About 1,000 churches attacked by new Communist Party policy in China, “If we refuse, we lose everything”
Almost 1,000 church crosses in China were removed by radical actions of the Communist Party. This worsens the situation for the believers in the country.
Within the first half of 2020, there were at least 900 crosses down in the main provinces of the country, according to Bitter Winter.
Authorities removed the crosses from churches in the following locations:
- Lu’an: 271.
- Fuyang: 168.
- Suzhou: 106.
- Chuzhou: 98.
In towns Bengbu, Huainan, Ma’anshan and Hefei they also removed 266 crosses.
According to what Bitter Winter reports, this is a clear objective of “denaturalization” of the churches by the communist authorities. They have confirmed that this is a new national policy that should be applied in all temples of Christian belief.
“If a church refuses to remove the cross, congregation members may lose their social benefits, such as pensions and poverty reduction grants, and the future employment prospects of their children will be affected,” a member of one of the affected churches told Bitter Winter.
The studies and work done by the United Front’s Department of Labor, explains that any cross that is taller than the buildings “is immediately removed” because it “eclipses the state institutions” and only ordinary buildings without the appearance of churches are authorized to have such objects.
“United Front Labor Department officials said all intersections higher than government buildings should be demolished because they overshadow state institutions. Only churches that look like businesses are considered legal. To ‘synthesize’ Christianity, Xi Jinping does not allow churches to have western crosses,” he added.
In addition to that, many members of different churches have denounced that those who rise up against this type of action are considered radicals who “rebel” against the authorities, because protesting against this is “protesting against the government.”
“The regime has also warned that “to protest the demolition of the crosses is to protest the government.” It saddens me to think that all the crosses in our church have been demolished. While it is a symbol of our faith, who dares to disobey the order of the central government,” said a believer from the church of Los Tres Autos.
Increasingly, religious persecution, specifically towards Christians, is becoming so strong that those affected wish to find a way out soon by clinging to God, for what they are living through because of their faith is unimaginable.
Crosses Removed from Churches Across Shandong Province
Ahead of provincial government inspections, local authorities ordered to eliminate crosses from the roofs of Protestant and Catholic venues from April through June.https://t.co/uzjgGkthBy— BitterWinterMagazine (@BitterWinterMag) August 6, 2020
Sponsored Links
