Prayer Alert! China Continues Its Anti-Church Campaign without Signs of Stopping

I have received the following prayer alert, dated Friday 27 June 2014 from International Christian Concern:

Prayer Alert:

  

China Continues Its Anti-Church Campaign without Signs of Stopping

Dear Friend,

International Christian Concern (ICC) continues to follow the developing situation in China as the country continues its widespread and massive anti-church crackdown with 360 churches in Zhejiang province alone having been destroyed and/or their crosses (or steeples) torn down.  On the morning of June 20, 2014, believers from Yahui Church of Pingyang County responded in a peaceful protest as the government lowered the church's cross.  Believers burst into tears and sang a hymn, "Cross, cross, be my glory forever; all my sins have been washed away by the blood of Jesus." Watch the powerful video here.

About Video:

Published on 25 Jun 2014 by International Christian Concern

Chinese Christians published a public letter to the local government and asked for communication facing the massive anti-church campaign in Wenzhou City. However, within the week from the day the letter was published, Yahui Church in Pingyang County was forcibly removed on Friday morning. The video shows while the cross was slowly removed by a government construction machine, believers were bursting into tears and singing the Chinese hymn "cross, cross, be my glory forever; all my sins have been washed away by the blood of Jesus." Video link: http://youtu.be/-pqOrW5JvrQ

  

Please stop and pray fervently for China.

• Pray for the safety of the Christians in China who are defending their churches from demolition or modification.  Christians in the area have vowed to "guard their church to the end."  

• Pray for the Christians in China who are targeted and often attacked, oppressed, and harassed by the government simply for their faith in Christ. 

• Pray for the blessing of the millions of Christians in China who are forced to worship in underground house churches.  

• Pray for courage and faith of the Christians who are taking a stand against the government crackdown. 

• Pray that the truth about the anti-church campaign will be revealed and China's treatment of Christians will gain the international attention it warrants.  

• Pray for the unity of the Church in China facing persecution.

Sincerely in Christ,

Jeff King

President, ICC

- Matthew 5:10-12 (ESV) -

#China #ChristianPersecution #VOM #Pray #HumanRights #UN

CHINA: Free Gao Zhisheng

Date of Bulletin: 11 February 2014

China

February 4 marked the five-year anniversary of the disappearance of Christian attorney Gao Zhisheng. The  Chinese government has tried to silence him since 2005 because of his work defending persecuted Christians in China. Gao's wife and two children, who were also abused and tormented by the police, escaped to the United States in March 2009 and were later granted political refugee status.

Gao reappeared briefly in March 2010 but disappeared again after spending a weekend visiting relatives. In  March 2012, it was learned that Gao was being held at the Shaya prison in a remote part of Xinjiang, in far western China. Gao's older brother and father-in-law have visited him, but it has been more than a year since Gao's family has been allowed to contact him, even though they and the attorneys they have hired to represent Gao have made numerous attempts.

Source: China Aid

Photo: Gao Zhisheng

Pray & Take Action!

• Please pray for Gao Zhisheng's release and for his safety in prison.
• Pray for his wife and children who eagerly await his release. 
• You can sign the petition to free Gao at FreeGao.com.

"For He looked down from the height of His sanctuary; from heaven the LORD viewed the earth, to hear the groaning of the prisoner, to release those appointed to death." Ps. 102:19-20

Voice Of the Martyrs assists Christians in China by providing Bibles, Christian literature, scholarships for training and emergency aid to families of prisoners.

Transcending Fear: The Story of Gao Zhisheng (Trailer)

Please visit  transcendingfearfilm.com

Prayer Request: Yang Rongli - China

http://www.be-a-voice.net/

Prisoner Profile

Prisoner Name: Yang Rongli

LOCATION: China
ARRESTED: November 2009
REVISED: 11 August 2013




On Nov. 25, 2009, Pastor Yang Rongli and four other Linfen-Fushan church leaders from Shanxi Province were sentenced to criminal detention for two to seven years, according to China Aid Association. The five church leaders were accused of "gathering people to disturb the public order," because they organized a prayer rally on Sept. 14, the day after 400 military police raided the church's grounds. During the raid, more than 30 believers were seriously wounded and 17 buildings were destroyed.

Release Date

Yang Rongli is scheduled to be released in 2017
.

Yang Rongli Severly Ill - August 2013

Halfway through her sentence, Yang Rongli is suffering with severe medical problems. She is suffering from
diabetes, high blood pressure, and hepatitis € she feels dizzy and disoriented all the time. The prison will not
provide the medical care she desperately needs.

Please pray for her health and that the prison officials will have mercy on her and allow her to receive treatment.

Pebbles for Christ is a volunteer voice for the persecuted church.

You too could become an advocate voice for the persecuted church in your local church and community by becoming a member of VOM's Be-A-Voice Network. The Be-A-Voice Network is an online volunteer opportunity created by The Voice of the Martyrs. This ministry allows friends like you to help our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world in a real and immediate way. If you are willing to PRAY, WRITE or SHARE with others, then the Be-A-Voice Network is the tool for you. Click here to visit Be-A-Voice's website.

Prayer Request: Wenxi Li - China

Prisoner Profile

PRISONER NAME: Wenxi Li

 

LOCATION: China
ARRESTED: December 2012
REVISED: 25 July 2013



A Christian bookstore employee, Wenxi Li, and another man associated with the
bookstore, Lacheng Ren, were arrested and sentenced to prison terms for their role in
the Enyu Bookstore in Taiyuan. On June 17, 2013, Wenxi Li was sentenced to two years
in prison by the court of Xiaodian district of Taiyuan in central China.

In 2012, Wenxi Li, a book store worker in Beijing, traveled to Shanxi province to help
local Christians there open a new book store in the capital city of Taiyuan. But police
raided the new business, Enyu Bookstore, and confiscated hundreds of books that
Wenxi had brought with him from Beijing.

According to the South China Morning Post, one security worker allegedly shouted at
Wenxi and his co-workers, "Don't you dare bring Christian culture here. This is our turf."

On Dec. 19, 2012, Wenxi was asked to come to a police station to retrieve the $6,000
worth of books that police had seized. But when he arrived at the police station, he was immediately arrested and sent to prison. Police were quoted as saying Wenxi was denied bail because of the seriousness of his "crime."

His wife, Cai Hong Li, said police told her that her husband was arrested because he was involved in an "illegal business." However, Cai Hong said the bookstore had a legal license to operate and that her husband was not involved with managing the business. He was "just sent to find a rental place for a new store," Cai Hong said.

Since her husband's arrest, Cai Hong said she and her two children have received harassment from anonymous sources. She added that she fears for her children's safety.

While in prison awaiting trial, Wenxi led three people to Christ. His family is planning to appeal his case.

Please pray for Lacheng Ren and Wenxi Li.

Prayer Request: Lacheng Ren - China

Prisoner Profile

PRISONER NAME: Lacheng Ren

 

LOCATION: China
ARRESTED: December 2012
REVISED: 19 July 2013



Lacheng Ren, a Christian sponsoring a new Christian bookstore in Taiyuan, and Wenxi Li, a Christian bookstore employee, were arrested and sentenced to prison terms for their role in the Enyu Bookstore in Taiyuan. On June 17, 2013, Lacheng Ren was sentenced to five years in prison by the court of Xiaodian district of Taiyuan in central China.

In 2012, Wenxi Li, a book store worker in Eijing, traveled to Shanxi provice to help local Christians there open a new book store in the captial city of Taiyuan. But police raided the new business, Enyu Bookstore, and confiscated hundreds of books that Wenxi had brought with him from Beijing.

According to the South China Morning Post, one security worker allegedly shouted at Wenxi and his co-workers, "Don't you dare bring Christian culture here. This is our turf!"

On Dec. 19, 2013, Wenxi was asked to come to a police station to retrieve the $6,000 worth of books that police had seized. But when he arrived at the police station, he was immediately arrested and sent to prison. Police were quoted as saying Wenxi was denied bail because of the seriousness of his "crime".

Shortly after Wenxi was arrested, in an apparently coordinated move, Lancheng Ren was also arrested at his home. Lancheng Ren is not an employee of the bookstore, but is one of the founders.

Please pray for Lacheng Ren and Wenxi Li.

Prayer Request: China's House Churches

Shockwave 2013

http://www.opendoors.org.au/comingevents/youthevents2013

SHOCKWAVE is an exciting global prayer movement that focuses on uniting youth and young adults, from all over the world, together in prayer for the persecuted Church. Do not miss your opportunity to be part of the global SHOCKWAVE.

Prisoner Profile: Alimujiang Yimiti

Prisoner Profile

PRISONER NAME: Alimujiang Yimiti

LOCATION: China
ARRESTED: February 2008
REVISED: January 29, 2013
  
In September 2007 Chinese government officials closed Alimujiang Yimiti's business and accused him of using it as a cover up for "preaching Christianity among people of
Uyghur ethnicity." He was later arrested in January 2008 and accused of "subversion of the national government and endangering national security," a crime punishable by
death.


Alimujiang, a former Muslim, became a Christian more than 10 years ago and has
been an active Christian in the growing Uyghur church. On May 27, Alimujiang's case went to trial. His case was referred back to the Chinese Public Security Bureau's prosecutors due to "insufficient evidence." He remains in custody.

A Brief Overview of the Case:

On Sept. 13, 2007, the Kashi Municipal Bureau for Ethnic and Religious Affairs of Xinjiang stated: "Since 2002, Alimujiang Yimiti has been engaging, in the name of employment, in activities of illegal religious infiltration which include preaching Christianity among the people of Uyghur ethnicity, distributing religious materials and converting Christians."

However, on Jan. 12, 2008, the Kashi Municipal Public Security Bureau placed Alimujiang on criminal detention on the two charges of "suspicion of inciting people to secede from China" and "illegally providing state secrets to foreigners." On Feb. 20, he was formally arrested.

On Aug. 6, 2009, the Kashi District Intermediate Court secretly sentenced Alimujiang to 15 years imprisonment on the charge of "illegally providing state secrets to foreign nationals."
It was not until Oct. 27 that the court in Kashi notified Alimujiang's wife, Gulinuer, and his lawyer of the sentence. Alimujiang appealed.

On March 6, 2010, the Higher People's Court of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region tried the case in private, refusing to let the lawyer appear in court. They upheld the ruling from the Kashi District Intermediate Court, sentencing Alimujiang to 15 years of imprisonment and depriving him of political rights for five years.

On April 12, 2010, Alimujiang's wife Gulinuer got a phone call notifing her that Alimujiang had been transferred from Kashi Detention Center to serve his sentence in No. 3 Prison of Xinjiang in Urumqi.

In Nov. 2010, the Higher People's Court of Xinjiang accepted the appeal by Alimujiang's wife and mother and decided to retry Alimujiang's case of "disclosing top state secrets". After Christmas 2010, the Higher People's Court of Xinjiang told Gulinuer that they had already made the decision through a collegial bench on December 20.

In Feb. 2011, the Higher People's Court of Xinjiang notified Alimujiang, who is serving his sentence, that they upheld the original sentence of 15 years of imprisonment in the reconsideration.

Family Visits to Alimujiang Cut

Prison officials informed Alimujiang's wife, Gulinuer, that her monthly visits to the prison were being reduced to one visit every three months. Gulinuer went to visit her husband on Jan. 23, but was denied entry. Their last meeting in November 2012 lasted just 15 minutes. Since then, she has only spoken to her husband once by phone, on New Year's Day. Gulinuer believes the prison authorities' decision could be connected to her husband's current appeal. His lawyer believes the restrictions are illegal, since the normal allowance for prison visits is once per month.

Please add

Alimujiang Yimiti

to your prayer list.