Father Kang will be on home leave for a year to spend time with his father but is keen to resume his duties. -- ST PHOTO: CAROLINE CHIA
A CATHOLIC priest jailed in 2004 for pocketing millions from his church and who finished serving his sentence last month has now been granted a full restoration of his priestly duties by the head of the Catholic Church in Singapore.
Archbishop Nicholas Chia said in a statement earlier this month that Father Joachim Kang, 61, can now say mass and preach, among other 'sacred functions'. The statement was published in this week's Catholic News, the church's fortnightly newsletter.
Father Kang spent four years behind bars and another nine months under a home detention scheme after being found guilty of embezzling $5.1 million from St Teresa's Church in Kampong Bahru, which he headed.
The scandal - the first-ever criminal trial of a Catholic priest in Singapore - hit the 200,000-strong Catholic Church here hard. Father Kang was then suspended from his duties as a priest.
Archbishop Chia, 71, said that Father Kang is, and 'has always been' a Catholic priest. 'He has done time under the law and I am most happy to welcome him home to the Catholic community.' However, he has not been assigned to any post yet, although the Archbishop said he intends to offer him a 'meaningful' one which will utilise his talents for the good of the Church.
