Churches raided; members detained

ChinaAid 18 November 2010

Officials in China raided at least two churches in recent weeks. On November 10, Public Security Bureau officers and representatives from the Bureau of Religion disrupted a church meeting being held in the city of Shuangcheng, Heilongjiang province. The general ledger of the church was confiscated. On the morning of November 12, local officials and members of the Bozhou Bureau of Religion raided a house-church meeting held in Pingyao county, in Shanxi province. Several items belonging to the church were confiscated. Officials took at least 10 believers away, and five of them were detained until late afternoon.

Pray for encouragement for these believers as they face oppression for their faith. Pray that the Church in China will undergo such trials with Christ-like endurance and faithfulness. Pray that the Chinese government will truly respect the religious freedom of its citizens.

For more on the persecution of Christians in China, go to the China Country Report.

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.