Issues@Hand

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June 2014 – Local pastors in China report the Chinese government has ordered the destruction of a dozen churches, while the government denies there is a demolition movement.

Churches in Zhejiang, a wealthy coastal province, have been notified their churches will be demolished or their crosses will be removed, and some have been ordered to turn their lights off at night to be less conspicuous.

In March, Christians flocked to the Sanjiang church in Wenzhou – a rich port city known as the Jerusalem of the East because of its large Christian community – after the church’s demolition was announced.

Wenzhou, a rich port city known as the Jerusalem of the East, is the home of more churches facing demolition. The area is considered the most Christian region of China with more than one million believers among its population of nine million.

In a recent speech, the provincial official in charge of religious affairs hinted at Communist Party discomfort with how fast congregations are growing. Feng Zhili, chairman of Zhejiang’s ethics and religious affairs committee, said Christianity’s growth had been “too excessive and too haphazard.”

While China is officially an atheist state, it offers formal recognition for five religions: Buddhism, Catholicism, Islam, Protestantism and Taoism.

Xi Jinping, the president, has been quoted as saying that China is “losing its moral compass” and thinks traditional faiths such as Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism could “help fill a void that has allowed corruption to flourish.”

telegraph.co.uk, 4/10/14