The local government has torn down over a thousand huge red crosses over the past two years in Wenzhou, also known as “China’s Jerusalem,” because of its one million Protestants and 300,000 Catholics. In 2013, the removal campaign began with the elimination of crosses from churches and escalated to the demolition of church buildings and more than 100 people arrested or detained.
Church leaders are losing patience after repeatedly trying to negotiate with local authorities, but their efforts are thwarted by the ongoing campaign, which has ramped up once again this time with strict rules on the size, color and location of crosses.
In response to the recent hundreds of crosses removed and continued arrests, Protestants and Catholics are uniting to cover their city in red crosses. Christianity Today shared, “Catholic seminary professor Chen Kaihua turned to Weibo (China’s version of Twitter) to ask churches across the country to join the ‘safe and legal non-violent disobedience movement.’”
Their desire is to “make the cross flourish throughout China.” As Christianity grows in China, the government’s resistance grows as well.
Friends, let’s unite together and pray for China.
