House church leader sentenced to labour camp

ChinaAid Association 04 August 2011

Pastor Shi Enhao, vice-president of the Chinese House Church Alliance, has been sentenced to two years of “re-education” in a labour camp.
Photo: ChinaAid

The deputy chairman of the Chinese House Church Alliance, Pastor Shi Enhao, has been sentenced to two years of "re-education through labour," an extra-judicial punishment that is handed out by police and requires no trial or conviction of a crime. He has been charged with "illegal meetings and illegal organising of venues for religious meetings." This charge stems from the fact that Pastor Shi's large house church of several thousand members meets in various different sites around the city.

Meanwhile, the police's Domestic Security Protection Department has ordered Pastor Shi's church to stop meeting and has confiscated the congregation's car, musical instruments, choir robes and 140,000 Yuan (approximately $20,900 CAD) in donations.

Please pray the Lord will protect and sustain Pastor Shi, his family and his congregation. Pray they will keep their eyes on Jesus, persevere in their faith, and not grow weary or lose heart (Hebrews 10:32-39; 12:1-3). Pray for Pastor Shi's release and, in the meantime, that he will have opportunities to share the gospel in prison.

For more information about persecution in China, please visit 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.