Tag: Crosses

Fears of political agenda behind abuse allegation against Indian priest

July 14, 2017 India BJP, Catholics, Crosses, Goa, Jabalpur, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh

Christian leaders in India have voiced concern that a priest accused of abusing a boy may have been framed to undermine the reputation of the local Christian community. Police in the central state of Madhya Pradesh arrested Fr Leo D’Souza, 56, on 10 July after a complaint from the parents . . . Read More

German ambassador makes rare criticism of China over religious freedom

June 28, 2017 China Beijing, Catholics, China, Churches, Crosses, Education, House churches, Peter Shao Zhumin, Religious freedom, Wenzhou, Zhejiang

The German ambassador to China has made an official request that the Beijing government release Peter Shao Zhumin, the bishop of Wenzhou, reports Asia News. It is thought to be the first request of this kind made to China in 10 years. In his official statement on his embassy’s website . . . Read More

Protests as Mumbai officials remove cross from ‘private land’

May 4, 2017 India Crosses, India, Mumbai

A local authority in Mumbai is being taken to the High Court over the removal of a 122-year-old cross that is reported to have stood on private land, reports New Delhi Television. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) removed the cross in Bandra, a wealthy Mumbai suburb, on 29 April in . . . Read More

India: Kerala criticised for ‘disrespectful’ cross demolition

April 26, 2017 India Crosses, Kerala

The Catholic bishops in the Indian state of Kerala have condemned the demolition of a large hilltop cross erected in an area that has experienced large numbers of land grabs. “The demolition of the cross has pained the entire Christian community,” Varghese Vallikkat, deputy secretary general of the Kerala Catholic . . . Read More

Chinese Communist Party using CCTV to ‘maintain social order’ at churches

March 23, 2017 China China, Communism, Crosses, Peter Shao Zhumin, Xi Jinping, Zhejiang

Cross on Dongguang Church in Shenyang, north-eastern China

The Chinese government is forcing churches in Zhejiang province to install CCTV reports UCA News. The Communist Party in the heavily Christian province on China’s east coast wants Catholic and Protestant churches to install CCTV cameras inside and outside their buildings, in a bid to control the number of Christians . . . Read More

Freedom House’s China report ‘misses big picture’

March 3, 2017 China China, Crosses, Xi Jinping, Zhejiang

A new report on abuses of religious freedom in China “misses the big picture” when it comes to Christians, according to China-watcher Ian Johnson. Johnson says Freedom House’s new report, The Battle for China’s Spirit, focuses too much on the cross removals in Zhejiang Province and misses “the most important . . . Read More

Chinese pastor Joseph Gu arrested again

January 13, 2017 China China, Chongyi Church, Crosses, Hangzhou, Joseph Gu, Zhejiang

The former leader of China’s largest official Protestant “mega-church” has been arrested and charged for the second time with misappropriating funds. Gu Yuese (also known as Joseph Gu) was arrested on 7 January, a year after being arrested on the same charges. (He was released on bail in March 2016, . . . Read More

NGO law shows China’s ‘challenging environment’

January 4, 2017 China China, Crosses, Inner Mongolia, Zhang Kai, Zhejiang

Christians working in China may be facing the “most challenging environment in decades”, according to Brent Fulton, president of China Source. This observation comes following the 1 January introduction of a new law regulating foreign non-governmental organisations (NGOs), which, according to a spokeswoman for the American Embassy in Beijing, could . . . Read More

China to shut churches during G20

July 28, 2016 China China, Crosses, G20, Hangzhou, Zhejiang

House churches in a part of Hangzhou, the capital of China’s Zhejiang province, have been told to close down when the city hosts China’s first-ever G20 summit, reports . The coastal province, known as the ‘Jerusalem’ of the east as many of China’s estimated 70-80 million Christians are there, is . . . Read More

China: woman buried alive in church demolition

April 19, 2016 China China, Crosses, Henan, House churches, Zhejiang

The wife of a church leader in China’s central Henan province was killed by being buried alive when she tried to prevent the destruction of her husband’s house-church, . Ding Cuimei and her husband, Li Jiangong, stepped in front of a bulldozer as it began to destroy Beitou church on . . . Read More

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