A man
faces the death penalty in China for allegedly smuggling more than 32,000 Bibles published by
Living Stream Ministry of Anaheim, books the communist government labeled "cult propaganda materials."
[...]
Hong Kong businessman Li Guangqiang, 38, was indicted in December for allegedly "using a cult to undermine the enforcement of law," a capital offense. Li allegedly arranged two shipments -- each of more than 16,000 Bibles -- from Hong Kong to a church in Fujian province.
Two members of the church that bought the books were also arrested.
Prosecution papers name Andrew Yu, 51, general manager of Living Stream, as a source of the Bibles, but no charges have been filed, Wilde said. Yu, a native of Hong Kong and a naturalized U.S. citizen who has worked at the ministry's Anaheim offices since 1982, declined an interview request but issued a statement.
"Living Stream Ministry has been, and always will be, committed to the printing and distribution of Bibles throughout the world, and we strongly reject any characterization of the Holy Bible- God's Word as 'cult literature,'" it says. "I am deeply concerned, and have a 'heart-felt' compassion for the ones being detained in China. I appreciate their efforts to distribute the Bible to Christians in China very much."
Each year, Living Stream publishes more than 2.5 million Bibles, tracts and recordings from Anaheim, plus millions of other books through affiliates in Asia, Europe and Latin America.
The distribution network consists of about 3,000 churches outside China, Wilde said.
[...]
Orange County hosts several other Bible-smuggling groups, including Open Doors USA and Pray for the Persecuted Church, USA, organizations that often use cloak- and-dagger methods to spread the Gospel.
[...]
China has only one authorized Protestant group, the Three Self Patriotic Movement. But underground churches flourish, attracting up to 80 million worshippers among China's 1.3 billion people, according to the U.S. State Department.
Despite some signs of liberalization, members of China's underground churches and other unauthorized organizations, such as the
Falun Gong, face surveillance, property confiscation, arrest and torture, according to human-rights groups.
On Monday, U.S. Ambassador to China Clark T. Randt said Bush will likely discuss religious persecution, including the trial of the Bible smugglers, during a Feb. 21-22 visit to Beijing.
"We respect China as a great country, but if China wants to be treated as a responsible member of the international community, then it must abide by the
international norms of behavior," Randt said.
[...]
Chinese officials said the church in Fujian that got the Living Stream Bibles belongs to a Protestant sect called the
"Shouters," which was banned in 1996. Wilde said the term "Shouters" is a perjorative name that followers of Living Stream reject.
"We are
evangelical, fundamentalist Christians," Wilde said.
The Fujian church issued a statement, published in the Hong Kong-based Ming Pao newspaper, denying it is a cult or anti-government.
[...]
The Hong Kong-based South China Morning News has reported that Li's trial has been reassigned from a municipal court to a provincial court, a move that observers interpreted as a possible bow to pressure from Washington. Wilde said he hopes it means Li's life will be spared.
[...more...]
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