China

Chinese authorities have detained a key official of an influential umbrella group of house churches in China as part of a wider crackdown on unauthorized worship in the country, rights activists and Chinese Christians said Thursday, June 2.

Pastors of “house” churches in China urged the country’s parliament to investigate a police crackdown on one of Beijing’s largest underground churches while Chinese Christian leaders in the United States and Canada launched a global signature campaign to support the embattled Shouwang Church, supporters said.

Chinese authorities have detained at least 10 “house” church leaders who were involved in a world evangelism congress, a well-informed religious rights group said Wednesday, April 27.

Chinese police harassed female members from one of Beijing’s largest underground Protestant churches before releasing them and most of other Christians detained Sunday, April 17, a church member told Worthy News.

Police detained dozens of members from one of the largest underground churches in China’s capital Beijing Sunday, April 17, as part of a wider crackdown on dissent, a Christian rights group said.

Chinese police detained “over 100 members” of one of China’s largest unregistered Protestant churches Sunday, April 10, after its members tried to hold an open-air prayer meeting in the capital Beijing, a Christian rights group said.

An ethnic minority house church leader remained detained in China’s troubled northwestern Xinjiang region Sunday, March 6, after a court rejected an appeal to review his 15 years prison sentence on charges of revealing state secrets to overseas groups.

Chinese officials in Guangzhou have banned “house churches” from holding services while the city prepares to host the 16th Asian Games.

Worthy News has just learned of two incidents of religious persecution in China, thanks to ChinaAid.

Members of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement Changchunli Church in Ji’nan, Shandong province, were attacked by a mob of over 200 people last week, according to ChinaAid.

Before they could attend the trial of house church Christians Liu Yunhua and Gao Jianli, Pastor Zhang “Bike” Mingxuan and his wife were detained by the Public Security Bureau.

A hearing in the trial of two members of a “house church” who appealed after they were both sentenced to labor camp “re-education” resumed Monday in Henan province.

Taiwanese Pastor Lu Daihao was visiting with local pastors when the house church was raided by over 100 Public Security Bureau (PSB) officers and government officials on September 7, 2010, according to ChinaAid.

An influential Chinese house church pastor was briefly detained in southern China shortly after authorities evicted his congregation from a hotel, his church and rights investigators said Friday, August 13.

Last September, a mob of over 200 men led by Chinese Communist officials injured at least thirty people and demolished a Christian-owned factory in Linfen, along with its house church, Worthy News learned on August 11.

Chinese church leader Wang Dao, was released on Sunday after being imprisoned on May 9, 2010 according to report obtained by Worthy News on June 17th.