Declaration
“Remember those in prisons…”
By
Committee for Investigation on Persecution of Religion in China
December, 2003
The reviving of house church has been like a fire burning over the old land in China. Hundreds of millions astray sheep have come back to God’s home. However, persecution comes with the revival, and is becoming more and more severe. Nowadays, it is illegal even gathering and praying at home. Anyone can be arrested unless he goes to the three-self churches to enjoy the “religious freedom” under the noses of these government-appointed pastors. Millions Christians have been persecuted because of the pure Christian faith that God is the ultimate ruler. The Bible says, “Remember those in prisons as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.”1 Therefore, we have decided to obey God and have no fear to become the target of the evil power. Therefore, we have stood out to tell the truth to the world, especially the Christians, by using the bloody persecution facts to fight against the lies of that evil interest group and its beneficiaries, investors, beggars, and soul-sellers, to speak for the thousands of millions of the Chinese Christians who have been virtually deprived off their basic human rights, and to voice for those brothers and sisters under the “laws” authorizing the police to arrest and torture them any time.
The Bible also says, “He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”2 The only thing God asks us to do is to follow him! That is to help those mistreated, to carry out God’s justice, and to stand out and urge the Chinese government to fulfill its promises formally made when signing “The Charter of the United Nations”, “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” and other human rights treaties, promises such as: “Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this declaration. … Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.”3 We request the Chinese government stop immediately persecuting our brothers and sisters, not make the kind Christians targets of violence, torture and terrorism, and not take them as the money trees for the police. Stop arbitrarily arresting and committing torture which purpose “is to deliberately destroy not only the physical and emotional well-being of individuals, but the dignity and will of entire communities. It concerns all members of the human family because it impugns the very meaning of existence and our hopes for a brighter future.”4
“We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers…This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers…let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence…”5 How can we pass around by those “fell into the hands of robbers”6 like the priest and the Levite? Otherwise, how can we set our hearts “rest” in His presence?
Dear Brothers and Sisters: Please have some mercy on those “fell into the hands of the robbers”. Put the love of Jesus Christ into actions! It is the indifference but not hate which is the opposite to love! We call all saved Christians act together! “The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”7 God is our shield! After we have fought this spiritual war of the 21st century, we can come and rest in our Lord’s presence with great faith. Dear Brothers and Sisters: Let us act together with the conscience and encourage from our Lord and let our hearts beat for righteousness!
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