News

Chinese House Church Leaders and Toddler Arrested After Singing in Public Park

Communist country proves it is serious about newest religious restrictions.

Christianity Today October 17, 2017
Kevin Frayer / Getty

A Chinese house church pastor, her daughter, and her young grandson have been arrested, weeks after being accused of overstepping the country’s newly tightened religious restrictions.

Chinese officials warned Xu Shizhen in August that publicly sharing her faith puts her in violation of the government policy. It wasn’t her first run-in with authorities; five years before, her previous church was forcibly seized by officials and given to China’s official Three-Self Patriotic Movement church, according to ChinaAid.

After that, she started Zion Church. By singing, dancing, and preaching in the parks and public spaces of Xianning, Hubei province, Xu’s ministry broke the new law, which confines most faith activities to the walls of registered churches.

Last month, Xu, her daughter Xu Yuqing, and her three-year-old grandson Xu Shouwang were arrested; the two women were transferred to other facilities while the boy was held at the station. Christian advocates in China report that their exact whereabouts remain unknown.

Their detention came just two weeks after China toughened up its restrictions on religious activities.

“The new religion regulations are sweeping in scope and, if fully enforced, could mean major changes for China’s unregistered church, not only in its worship and meeting practices, but also engagement in areas such as Christian education, media, and interaction with the global church,” wrote ChinaSource president Brent Fulton.

“Yet the nature of these activities and, indeed, of much religious practice throughout China, makes enforcement extremely problematic.”

It appears enforcement, at least in Xu’s Xianan district of Xianning, is going to be strict. The regulations—which include prohibitions against publishing religious materials without approval, accepting donations without approval, or renting space an unregistered church—don’t even officially go into effect until February 2018.

Other provinces have been coming down especially hard on religious education for children. In Zhejiang province—where hundreds of crosses were torn off churches over the past several years—elementary and middle school children weren’t allowed to attend church or Sunday school this summer.

In Wenzhou, a coastal city in Zhejiang province nicknamed “China’s Jerusalem,” officials warned more than 100 churches to keep their teens home from summer camps or Sunday schools.

North of Zhejiang, officials in Henan province also forbid church summer camps, claiming the hot summer temperatures would be unhealthy for youth.

China’s young Christians drew international attention over the summer when two were killed by ISIS in Pakistan. Meng Li Si, 26, and Li Xinheng, 24, were teaching in a private school in Quetta when they were kidnapped and murdered.

Their deaths prompted scrutiny from both China and Pakistan, where interior minister Chaundhry Nisar called for a tightening of the process that issues visas to Chinese nationals.

Meng and Li were in Pakistan on business visas, two among the thousands of Chinese sent west to help build infrastructure and trade routes as part of China’s “One Belt, One Road” trade push. The initiative has already been identified by China’s Christians—who want to send out thousands of missionaries—as a natural avenue for the gospel.

Also in this series

Our Latest

Justices Debate Christian Therapist’s Challenge to ‘Conversion Therapy’ Ban

Colorado evangelical Kaley Chiles calls the law a violation of her free speech.

Wire Story

Tony Evans Will No Longer Pastor Dallas Megachurch After Restoration

Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship announced that its pastor of 48 years won’t return to leadership. The church expects son Jonathan Evans to succeed him.

You Don’t Have to Be Radical

Most Christians aren’t monks, missionaries, or martyrs. We’re unimpressive and unsatisfactory—yet saved by God’s scandalous grace.

From a Village of Bandits to a Village of the Gospel

Stuartpuram in India’s Andhra Pradesh was once known for its armed robbers. Then the gospel changed them.

Four Truths About God for Children Who Can’t Sleep

And for the grownups—that’s all of us—who never outgrow their need for his presence around the clock.

Preservation Grants Help Black Churches Hold On to Their History

Over a hundred congregations have received up to a half-million dollars to repair deteriorating buildings and restore their place in their communities.

News

Two Years After October 7, Christians See Fruit amid the Suffering

Churches in Israel and Egypt provide food, aid, and a listening ear to those scarred by war.

Apple PodcastsDown ArrowDown ArrowDown Arrowarrow_left_altLeft ArrowLeft ArrowRight ArrowRight ArrowRight Arrowarrow_up_altUp ArrowUp ArrowAvailable at Amazoncaret-downCloseCloseEmailEmailExpandExpandExternalExternalFacebookfacebook-squareGiftGiftGooglegoogleGoogle KeephamburgerInstagraminstagram-squareLinkLinklinkedin-squareListenListenListenChristianity TodayCT Creative Studio Logologo_orgMegaphoneMenuMenupausePinterestPlayPlayPocketPodcastRSSRSSSaveSaveSaveSearchSearchsearchSpotifyStitcherTelegramTable of ContentsTable of Contentstwitter-squareWhatsAppXYouTubeYouTube