 2007, the objective and the scope are different from that of an inquiry.

"The governance review essentially looks at the organisation’s corporate governance with the objective of assessing and helping the charities to improve the way they are run.

"The inquiry on the other hand is a formal investigation into allegations and complaints received to ascertain that there is no mismanagement or misconduct in the administration of a charity."

When asked to comment, the National Council of Churches of Singapore, of which City Harvest is a member, said it was too premature to do so at this point.

On the City Harvest’s website, a notice to members by Executive Pastor Reverend Derek Dunn stated that the church was "cooperating fully" with investigations, and that services and operations would continue as usual.

MediaCorp understands the church has engaged Christina Ng from law firm Rajah and Tann to represent it.