Persecution in China Is Very Real
While the tactics may be different and more subtle, we are dismayed to find that many of the goals remain the same, particularly when it involves the "house church" movement. There continue to be too many religious freedom abuses in China and it remains unfortunate that many elements of the Chinese central government and security forces continue to see the "house church" as a threat that must be eradicated if it does not conform. Christans in China are hoping for a different future and for opportunities to assist their country address massive future problems of spiritual bankruptcy, materialism, and poor systems of elderly care, education, and rural health.
I want to thank my colleagues Brent Fulton and Jan Vermeer for their opinions and their expertise. As Christianity in China continues to grow and Chinese becomes (hopefully) a society open to more international engagement, there is a need to build a working consensus among the worldwide church and parachurch agencies on how best to engage government entities dealing with religion, how to encourage more openness, and how to equip Chinese Christians with the capacity to flourish without (again hopefully ) government oversight, persecution, and control. That is the mission to which ChinaAid remains committed.
Bob Fu is founder and president of ChinaAid.
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audrey ruth
The current issue of World magazine gives firsthand accounts of women (and their husbands with them) enduring incomprehensible pain and suffering because of China's persecution of their unborn children who are not their firstborns. One woman is profiled in this issue telling of how she was forced to undergo an abortion at 7 months gestation. She has had severe physical consequences as a result, which continue to this day. There are other horror stories, too. I know this is not exactly persecution of Christians, but it's unimaginably horrific. It seems there's not much a society which is this cold-hearted wouldn't do. Once murder of nascent children in the womb becomes acceptable, the slippery slope becomes very steep indeed. Not only in China, but in America as well.
Ted Marr
Having been doing business in Hangzhou China for 10 years, I totally agree with the two authors. Ted Marr
Steve Skeete
Irrespective of which of our brothers have the true or full story about Christianity in China, three things seem clear. First, that Chinese authority is suspicious of anything that is aligned to, supported by or even seeks to emulate the West in any way. As long as Christianity is regarded as a foreign import of Western origin and derivation, the Chinese government will remain hostile towards it. Secondly, Chinese leaders are wary of anything they cannot control, and protestant House Churches have no intention of being controlled. Thirdly, Communism suffers from a peculiar brand of paranoia which leads it to fear all opposition, criticism or deviation from the party line. Given these three features of life in China it would be impossible for there not to be persecution to a greater or lesser degree and from time to time. Communists, being atheists, have a built-in animus towards faith, but most particularly Christianity which refuses to acknowledge its state-sponsored deities.