House Churches in China Face Demolition

China Aid Association has learned that local government authorities in China are getting ready to demolish three well-known house churches.

The CAA, a Chinese persecution watchdog, said Prayer Mountain church buildings in Yongjia county, Wenzhou city of Zhejiang province were about to be knocked down.

The three buildings were built about 10 years ago in three different mountains to serve primarily as prayer mountain churches. Believers head to the churches everyday and as many as 800 believers gather at each building once a month.

Sources told CAA that local authorities are accusing the members of these church buildings of belonging to an "evil cult" and that the decision to demolish the buildings stems from nervousness over the fact that there are more house churches than government sanctioned churches.

The authorities have now issued an order to destroy the three church buildings next week. The CAA also discovered that most of the local house church leaders have been threatened with arrest to prevent them from blocking the planned demolitions.

According to the watchdog, 11 house church buildings were either occupied or destroyed by local government in Yongjia County alone between 1997 and 2003.

"To destroy church buildings used for prayer is very deplorable," said Rev Bob Fu, CAA founder. "We urge the Chinese central government to help stop this type of barbaric acts by the local government."