Guangdong house church faces increased pressure from Chinese authorities

A house church in Guangdong is being subjected to intensified pressure and harassment from Chinese authorities.

Guangfu Church members said that authorities have been trying to hinder their gatherings. Even the owner of the place they have leased for their activities is now afraid and wants them to stop meeting.

According to China Aid, a church administrator named Mark revealed that representatives from the local public security and religious affairs bureau have approached him many times and asked that their church gatherings be stopped. Apparently, authorities have been telling them to cease their activities since last year, which is why he recently went to the U.S. to study so he can help the church deal with the pressure better.

In November 2015, authorities interfered with the church's plans for Christmas, according to a previous report. They meddled with the church's preparations, asking them questions like how many they expected to attend their Christmas party and where they were going to hold the event. Eventually, the church was ordered to stop meeting until after the Lunar New Year.

The church administrator said they complied with the order and resumed their gatherings in February. However, authorities approached them again and told them to stop their activities altogether.

"The landowners also found us several times and asked us to move out," Mark said.

The church also felt harassed by the police, who took photos of the place where they meet. According to Mark, the reason for doing this was that "the authorities wanted to know us better."

In the hope of finding relief from the pressure, he tried several times to go to Beijing to file a petition, but his attempts were also blocked. At one time, about two dozens of policemen were ordered to stop him at the airport.

To prevent him from leaving for Beijing, authorities have ordered him to check in with them and report his whereabouts on a daily basis.