Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin - No. 259 - Wed 18 Feb 2004

------------------------------------ CHINA: CHURCH DEMOLITION AND ARRESTS plus URGENT SUDAN REQUEST ------------------------------------

At 4 am on 26 June 2003, police arrived at the Tu Du Sha Church in Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, with orders to bulldoze it. Expecting the church to be empty, they were surprised to find some 300 believers there praying. They left and returned at 8 am with 200 military police. Despite the believers' protests, the police demolished the church, which was started around 1930 by China Inland Mission, and had grown in size to a weekly attendance of 1500 members. Unbeknown to the police, a believer managed to video the demolition. That video was smuggled out of China to Voice of the Martyrs. <http://www.persecution.com/china>. In January 2004, Chinese government officials saw the video and launched a fresh crackdown on the house-churches.

The Church is growing in China at an amazing rate. However, the only churches officially permitted are the government controlled Three Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM) churches. So the government decides what Christians in TSPM churches are taught (a 'Christianity that is compatible with Marxism'), who teaches them (government appointed preachers), and who is taught (no one under the age of 18). The presence of the TSPM churches also enables the Chinese government to present a facade of religious liberty. But some 80 million Chinese believers reject this system and choose to worship in unregistered house-churches. Unregistered worship is illegal, and believers, especially pastors and evangelists, face violent persecution if arrested.

On the evening of 24 January, house-church leader Ms Qiao Chunling (41) of Fangcheng City, Henan province, was arrested during a house- church service at Guanlin, Luoyang City. Mr Zeng Guangbo (35), a Beijing military policeman and now prominent house-church leader in the Born Again Movement, was arrested on 25 January at a house- church at Zengzhuang village in Henan province. He has since escaped custody and is in hiding.

Ms Xu Yongling ('Deborah' Xu, 58) was arrested from her niece's home at 11 pm on 25 January. Deborah Xu is the younger sister of prominent house-church leader Peter Xu Yongze, who now lives in the USA. Deborah is the present leader of Peter Xu's 'Born Again Movement' church, with millions of members throughout China. She has been arrested many times in the past. She is also actively involved with the burgeoning Chinese missionary movement. No one has been able to get any information on Deborah Xu's whereabouts. Police in Nanyang will not even say if she has been charged with anything. A relative was told however that Deborah's case is being handled by the Chinese federal government's Department of State Security.

PLEASE PRAY SPECIFICALLY FOR:

* God, by a powerful movement of his Holy Spirit, to advance the Chinese revival through the multitudes and right into the halls of power, bringing with it justice, righteousness and salvation - transforming the nation so it may be a blessing to the world. (A job for the Lord's powerful arm.)

* the multitudes of imprisoned Chinese Christians who suffer torture in interrogation, beatings, forced labour, deprivation and separation from family and loved ones; may they know the loving, protective closeness of Christ, and the reviving power of the Spirit. (A job for the Lord's loving 'shepherd' arm.)

Isaiah 40:10,11 tells us that the powerful, mighty arm with which the Lord rules (v10), is the same arm with which he gently gathers his lambs in order to carry them close to his heart (v11).

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SUMMARY TO USE IN BULLETINS UNABLE TO RUN THE WHOLE ARTICLE: ------------------------------------------------------------ CHINA: CHURCH DEMOLITION AND ARRESTS

Church demolitions and arrests of house-church leaders continue in China. The Chinese government is building more government controlled churches, partly for the purpose of presenting a facade of religious freedom, and partly to try and coax house-church believers into the Communist controlled churches. Three significant house-church leaders were arrested in late January. They are Ms Qiao Chunling (41), Mr Zeng Guangbo (35) a leader with the several million strong 'Born Again Movement' church, and Ms Xu Yongling ('Deborah' Xu, 58) who is the younger sister of prominent house-church leader Peter Xu Yongze who now lives in the USA. Deborah Xu is the present leader of Peter Xu's 'Born Again Movement' church, and is actively involved in the Chinese missionary movement. Although no one knows her whereabouts, her case is allegedly being handled by the Chinese federal government's Department of State Security.

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*** URGENT PRAYER REQUEST FOR SUDAN

Sudan Peace Talks resumed in Kenya on Tuesday 17 February and will run until 16 March. It is hoped that this round will finalise the peace deal. It is especially urgent that we pray, as the talks were adjourned in late January for 3 weeks, amidst tensions. The BBC reported that there was a 'bad spirit' in the air. Please pray this through, asking God to continue to direct the hearts of all involved towards peace (Proverbs 21:1), that solutions will be found and issues will be resolved with justice and fairness.

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The WEA Religious Liberty Commission sponsors this RL Prayer List to help individuals and groups pray specifically and regularly for religious liberty issues, and in particular to uphold the Church where it is suffering persecution.

RL Prayer is moderated by Ron Clough, a commissioner of the WEA RLC and convenor of the Australian EA RLC.

Elizabeth Kendal researched and authored this message.

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