Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Living their best life now

SICHUAN – On June 9 more than 30 house church leaders were arrested while gathering in a house church in Langzhong city, Sichuan province. Thirteen leaders were given 15 days of administrative detention, and five of the leaders were placed under criminal detention. The other leaders were released.

The Christian leaders were gathered in Pastor Li Ming’s house church at 5:30 p.m., in Lanzhou city, when several dozen officials in six to seven police vehicles from the local Domestic Security Protection Squad surrounded the site, then arrested all of the Christians and searched the house.

The 13 leaders who received 15 days of administrative detention are: Wang Fang, Ma Zhongqiong, Wang Huaying, Pang Kaizhen, Chen Deying, Hu Xiuying, Li Daxiu, Deng Shuhua, Chen Jingfang, Wang Yulan, Song Liangqing, Wang Shixiu and Li Shufeng.

The five leaders who received criminal detention are likely to face a formal criminal indictment or up to three years of re-education through labor. They are: Pastors Gao Guofu, Pastor Li Ming, Zhang Guofen, Gu Lianpeng and Yu Zhipeng. Pastor Li Ming was sentenced to three years of re-education through labor in recent years because of his Christian faith.

ChinaAid calls on Christians around the world to pray for the imprisoned Christians and their families. ChinaAid also strongly denounces the Langzhong authorities in Sichuan for their reprehensible conduct which violates both Chinese and international laws guaranteeing freedom of religion.

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Please pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ around the world. These Christians were arrested for merely gathering together to worship and study the Bible.

Of course this could never happen here in the
USA..........

2 comments:

Steve Martin said...

I will pray for them, Wayne.

Thanks for bringing the plight of our brethren around the world to awareness.

Carolyn said...

I'll keep them in my prayers for sure. God Bless, and yes, thank you for telling others about our brothers and sisters who are suffering!