Chinese Christians in prayers amidst persecution
The persecution of Christians is a historical phenomenon. The Romans crucified Jesus and persecuted Christians, while the Jews also persecuted Christians. The Chinese government is on a similar path, declaring war on Christians in the country, leading to the demolition of churches, the cross, and anything related to Christianity.
According to an analysis, it is estimated that there are about 28.29 million Chinese Christians that openly practice their religious doctrine, while there are nearly 11.67 million hidden Christians in China, therefore, it can be considered that there are about 39.97 million Christians in the country in 2016.
It baffles me a lot to see the Chinese government when it comes to money executes projects in Islamic and Christian countries in Africa, yet dealing ruthlessly with Christians in their country because of religious beliefs.
In the Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan, the largest Buddhist academy in Tibetan Buddhism was under the threat of demolition. Also on the east coast of Zhejiang province, a violent demolition campaign
started by the government in 2013, resulting in the destruction of nearly 400
churches and the cross.
Many religious leaders and personalities in China have been arrested or detained by the government. In Guizhou, western China, a pastor of the house church 'Live Stone,' was sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison, after the government accused him of leaking state secrets, while a priest in Beijing was under house arrest for six years.
However, according to Zhang Kai, a Christian lawyer, who was detained by the authorities because of the protection of the rights of the Zhejiang church, the number of Christians in China increased from 6 million in 1980 to 67 million in 2010, an annual growth rate of up to 10%, despite the persecution.
The question everyone wants to know is why is the Chinese government oppressing Christians?
China's secret intelligence fears everything. In 2016, Xi Jinping organized an unusual meeting of leaders on religious policy and urged the CCP to beware of foreign forces using religion to infiltrate China.
The Chinese government then drafted a new regulation aimed at controlling and tightening the laws associated with religious groups.
The new regulations also cover religious schools and foreign religious writings, making it more difficult for house churches across China to operate without official registration.
Can these new rules or laws help the Chinese government to subdue the growth of Christianity in the country? In fact, the government is indeed fighting a fruitless battle.
If Xi Jinping, the Chinese leader, wants to know if he will be successful or not in Christianity suppression, then he must find the answer at Ecclesiastes 8:9.
"All this I saw, as I applied my mind to everything done under the sun. There is a time when a man lords it over others to his own hurt."
No comments:
Post a Comment