China:  House church crackdown gains momentum as Christians ordered to attend gov’t-approved church

Religious liberties organisation Release International has received reports that appear to confirm that a government campaign to eradicate unregistered churches is underway.

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The reports show that Chinese authorities are clamping down on Christians in Shandong province. All the members of an unregistered house church were visited in their homes by officials and ordered to attend government-approved Three Self churches instead. According to Release partner China Aid, a secret document was issued by the authorities last September aimed at ‘completely eradicating house churches’ in three phases. The first phase, from January to June this year, was to investigate unregistered churches and create files on them. China Aid trace the clampdown back to December 2010 when the Communist Party Central Committee launched ‘Operation Deterrence’. Government officials were told to ‘guide’ Christians attending unregistered churches to worship instead in the officially sanctioned Three Self churches. ‘This move by the authorities would appear to confirm reports that a government campaign to eradicate unofficial churches is well under way,’ says Release UK Director Colin King. ‘Many of China’s Christians prefer to worship in churches that are not regulated and controlled by the atheist state. Release supports them in their desire for religious freedom.’

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