One of the most egregious abuses has come against the Uighur Muslim population in the region of Xinjiang. Millions of Uighurs have been sent to forced labor camps where they have face indoctrination and even sterilization.

In fact, the U.S. declared the treatment of Uighurs to be “genocide.” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made the announcement, and new U.S. President Joe Biden’s pick for the position, Anthony Blinken, has agreed with the findings.

A Uighur girl in traditional dress. (Gusjer from Aranjuez, Spain, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

Kurt Rovenstine of Bibles for China says these victims are made in God’s image, and they deserve to be treated with dignity. “To have things happen as they are . . . that goes against the very nature of a God of love and grace and mercy. Religious freedom is something that everyone deserves. And we ought to believe as Christians that the truth will rise to the top when that freedom is available for us to have an open dialogue.”

Pushback against Christians

Most Chinese Christians are not being treated as poorly as the Uighurs. However, the Communist Party has been closing some churches and even forbidding people under 18 from attending church. Read more here.

Despite the pressure, Christians in China are not backing down from proclaiming the risen Jesus as king. Rovenstine says, “We’ve talked with other Chinese ministry folks, and they’re telling us the same thing that we’re experiencing. The Christians in China are not backing down. They’re going to continue to move forward. They believe the Gospel message is something worthy of a bit of persecution and risk.”

Bibles for China works to get Bibles into the hands of rural Chinese Christians. The ministry continues to make plans for 2021, hoping they can reach people in new areas they haven’t reached before. Rovenstine says, “The thing that hasn’t changed is the demand. We have continued to get requests from the churches in China for scripture. The Communist Party is not winning on that front.”

Pray the Holy Spirit will strengthen Chinese Christians, even as they face pushback from their government. And pray the news of this loving and merciful God will continue spreading like wildfire through the country.

The header photo shows a protest on the behalf of Uighurs outside the White House in 2015. (Elvert Barnes, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

China continues to deny allegations of mistreatment, despite video footage of Uighur Muslims blindfolded and forced to kneel on the ground in rows. These people have also been subjected to forced labor and even sterilization.

In light of these events, relations between China and the United States have deteriorated. The US recently closed the Chinese Consulate in Houston.

The United Kingdom has also butted heads with China in recent days, announcing plans to offer citizenship to people in Hong Kong. Read more about the national security law imposed by China in Hong Kong here.

Bibles For China’s work

Bibles for China provides people in rural China access to the Bible. (Image by DEZALB from Pixabay)

Despite everything going on, Kurt Rovenstine says Bibles for China’s mission is to, “Continue to work through the registered church, taking advantage of partnerships that we’ve developed there to keep the process of distributing scriptures moving forward. But lots of dynamics at this point very hard for us to predict.”

Bibles for China watches for any attempt by the Chinese government to alter the Bibles being printed. “Our folks there that are receiving the scriptures that we’re providing are telling us that there’s there’s been no changes,” Rovenstine says. Nevertheless, he says these efforts may be going on behind the scenes.

Widening economic gap

As China’s Communist Party continues to crack down on religious freedom, more and more people are falling below the poverty line. Rovenstine says, “China would love for us to believe that they’re doing really, really well at closing that gap. But the gap in China is as big as it’s ever been in terms of the haves and the have-nots. So for someone to be able to have access to the Word of God is incredibly important.”

Several outlets have reported that poor Christians have been denied government aid unless they get rid of Christian imagery and replace it with Communist imagery. Although Rovenstine has not heard any specific examples, he says partners have told him about many other instances of government overreach.

Despite all this, the Gospel continues to be the most powerful force in China today. Rovenstine says Bibles for China will continue to make the Bible widely available in rural areas of the country. Pray that many would continue coming to Christ despite Communist opposition.

The header image shows the concentration camp at Auschwitz. Uighur Muslims have been held in similar camps in China. (Image by Adam Hill from Pixabay)