Despite ban on activities, Shandong house church grows since police raid

China Aid Association
(Yutai County, Shandong—March 25, 2014) China Aid learned that another house church in Shandong was forced to cease activities after a raid by the local religious affairs bureau last year; however, the church’s pastor reported that the congregation has only increased during the past year.

On May 28, 2013, a Bible study class for young adults was raided and dispersed by official from the Yutai County Religious Affairs Bureau and Yutai County police. The church’s pastor Zhou Liang said that many Christians were taken into custody, and their families paid several thousand yuan (1,000 yuan is equivalent to US$160) for police to release their loved ones. In addition, police told Zhou that the church’s activities were banned.

Zhou told China Aid that not only had the ban not stopped the believers from gathering, it had attracted new believers.

“Do they think the church is banned just because they say they ban it?” Zhou said. “Who can fight the will of God? They did say they banned the church, but they couldn’t do it. Now, we have more people than before.”

Yutai County is presided over by Jining, a prefecture-level city in China’s coastal Shandong. Just west of Jining lies Linyi, which governs Linshu County, where a judge reversed a ban on the activities of a local house church (see https://chinaaid.org/2014/03/judge-lifts-ban-on-activities-for-house.html).

Both house churches were raided and given notice that activities had been banned during spring last year.


China Aid Contacts

Rachel Ritchie, English Media Director
Cell: (432) 553-1080 | Office: 1+ (888) 889-7757 | Other: (432) 689-6985
Website: www.chinaaid.org
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Despite ban on activities, Shandong house church grows since police raid

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