Persecution of Christians in China: as we have reported here for quite some time, the Chinese government is in the midst of an all-out campaign to turn Christianity into a weak religion that is entirely subservient to the Chinese Communist Party, and that doesn’t teach anything that would lead Chinese people away from Communist Party dogma. In fact, the government is trying to turn the Church into another organ for its propaganda; hence the war on the livestreaming of Christian services that are unfiltered by party dogma, as reported in this story.
This is a matter of grave concern for Orthodox Christians in China and all other Christians as well. Holy Orthodoxy in China predates this war on Christianity. It has a three-hundred year history in China, with the first Orthodox Christians coming into the country in 1685. In the 1980s, the Chinese Orthodox Church began to experience a revival.
Pray that it not be snuffed out. The Order of Saint Andrew, Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, requests once again that the Chinese government end these repressive measures, grant official recognition to the Chinese Orthodox Church, and give full religious freedom to all the Christians of that nation.
For previous ChristianPersecution.com coverage of the persecution of Christians in China, see here.
“Wuhan police raid pastor’s home, pull him away during Christian Zoom event: watchdog,” by Caleb Parke, Fox News, May 26, 2020:
A Christian pastor in Wuhan, China — where the coronavirus outbreak originated — was pulled away by police Saturday during an evangelical event on Zoom, according to a Christian persecution watchdog.
The preacher, identified only as Luo from Nanjing Road Church in the Hubei province, “was taken away by the police because he posted the gospel online,” the Chinese Christian Righteous Fellowship shared in a Facebook post.
International Christian Concern (ICC) said the “Proclaim Jesus Gospel Gathering” on Zoom was an all-day event with a morning and afternoon session, and the police showed up around noon to “look for evangelism materials or publications before taking Luo away.”
Police reportedly interrogated Pastor Luo at the station for four and a half hours.
“I rebuke them, calling them out that they are not minding business that they should be minding,” Luo was quoted as saying. “Christians disregarded their own lives to do good things, yet the police treat them as the bad guys, this is unreasonable.
“I also told them a few times in all seriousness, I will only live for Christ, I will not argue on other matters. However, I will never change [my persistence] about evangelism.”
Luo and his church started handing out free masks and gospel pamphlets on the streets of Wuhan when the virus first broke out, and many people have been receptive and welcoming to both during these difficult days….
Earlier this year, Open Doors USA CEO David Curry warned that China, under President Xi Jinping, was building a “blueprint for persecution” as Christians have been under constant surveillance, not just on the streets, but also in their churches, which have been torn down, and holy books confiscated.
