Less than 200 years after Christ’s death on the cross, Tertullian wrote, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.”
The truth of that statement is being proven once again in China.
Persecution against the Christian underground church in China’s central Henan province has increased greatly since the implementation of China’s revised Religious Affairs Regulations on February 1.
But so has defiance.
Rev. C. told Time, “It’s a blessing to go to prison, to suffer for Jesus.”
The Time article that did not fully identify Rev. C., to protect his identity. The article, Guerrillas for God: How Hong Kong’s Pastors Are Delivering the Message to China’s Christians, points out the increasing difficulty in carrying out that mission under new Chinese laws governing religion, specifically Christianity.
According to ChinaAid, communist officials in the area have hired local gangs to break into churches and gathering places. In the attacks, they have broken doors and windows, as well as confiscated seats and religious books. Additionally, large numbers of church attendees and pastors have been kidnapped and detained by unidentified men while preaching.
In spite of the crackdown, or perhaps because of it, the Chinese church continues to grow. As the Time article points out, “Yet paradoxical, the more severe the persecution, the more people are drawn to Christianity.”
And undoubtedly, that is the government’s biggest fear.