DAWN Fridayfax 1997 #10

DAWN News from China, Vietnam

China: Deng Xiaoping - instrument of revival

Deng Xiaoping, the Chinese leader who recently died at the age of 92, was "an instrument of revival", according to Chinese house-church leaders. They say "he was God's unwilling instrument to help bring revival to China." In an interview with "Compass", an American institute for persecuted churches, they said "he gave us the freedom to evangelise by not using the devices to punish us when we did exactly that. That created an ideal atmosphere for church growth." A well-known house-church leader from Shanghai explains further: "under too much oppression, the Gospel does not spread. With too much freedom, the gospel is never tested." A house-church leader in Guangdong said "Deng replaced Maoist ideology with a materialistic philosophy: get rich quick. It is astonishing that exactly this started many people on a spiritual quest, asking if they are only there to buy a larger television or a better fridge." Informed observers believe that the situation will continue; Deng's chosen successor Jian Zemin, who will be 70 years old in July 1997, recently told leading government officials "we are in a secret battle with the church." However, the Christian house-churches continue to grow very quickly.
Source: Compass Direct, PO Box 27250, Santa Ana 92799, USA. Fax (1) - 714 - 531 - 2681, e-mail compassdr@Compuserve.com

Vietnam: growth in spite of, or because of, persecution

"We must force all illegal churches to register under the Tin Lanh church. If not, we will destroy them all. We should use all available methods to intimidate them until they agree" explained an official at the Ministry of Socialism and Culture in Vietnam. Tin Lanh, Vietnam's official Protestant church, has grown to over 450,000 members. However, an internal report at the WEF (Worldwide Evangelical Fellowship) shows that the strongest growth is occurring in house churches in Southern Vietnam. Their membership has doubled or even tripled in the last few years, and now stands at around 80,000 - despite strict fines and other repressive measures such as long prison sentences for house-church leaders.
Source: WEF internal report

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