China: Church in Zou Gang illegally demolished
By Joseph DeCaro, Worthy News Coorespondent
BEIJING, CHINA (Worthy News)– A church in Zou Gang, Feixi county, was illegally demolished last month by government-backed real estate developers, according to ChinaAid.
The congregation called for prayer following the sudden destruction of their 800 square-meter building.
As a result of economic expansion, the Zou Gang church site had been marked for demolition, so the church’s board of deacons decided to cooperate with the Communist Party committee and the Xingang Industrial Park concerning their resettlement. However, last August, the church’s electricity was unexpectedly cut and days later the developers began digging trenches around the church, isolating it from the surrounding traffic.
On April 27, more than 100 unidentifed members of a demolition crew began tearing down the church: some destroyed the main gate to the church compound, while others broke down the church staff door and forcefully removed several members on duty; the rest of the crew prevented parishoners from entering the church compound as it was bulldozed down.
In minutes, the church where 500 Christians had worshiped for more than a decade was illegally demolished.