As the backlash grows in Beijing (Christianity’s
growth… “too excessive and too haphazard”), multiple
churches destroyed in (Chinese) Jerusalem.
The Chicoms will not be deterred by weak minded protests but why not hit them where it really hurts? It
is surely the case that the persecution of Christians in China is
multiple times as compared to Muslims in Palestine (the first and most
important issue is freedom of worship). Even a visit by Ariel Sharon to the Western Wall was supposed to have been the trigger for the second Intifada.
Why not the people of the book(s) join and launch a BDS-II against China? They
can also think of a BDS-III against India if Modi comes too power. An
ever expanding BDS regime can be considered similar to the NATO expansion
movement in Eastern Europe (the results will be just as bloody). But
at least the faithful will live in hope that one day they will rule
heaven as well as all corners of the (yet to be civilized) earth.
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A City known as China’s Jerusalem has had its holy statues depicting
biblical scenes destroyed, removed or “hidden” by authorities, adding to
fears of a renewed offensive against Christianity and drawing
comparisons with the Cultural Revolution.
About 50 government workers sealed off Wenzhou’s Longgang Hill, a
site of Roman Catholic pilgrimage, and used bricks to “hide” statues
portraying moments from the Passion of Christ, including the
Crucifixion.
Statues of Jesus, the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph, each weighing up
to five tons, were “bricked around to hide them from public view” while
cranes were used to remove other holy statues and tablets from the park.
“All other religious decoration was demolished,” reported UCA news, a news agency covering Catholic issues in Asia. “About 100 Catholics who came to watch the removals were blocked at
the entrance,” said one witness, who asked not to be named because of
“security concerns”.
“Some who managed to sneak in sang hymns and prayed while watching. Some could not hold back their tears.
“The authorities’ behaviour is reminiscent of the smashing of church
property during the Cultural Revolution,” another member of the city’s
Catholic community told UCA News’s Chinese-language service.
The removals, news of which emerged Wednesday, took place on
Saturday, 48 hours, before government demolition teams razed a
Protestant church in the same city.
Wenzhou’s Sanjiang church became a symbol of resistance to the Communist Party’s draconian religious policies in early April.
Thousands of Christians formed a human shield around the place of
worship after plans to demolish it were announced, but the building was
eventually levelled on Monday evening.
Christians accuse Communist Party leaders in Zhejiang province of
attempting to slow their faith’s rapid growth by destroying churches
deemed too “conspicuous”.
They believe the “anti-church” campaign reflects Beijing’s extreme
discomfort with the rapid spread of Christianity in China, which one
leading academic recently predicted could have the largest Christian
congregation in the world by 2030.
A list compiled by Christian activists and shown to The Daily
Telegraph this week names more than 20 churches that are facing or have
already suffered some form of demolition work.
Officials deny the demolitions are an attack on Christianity,
claiming their campaign is aimed at illegal constructions “including
factories and Buddhist temples”.
However, in an internal address to party officials earlier this year,
a senior Communist official in Zhejiang complained that Christianity’s
growth had been “too excessive and too haphazard”.
A document purportedly issued last December by Communist Party
officials in Taizhou, another city in Zhejiang province, also appeared
to suggest that Christian churches were being singled out.
Local communist leaders should take “rapid actions” against illegal
buildings, “especially the Christian sites privately established without
proper paperwork or approval,” said the directive, which was obtained
by China Aid, a US-based Christian rights group. The demolition of
“Christian gathering sites” and nunneries are listed as key priorities.
Authorities this week indicated that the campaign was likely to
continue, promising to “aggressively push on with the demolition of
illegal buildings,” the state-controlled Zhejiang Daily reported.
The motive for what appeared to be a “widening crackdown” was unknown
but “an increasingly violent stand-off between authorities and the
Church” was taking place, UCA News reported.
Four Catholics were beaten and injured by government officials in
Wenzhou last week when an argument broke out during the forced
demolition of a church, the news agency claimed.
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Link: http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/05/02/chinas-jerusalem-sees-massive-church-torn-down-statues-of-jesus-hidden-by-authorities/
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regards
