Michael Foust | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Thursday, February 20, 2020 New regulations that went into effect in China this month require churches and other religious organizations to “support the leadership” of the Communist Party and “adhere to” the government’s teachings. Further, all churches and religious organizations must be “examined and approved” before they can legally worship. The new regulations, dubbed the “Administrative Measures for Religious Groups,” were passed in 2019 and went into effect Feb. 1. ...
Read MoreMichael Foust | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Wednesday, January 29, 2020 Communist officials throughout China are using regulations that restrict religious freedom to also prohibit religious-themed funerals, even going so far as to arresting family members and stopping ceremonies mid-service. “The situation is quite adverse, and some believers don’t even dare to accompany the deceased to the graveyard,” an elder of a government-sanctioned Three-Self church told Bitter Winter, a religious watchdog. For example, in one city in the ...
Read MoreMichael Foust | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Thursday, January 16, 2020 Christians in China experienced an unprecedented level of surveillance, control and restrictions of their beliefs within the past year, according to Open Doors’ 2020 World Watch List, which saw the Communist nation rise four spots in the annual ranking of countries that persecute Christians the most. China jumped from 27 to 23 on the list, driven by the government’s desire to “Sinicize” Christianity and other religions ...
Read MoreChina Appoints Notorious Leader Known for Destroying Church Crosses, Arresting Christians
Mikaela Mathews | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Tuesday, February 18, 2020 China has appointed a new leader best known for destroying crosses on churches as head of China’s office in Hong Kong. Xia Baolong has been a long-time ally of President Xi Jinping, as reported by The Guardian. He replaced Zhang Xiaoming as Director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office on Thursday. Baolong’s appointment is a sign that China is not budging on maintaining power over ...
Read MoreMichael Foust | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Friday, February 14, 2020 A North Korea Christian woman who fled to China illegally was recently baptized, even though such an action could have resulted in her being repatriated back to her nation and killed. The woman, identified as “Bon-Hwa” by Open Doors, crossed the border more than two years ago into China, where it is illegal to help North Korea escapees. Despite the risk, Open Doors ministry partners ...
Read MoreAmanda Casanova | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Friday, February 21, 2020 The Basij group, a student group of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has threatened to destroy what many believe to be the ancient burial site of Queen Esther and Mordechai in Hamedan. The threat comes after President Donald Trump announced his Israeli-Palestinian peace plan. According to CBN News, the Basij group released a statement saying they want to tear down the tomb ...
Read MoreIn one of the first international efforts to champion religious freedom, leaders from the United States and several other countries will gather in Washington D.C. this week for the first meeting of the new International Religious Freedom Alliance. The alliance falls under the leadership of U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback, as reported by The Christian Post. “I have not seen this type of organization or push on a human rights ...
Read MoreVirginia Couple Threatened with Eviction for Hosting Bible Study Reaches Settlement with Apartment Complex
Amanda Casanova | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Monday, January 13, 2020 A Virginia couple who say they were threatened with eviction for holding Bible studies in their apartment has settled their lawsuit with the apartment complex. According to Faithwire, Kenneth and Liv Hauge can now host Bible studies in the community room or in their apartment in their Virginia senior living community. As Christian Headlines previously reported, the couple said their apartment had threatened ...
Read MoreMorning Star News Southern India Correspondent | Morning Star News | Thursday, February 13, 2020 HYDERABAD, India, February 13, 2020 (Morning Star News) – Attacks and harassment of a house church in southern India have decimated the 40-member congregation and left the pastor injured and demoralized. Pastor Eswara Rao Appalabattula on Jan. 27 pleaded with about a dozen local residents to stop building a wall meant to block people from attending worship ...
Read MoreIslamic terrorism spreading in majority-Christian Mozambique; 700 dead, 100,000 displaced
By Samuel Smith, Christian Post Reporter Over 100,000 people have been displaced and at least 700 have died in the majority-Christian country of Mozambique since 2017, as the spread of radical Islamic extremism in Africa is starting to plague the continent’s southeast region. This month, the U.N.'s High Commission for Refugees said it is boosting its response in Mozambique’s northeastern Cabo Delgado province, an oil-rich coastal region on the Indian Ocean. Although southeast Africa ...
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