Elder Sentenced to 5 Years, Guiyang Christian Church Condemns Chinese Communist Party’s Suppression of Faith

The Christian house church in China continues to face ongoing suppression. Recently, Zhang Chunlei, an elder of the Rennai Reformed Gospel Church in Guiyang, was sentenced to five years in prison on charges of “inciting subversion of state power” and “fraud.”

On July 25, the church issued a statement indicating that the criminal case, investigation, and trial against Elder Zhang Chunlei lasted for 3 years and 4 months. However, the true reason for his conviction was not the unfounded charges of “fraud” or “inciting subversion of state power,” but rather his insistence on his religious beliefs.

The statement expressed that the authorities’ sentencing of Elder Zhang Chunlei fundamentally summarized the illegal suppression of religious freedom against a group of Christians over the past 3 years and 4 months by the local judicial system.

The Rennai Reformed Gospel Church in Guiyang released this statement on a rights protection website in response to the guilty verdict issued by the Guiyang Intermediate People’s Court against Elder Zhang Chunlei.

Chen Siming, a dissident from Hunan who is now in exile in Canada and a Christian, expressed anger at the sentencing of Elder Zhang Chunlei. He told a reporter that this is blatant religious persecution. The Chinese Communist Party is using the law to defy God and will be condemned by heaven.

“For a long time, the Chinese Communist authorities have both hated and feared the church. They have used every means to obstruct brothers and sisters from gathering. In 2019, I organized a Bible study group with less than 10 people, but after meeting a few times, the police found out and threatened them over the phone, preventing them from meeting with me. Eventually, I had to anonymously join another house church.”

“If the Chinese Communist Party does not collapse, we can expect religious persecution to become increasingly brutal. Cases like that of Elder Zhang Chunlei will continue to occur. But no matter what methods the CCP uses, they cannot stop people’s pursuit of truth and faith in God,” he said.

Zhang Chunlei, born in 1964 in Guizhou Province, is a Christian and one of the main founders and leaders of the Rennai Reformed Gospel Church in Guiyang.

On July 24, 2024, the Guiyang Intermediate People’s Court convicted Elder Zhang Chunlei of “inciting subversion of state power” and “fraud,” sentencing him to 3 years and 6 months and 2 years in prison, respectively. The sentences were combined for a total of 5 years in prison, deprivation of political rights for 3 years, and a fine of 5000 RMB.

For over twenty years, the Chinese Communist authorities have continually suppressed religious beliefs, resulting in countless oppressed churches and clergy.

It is reported that the Rennai Reformed Church has been established for many years. Zhang Chunlei participated in the signing of the “Pastor’s Joint Declaration for the Declaration of Christian Faith” initiated by Pastor Wang Yi of Chengdu, Sichuan, in 2018, which immediately attracted strict control and surveillance from the Guiyang authorities.

On March 16, 2021, more than a dozen members of the Rennai Reformed Church were taken away by personnel from the Nanming District Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau and the police while attending a group study. Elder Zhang Chunlei rushed to the police station as an elder to negotiate with the authorities to release the people but was subsequently administratively detained for 11 days on the grounds of “illegal operation of an organization.” Upon the expiration of his detention, he was further criminally detained by the Yunyan District police in Guiyang on charges of “fraud.” As of the verdict, Zhang Chunlei has been in custody for over three years and four months.