Despite being under fire for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic outbreak, China’s Communist government continues its crackdown on Christianity.
In March, Chinese Communist officials removed multiple crosses on churches in the eastern provinces of Jiangsu, Anhui and Shandong, claiming that religious symbols cannot physically be “higher” than the Chinese national flag, The Christian Post reports.
China continues to incur a backlash over how it responded to the coronavirus crisis. An Associated Press investigation found President Xi Jinping warned the public six days after top Chinese officials determined the country was facing a pandemic, with Wuhan at its epicenter. At the time, millions were traveling for Lunar New Year celebrations.
“The government does not provide enough help during the epidemic but instead demolishes crosses,” a local believer told Bitter Winter, a religious liberty magazine.
Tearing down crosses continues the government’s “sinicization” campaign. Government officials have told church leaders they removed the crosses because they “were too eye-catching” and would “attract people into the churches.”
Evangelist Franklin Graham said the “officials don’t realize that the health crisis of COVID-19 is driving people to seek God and to call on Him for help” in a tweet Friday. – READ MORE
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