New Year Bible Study in Communist Party School Raided in Hebei, Christians Numbers 130 Million in China

China Aid Association
(Midland, Texas — January 8, 2007) China Aid Association
learns that on January 1st, 2007 the local police in Baoding
city, Hebei province, attacked a Christian
Bible Study held in a Communist
Party School.
There are 130 million Christians in China (including
both Protestants and Catholics) according to Mr. Yie Xiaowen, the director of
the Chinese State Administration for Religious Affairs (SARA).
On
January 1st, 2007 a group of Christians gathered in an office in the Party School
(where the cadres of the Communist Party in this area are trained) of Baoding City, Hebei
province to celebrate New Year by studying the Bible. But they were besieged
and raided by the local PSB officers at 10am. Over 40 Christians were taken
away for interrogation. Most of the Christians were not released until 6pm the same
day, including Dr. Li Baiguang who is one of the most famous Christian legal
activists from Beijing.
The
host of the Bible study, Professor Geng Sude, who is the vice president of the Party School,
was reportedly released after several days of investigation. Professor Su
(about 50 years old) is a secret Christian intellectual among the Chinese House Church.
She is under tight surveillances now.
Moreover,
CAA also learns that on January 4, 2007 the local police attacked a Christian
gathering in Xizhuang group, Anlou village, Erlangmiao
Township, Fangcheng County, Henan
province. Three Christians were brought to the police station. The police
released two of them the same day, while the other one, brother An Wenqing, a
house church seminary lecturer, was released on January 5 after being
interrogated for 14 hours by the police.
CAA learns from a
reliable source, that recently Mr. Yie Xiaowen, the director of the Chinese State
Administration for Religious Affairs, said in two internal meetings held in Beijing University
and Chinese Academy
of Social Science respectively, that the number of Christians in China has
reached 130 million now, including 20 million Catholics. The Chinese government
often underestimates the number of religious believers in its officially
released figure.
“The unprecedented
growth of the Chinese church has happened under ceaseless persecution,” said
Bob Fu, the President of CAA, “we pray that China will realize true religious
freedom soon.”
Issued
by China
Aid Association on January 8, 2007