Tag: Crosses

China: TV ‘confession’ of Christian lawyer

March 2, 2016 China China, Crosses, Wenzhou, Zhang Kai, Zhejiang

A well-known Christian rights lawyer who tried to help prevent a wave of by Chinese authorities has appeared on state television confessing to crimes after a months-long disappearance – the latest case in China’s widening crackdown on Christians. On a news programme on state-controlled Wenzhou TV on 25 Feb., Zhang . . . Read More

China: Zhejiang pastor jailed for 14 years

February 26, 2016 China China, Crosses, Jinhua, Joseph Gu, Zhejiang

A Chinese pastor has been sentenced to 14 years in jail, and his wife to 12 years, after they were found guilty of corruption, financial crimes and gathering people to disturb social order, an official provincial newspaper reported today (26 Feb.). Both Bao Guohua, the pastor of a state-sanctioned church, . . . Read More

China pastor arrest ‘politically motivated’

February 2, 2016 China China, Chongyi Church, Crosses, Hangzhou, Hong Kong, Joseph Gu, Zhejiang

The pastor of China’s largest official Protestant church has been detained and accused with embezzling funds. Rights activists claim his detention is “politically motivated”, after he spoke out against the government’s . Gu Yuese is pastor of Chongyi Church in Hangzhou, a government-approved church with around 10,000 members. He was . . . Read More

Analysis: What to make of China’s demolition of crosses?

September 22, 2015 China Crosses, Sanjiang, Xi Jinping, Zhejiang

Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to the US once again throws into the spotlight China’s human rights record, including that on freedom of religion. Despite China’s past, it is now generally acknowledged that Christianity is growing at a great rate. In 2007, it was estimated that the population of Christians . . . Read More

Cross removal ‘escalates’ in eastern China

August 13, 2015 China China, Churches, Crosses, Xi Jinping, Zhejiang

Christian groups in China have told the BBC they are increasingly worried that the authorities are targeting them because of their religion, as the past year has seen an “escalated campaign” to remove outdoor crosses from church buildings. The rise in demolitions in the eastern province of Zhejiang, where there . . . Read More

Businessman building Pakistan’s largest cross

May 19, 2015 Pakistan Crosses, Karachi, Minorities, Pakistan

A Pakistani businessman is building the tallest cross in the country hoping it will be an inspiration to his country’s approximately three per cent Christian minority. Parvez Henry Gill, 58, has spent a year building one of the world’s largest crosses at the entrance to a Christian cemetery in Karachi, . . . Read More

China’s ‘demolition campaign’ goes on

May 14, 2015 China China, Crosses, Zhejiang

China is set to continue removing crosses from church rooftops in the eastern province of Zhejiang, despite a bishop’s claim in March that the so-called “demolition campaign” against hundreds of churches had ended. Bishop Paul Meng Qinglu told UCA News the alleged campaign had been stopped after complaints from church . . . Read More

China’s church ‘demolition campaign’ ends

March 20, 2015 China China, Crosses, Zhejiang

An alleged ‘demolition campaign’ against churches in a province in eastern China has ended, a Chinese bishop has claimed. Bishop Paul Meng Qinglu told UCA News the alleged campaign in Zhejiang province, south of Shanghai, was stopped after complaints from church leaders across China. More than 400 crosses were removed . . . Read More

Plight of Christians in Myanmar under-reported

February 18, 2015 Myanmar Buddhist nationalism, Chin, Crosses, Kachin, Minorities, Myanmar, Rohingya

The Huffington Post reports that, while persecution of the Rohingya Muslim minority in the majority Buddhist country has attracted much international attention, in Chin State – along Myanmar’s northwest border – a predominantly Christian population faces its own challenges and restrictions. “There is no improvement with regard to religious freedom . . . Read More

China’s anti-church drive jails pastor for 10 yrs

September 2, 2014 China China, Churches, Crosses, Wenzhou, Zhejiang

“A Chinese preacher is facing up to a decade in prison after he was detained on what supporters say are trumped up charges intended to weaken resistance to an ongoing crackdown targeting the country’s rapidly growing Christian community,” The Telegraph reports. Pastor Huang Yizi, 40, was arrested in Wenzhou on . . . Read More

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