On Ash Wednesday, 95-year-old Bishop Andrew Hao Jinli of Xiwanzi, who shepherded believers in the illegal, underground Catholic church in northeastern China, died of natural causes.  Security forces were mobilized to block the faithful from paying last respects or attending his funeral.     China allows adult Catholics to worship in state-sanctioned Patriotic Catholic Churches,…

The Chinese government has begun its annual observation of Lent – what has become a yearly wave of repression against Christians. “Like clockwork,” notes Brett M. Decker, editorial page editor of The Washington Times, “China’s communist government ramped up its persecution of the country’s Catholics. Every holy season, Beijing and local cadres bulldoze churches and…

Twenty-three-year-old Christian convert Shoaib Assadullah asks your prayers. Jailed in Afghanistan since last year, his crime is that he converted to Christianity, then shared his newfound faith with friends.   A letter recently smuggled out portrays a young man in deep despair, suffering beatings and constant threats from other prisoners.   Following the release of…

  Motorcycle-riding gunmen shot and killed a Christian leader who was the frontrunning candidate for governor in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno state. Six others died in the attack, including a 12-year-old boy. The violence came just weeks ahead of April elections that many worry could ignite simmering tensions between Christians and Muslims — particularly after a prominent Islamic…

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