CREEDE HINSHAW: Persecution of churches will backfire

The Associated Press and the New York Times reported last week that Chinese authorities blew up a Chinese megachurch in that country’s Shanxi Province.

Enshrouded in smoke from the effects of the dynamite, the imposing steeple atop the four-story Golden Lampstand megachurch can be seen toppling toward the ground. The sacred space for 50,000 worshipers was reduced to rubble and ash after the military dynamited the underground sanctuary.

There is much to contemplate about this story. Consider, for instance, that these faithful Christians had suffered from previous run-ins with the authorities. In 2009 saboteurs rampaged through the church, destroying Bibles and tearing things up.

This is clearly a church that didn’t learn its lesson. The fact that they continued to stand strong in their faith is a lesson for all.

Freedom of religion is guaranteed in the Chinese constitution, but this means little. Apparently under Leader Xi things have gotten worse, especially in one province where intense persecution may be a precursor of things to come across the nation. The New York Times reported (May 21, 2016) that 1,200-1,700 crosses in just that one province have been forcibly removed from churches and that one pastor who tried to defend his church was sentenced to 14 years in prison and his wife 12 years in prison for trumped up charges.

There are some 60 million Christians in China, perhaps twice that many according to some estimates. Maybe half of these are in unregistered house churches, a fact that must be particularly galling to authorities.

The Communist Party views the church as a threat to its authority, particularly the underground church. About their suspicion they are probably correct. Jews and Christians would agree that human rights are given by God and when it comes to obedience, one’s first loyalty is not to the state, but to God.

The authorities accused the Golden Lampstand church of being an “illegal building” without proper permits. Furthermore, they charged the church with disguising their building as a warehouse.

Meanwhile, the Economist (Jan. 6) reports that Chinese people across Southeast Asia are turning to Christianity in increasingly large numbers. Churches in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore are multiplying rapidly, a fact made even more impressive because in Malaysia it is illegal for Muslims to convert to Christianity. Also, bureaucrats in Indonesia, fearful that Muslims might convert to Christianity, have closed more than 1,000 churches in an eight-year period.

Most of these churches (in China and across Southeast Asia) are Pentecostal, evangelical, and increasingly becoming connected to each other, sending missionary church planters to neighboring nations to support each other and multiply the harvest. And these churches are growing despite — or because of — the intense persecution.

Note to the authorities: You will not prevail. History has shown that no matter how brutal, how intense, how sustained the persecution, the church cannot be eradicated. In fact, persecution will only grow the church in different and stronger ways.

Email Creede Hinshaw, a retired Methodist minister, at [email protected].