In In the Name of God: A Holy Betrayal, Maple Yip, who once was one of Jeong Myeong-seok’s favorites, exposes the man she once prayed to.
Maple Yip is a 28-year-old student from Hong Kong who joined JMS in 2012. She was one of Jeong Myeong-seok’s beloved students and was abused and brainwashed by him from November 2018 to September 2021.
Maple Yip escaped JMS and exposed Myeong-seok in 2022, which led the authorities to investigate the self-proclaimed god again.
How did Maple join the JMS?
While Maple was in high school, some of JMS’ followers approached her at a mall, claiming that they are students.
One of those followers continued to contact Maple, who was going through tough times back then. She was bullied at school, and her parents weren’t getting along.
Maple was depressed, and she didn’t know why she should keep moving on. During these times, she contacted that JMS follower and asked her about the meaning of life.
The JMS follower then introduced her to Jeong Myeong-seok and his teachings. Maple was moved by Myeong-seok’s words, and therefore, she decided to join JMS. She had confessed about her previous life, where she hung out with boys and drank, yet Jeong Myeong-seok accepted her, and she needed that acceptance.
How did the JMS followers manipulate Maple?
In 2009, Jeong Myeong-seok was arrested for sexually assaulting his female followers. Everyone believed this was the fall of JMS; they thought he might die in prison, considering how he was acting during the trial; he was acting like a coward.
Everything went the other way around. Jeong Myeong-seok continued to manipulate his followers from inside the prison by making several claims about being Jesus.
The JMS followers told everyone that the victims were selling out the Lord, and Maple, who was one of the followers, believed everything they said. The followers convinced Maple to send her pictures to Jeong Myeong-seok while he was in prison.
Maple, at first, was surprised by this demand, but no one else around her was bothered by this. She, therefore, agreed to it and, along with some girls, sent her pictures.
Jeong Myeong-seok invited the women he liked in pictures to visit him in prison. Maple back then was just grateful that she was able to meet her Lord in person.
How did Maple become Jeong Myeong-seok’s favorite?
After serving 10 years in prison, Jeong Myeong-seok got released. He went back to his work and began conducting several big shows for his followers.
Maple had a great singing voice, and he made her sing during these grand shows. People really enjoyed Maple’s shows. Sometimes, singing for very long was so exhausting that she begged them not to make her sing. Then they offered her the role of the news anchor.
Maple started hosting Providence News under the name Jeong Soo-jeong, which was given to her by Jeong Myeong-seok himself.
During her ten years at JMS, Maple took on several roles. She did modeling and some missionary work. She also served as a probationer and pastor.
Eventually, Maple became one of the more famous members of JMS. Everyone clearly saw that Jeong Myeong-seok loved Maple. Even Maple prayed and begged the Lord to help her love Jeong Myeong-seok.
While he was in prison, Jeong Myeong-seok had promised her that he would let her sit right next to him on a golf cart. Jeong Myeong-seok kept his promise, and Maple started respecting him more.
Brainwashing Maple
After becoming Myeong-seok’s favorite, Maple was invited to Cheonggiwa, Jeong Myeong-seok’s residence at Wolmyeongdong, all alone. Maple felt superior because she was going to meet the Lord all by herself. Not everyone got a chance to visit him at his residence.
One of Jeong Myeong-seok’s informants had to leave for Seoul, and that’s why Maple was asked to stay with Jeong Myeong-seok. During this night, Jeong Myeong-seok sexually assaulted Maple.
Jeong Myeong-seok laughed and claimed that god has given her his love, and she can’t tell her father because he won’t understand. A confused Maple called the informant to tell her what just happened, and that informant convinced her that Jeong Myeong-seok adores her and is showering his love on her.
Maple was invited to Cheonggiwa again and was brainwashed to a point where she felt this was normal. She acted just like the other women before her and allowed Myeong-seok to sexually assault another woman in front of her.
How did Maple expose Jeong Myeong-seok?
Maple was confused about everything going on at JMS, and she was in no position to even talk to somebody about it.
Some of the foreign stars at JMS couldn’t speak Korean, and Maple used to interpret for them. One of these stars contacted Maple and asked her if she has been assaulted because many of the other stars have been assaulted too. The foreign star advised Maple to escape the place.
Maple then made the decision to leave after hearing these claims. She told the JMS that she hasn’t seen her parents for a year. She said she misses them and wants to meet them, and she assured JMS that she will be quick to return.
The same day, Maple also got vaccinated, so she had a high fever. Still, Jeong Myeong-seok came to visit her in order to assault her again one last time before she could leave. Maple quietly recorded their conversations that night.
To expose Jeong Myeong-seok’s truth, Maple came forward. On March 16, 2022, Maple, who had gone to Hong Kong, returned to Korea to attend a press conference where she told the world what Jeong Myeong-seok had done to her.
Did Jeong Myeong-seok get arrested?
The JMS tried to stop Maple from giving an interview to the team of In the Name of God: A Holy Betrayal. They followed her to the shoot location, but Maple didn’t back down from talking against Jeong Myeong-seok.
Some of the people on the internet attacked her and her family for speaking up, while some of the investigators and victims felt bad as they weren’t able to stop Jeong Myeong-seok years ago when he was first caught. At that time, Maple was just a baby, and that baby is now one of the victims.
Maple’s father supported her through these tough times. He stood behind her back while she exposed this fake Messiah. Maple started drawing to control her anger, and that led her to discover a new talent.
Jeong Myeong-seok continued to claim his innocence by hiring a large law firm. Still, on October 4, 2022, the court placed him under arrest for his crimes.
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