Nearly 30 Christians in China’s Hubei province are on trial after being accused of organizing and using an “evil cult to undermine law enforcement,” charges rights advocates say are part of ongoing persecution of believers in the Communist-run nation.
The defendants, members of the evangelical Word of Life Church, were indicted in Suizhou city after security forces broke up a prayer meeting earlier this year, Worthy News learned. They stand accused of so-called “xie jiao,” the Chinese term for “cult activities” applied to movements regarded as antigovernment and socially dangerous, including evangelical groups.
Authorities cited activities such as preaching, discipleship training, prayer meetings, Easter celebrations, communion, and testimonies—practices prosecutors labeled “propaganda of cult doctrines,” according to sources familiar with the case.
Defense lawyers insist the charges have no legal basis and “violate China’s constitutional guarantee of religious freedom.” They stressed that widely used discipleship materials, including No Longer the Same, New Life, and The Path of Discipleship, were “wrongly classified as evidence of cult activity.”
Several Christians testified that money, jewelry, and belongings disappeared during their arrests, with no official confiscation records provided, raising suspicions of private appropriation by authorities, said advocacy group ChinaAid.
“Imagine the door bursting open during your quiet prayer meeting in Suizhou, Hubei—authorities storming in, handcuffs clinking as they label your faith a cult,” ChinaAid told Worthy News.
‘TWISTED EVIDENCE’
“Cherished discipleship resources like No Longer the Same are twisted as evidence of heresy, while seized cash and jewelry vanish without a trace,” the group noted.
The church’s pastor, Zhao Tianen, promoted a “Three Transformations” concept encouraging Christians to serve society, but authorities labeled it a potential threat to public order. Even the church’s marriage counseling services were accused of having “improper motives.”
The case remains ongoing, but observers say it highlights China’s tightening crackdown on independent Christian groups. On Christmas Day 2024, prosecutors in Tibet charged another 10 Word of Life members, while five leaders of the related Shenyang Kelta Youth Fellowship—Pastor Mingdao, Brother Wang Xiangchao, Brother Shao, Sister Liu, and Sister Gu—also face prosecution, ChinaAid stressed.
