120 House Church Members Arrested

09 April 2003

On April 8, Asia Harvest reported that 120 house church members were arrested on April 4 by police, many of them leaders of the Local Church, one of several Chinese church groups that comes from the root of Watchman Nee teaching. Twenty members were later released, but 100 remain in custody.

The Local Church is considered an "evil cult" by the Chinese government and those arrested often face severe beating and torture. A significant part of the Local Church fell into error in the late 70's and 80's, following the false teachings of Li Changshou. However, reports from China suggest that, at present, at least 60% of the Local Church remain solid, Bible-believing Christians.

Pray for those arrested, that they will be kept safe and will be released soon. Pray for Christians throughout China who face the constant threat of harassment and prison.

China

Current Ministry Projects
The Voice of the Martyrs Canada continues to help distribute Bibles to Christians in the country, making it possible for them to have their own printed version of God's Word. Additionally, VOMC works with various mission partners to facilitate a Biblical understanding of persecution and discipleship, while presenting ways to effectively respond and minister within the context of hostility.

Project Funds: Underground Church, Bible, Relief & Development
Country Information
Population
1,413,142,846 (2023 est.)

Ethnicity (%)
Han Chinese (91.1), ethnic minorities (8.9 - includes Zhang, Hui, Manchu, Uighur, Miao, Yi, Tujia, Tibetan, Mongol, Dong, Buyei, Yao, Bai, Korean, Hani, Li, Kazakh, Dai, and other nationalities) (2021 est.)

Religion (%)
Folk religion (21.9), Buddhist (18.2), Christian (5.1), Muslim (1.8), Hindu (< 0.1), Jewish (< 0.1), other (0.7 - includes Daoist [Taoist]), unaffiliated (52.1) (2021 est.)

Leader
President Xi Jinping (2013)

Government type
Communist party-led state

Legal system
Based on civil law system; influenced by Soviet and continental European civil law systems

Sources: CIA World Factbook
Pray for China
Pray that the Gospel will be proclaimed throughout China without government interference so many more names can be added to the Lamb's "Book of Life." May there also be a spirit of unity demonstrated among the country's growing churches, further strengthening existing believers and spurring them on in their ministry service and evangelistic outreach within the country's numerous communities.