Christianity as the Sixth Aspirational ‘C’ : Megachurches and the Changing Landscape of Religion, Prosperity, and Wealth in Singapore

Abstract

Singapore is one of the richest countries in the world, whose citizens have an insatiable appetite for economic mobility. Many Singaporeans have become highly attracted to emerging Christian groups which marry basic Christian beliefs, such as the worship of Christ, with wealth accumulation. Known as megachurches, these groups preach a liturgy known as ‘prosperity gospel’ which equates wealth with worship. Though digital ethnography and content analysis of webpages and social media platforms, this chapter investigates two prominent megachurches in Singapore and their founding pastors: New Creation Church with Pastor Joseph Prince and City Harvest Church with Pastor Kong Hee. The results of such analyses reveal that wealth and material accumulation have become the foundations of Singaporean Christianity.