Crosses are being removed and (news sources say) churches throughout China are being demolished.

The ruling Communist Party has carried out a widespread crackdown on all religious institutions in recent years.

Changes the government initiated last year in Henan province, where authorities sought to suppress the Church by demolishing buildings and removing religious symbols have spread to the neighbouring region of Hebei.

Threatened by Chinese authorities and fearing retaliation, most Catholics are too scared to talk about what is happening to the outside world, causing a blackout of all news on the subject.

A Catholic from Hebei says people fear retaliation from the authorities might cause further demolitions or even lead to clerics being detained.

Such acts of retaliation had scared some pastors into silence, he says.

A priest from Hebei says local Catholics and priests did not dare to release news or photos of the demolition as they fear retaliation by authorities, he says.

"Once relevant photos are released, even though the specific location is not identified, you know that the authorities will investigate and find out the source of the news."

Tibetan children have been barred from Buddhist religious studies and over a million members of Islamic ethnic minorities have been incarcerated in "re-education centers."

President Xi Jinping , who is also party leader, has ordered that all religions must "Sinicise" to ensure they are loyal to the officially atheistic party or face the wrath of the Communist regime.

Source

• La Croix
• Fox Network
• Image: Business Insider

A priest says removing the Christian images involved officials giving money to poor households in return for hanging Xi's portrait.

Officials from China's Yugan County in eastern Jiangxi province say Christians have "recognised their mistakes and decided not to entrust to Jesus but to the (Communist) Party".

The officials also say they are "converting" Christians to party loyalty by alleviating poverty and other schemes to help the disadvantaged.

Nearly 10 percent of Yugan County's one million people is said to be Christian.

A priest in northern China says he thinks Xi has become "another Mao" Zedong since the National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party in October.

The priest thinks officials around the country will probably imitate the Jiangxi province's actions.

Next February, new "Regulations on Religious Affairs" will be implemented.

Chinese Christians and observers believe this policy will closely follow Xi's "Sinicization" model.

Sinicization is a process where non-Chinese societies come under the influence of Chinese culture.

The director of the divinity school at the Chinese University of Hong Kong has pointed to the dangers of 'Chairman Mao'-style personality cults.

During the Cultural Revolution, religious intolerance and Mao Zedong's dogma prevailed.

Young Red Guards used to arrest and publicly humiliate anyone thought to be deviating from Mao's teachings.

Although Chinese priests don't think there will be a return to the Cultural Revolution conditions, they say they are afraid religious and social controls will intensify.

Videos urging children to spy on their families and other videos teaching children to report family members who could pose a threat to national security have been released.

An official notice said the videos were produced to match Xi's strategy of incorporating national security objectives into the education system.

Source

• UCA News
• Catholic Herald
• Catholic Philly
• Image: China Christian Daily