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China

• Members of Raided Church Detained

  

  On March 10th, the members of the Maizhong Reformed Church in Fuyang, Anhui province, were gathered at a restaurant when their meeting was suddenly raided by local police. Without showing identification or giving reasons for the raid, the police began interrogating the Christians. Officials from the local religious affairs bureau, along with national security agents, also entered the restaurant and began taking pictures.

• Report Updates

  The following three reports provide up-to-date information received from
  ChinaAid regarding the recent court cases of Christian leaders in China.

  

  Xi'an Church of Abundance
  In August 2022, three ministers from the Church of Abundance located in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, were detained on allegations of fraud. (See more details on their detentions.)The three church leaders were identified as Lian Changnian, Lian Xuliang and Fu Juan. Though these believers were placed in "residential surveillance at a designated location," their families received no information on their whereabouts for a duration of six months. During that time, the detained Christians endured starvation, deprivation and other forms of torture.

• Detained Preacher Subjected to Abuse and Delays

  

  The family of Chang Hao is calling for prayer after learning that conditions in prison have significantly worsened for the disabled Christian man. During a previous visit with his lawyer, Chang described the harsh treatment he was receiving from prison officials. Those concerns were brought to the attention of the prison authorities but, according to Chang, this disclosure resulted in even harsher conditions.

• Another Church Ordered to Remove Crosses

  

  For more than 30 years, crosses were allowed to be displayed by Christian churches throughout China. However, as of 2014, the situation began to reverse. Beginning in Zhejiang Province, over 1,000 crosses were forcibly removed from Christian buildings over a three-year period. The enforcement of that campaign then spread to other provinces.

• Pastor John Cao Released After Seven Years in Prison

  

  Originally from Hunan province, Pastor John Cao is a permanent resident of the United States and also happens to be married to an American citizen. Before his arrest, he served as a missionary in Myanmar's Wa State, building schools and caring for impoverished people in the region. As part of his ministry work, Pastor John frequently crossed the border between China and Myanmar. The Christian leader was able to continue his ministry activities for three years without encountering any problems from the authorities.

• Christians Arrested for Leading Children in Worship

  

  According to an anonymous prayer letter received by ChinaAid, three Christians were arrested and detained on January 18th because they had led children from their church in singing hymns and prayer. The next day, police raided the homes of the three detained church members, who have been identified as Dai Chuanli, Wang Dandan and Ma Jiahui. Each of these believers was given a 15-day administrative detention.

• Patriotic Education Law Takes Effect

  

  In recent years, efforts by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to control all areas of society has increased exponentially. On October 24th, the national legislature passed a "Patriotic Education Law" which took effect on January 1st. The purpose of this law is clear: to ensure that the philosophies and principles of the CCP permeate every facet of society.

• Police Question Church Elder and Confiscate His Computer

  

  For the past five years, Elder Li Yingqiang has been repeatedly subjected to questioning and detention since the Chinese Communist Party began targeting the Early Rain Covenant Church. (For previously published reports on Elder Li, see this list.)
  
  In the most recent incident, Elder Li was taken by Deyang police officers for interrogation on December 15th. They questioned him about a pre-recorded message that was played on December 9th as part of an online event commemorating the fifth anniversary of the government's crackdown on the church. After being summoned again on December 19th, the church elder was detained for another eight hours for further questioning. In addition to warning him against participating in any future online church activities, the authorities confiscated his computer.

• Further Repercussions Follow Church Raid

  

  Over five years ago, the Early Rain Covenant Church in China was raided, leading to multiple arrests. In the years that have followed, the Chinese Communist Party has made a concerted effort to harass the members of this Christian community in an attempt to completely shut down the church. To read previously published reports on the persecution of these believers, go to our list of reports about the Early Rain Covenant Church.

• Preacher Charged with "Picking Quarrels"

  

  Chang Hao is a house church preacher in Zhenxiong, Yunnan Province. Because of his Christian faith, as well as his frequent advocacy for social justice issues, he has been interrogated by police several times. On the evening of April 14th, Chang was taken into custody by the Public Security Bureau. The believer's Bible was also confiscated by authorities, along with various other items.