Pastor's Life Threatened by Government Official

ChinaAid 03 June 2021

Pastor Yang Hua - Photo: ChinaAid — Pastor Yang Hua
Photo: ChinaAid

The Living Stone Church in Guiyang City has faced repeated persecution from Chinese authorities. Imprisoned on December 9th, 2015, Pastor Yang Hua suffered mistreatment until his release in June 2018 (see this report). After his release, he continued to serve the church despite ongoing opposition. Another pastor of the church, Su Tianfu, was imprisoned in May 2018 for one year and then served six months of house arrest.

On May 23rd, 2021, Pastor Yang was arbitrarily detained at a local police station and questioned by a government official, who has since been identified as the district Secretary of the Central Politics and Legal Affairs Commission. During the interrogation, the official appeared to have lost his temper. Knocking Pastor Yang down, he yelled, "Believe it or not, I can beat you to death." As Pastor Yang got to his feet, he responded: "Whatever you want to do is fine. I will not fight back."

The enraged governmental leader continued to violently beat and choke the pastor. Eventually, Pastor Yang was taken to the nearest emergency room by ambulance. At last report, he remains hospitalized but is in stable condition.

Please pray that Pastor Yang will experience full physical healing from his injuries. Despite the fierce opposition he has endured at the hands of China's governmental officials, may he continue serving God with unwavering zeal and determination. Prayerfully remember the ongoing ministry of the Living Stone Church, asking the Lord to sustain and strengthen the other congregation members so they too can remain faithful to Him in all circumstances.

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.

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