Amazing article: Violence Taints Religion's Solace for China's Poor [NYT]The grisly details can be found here.Majikthise continues:
HUAIDE, China - Kuang Yuexia and her husband, Cai Defu, considered themselves good Christians. They read the Bible every night before bed. When their children misbehaved, they dealt with them calmly. They did not curse or tell lies.
They did order a religiously-motivated hit on a fellow Christian...
The NYT reports that dozens of underground Christian sects are vying for dominance in the Chinese countryside. Three Grades of Servants and Eastern Lightening are the two most influential cults, each claiming membership in the millions. Eastern Lighting is unusual in that it worships a female Jesus (nee Deng). These two cults are locked in mortal combat with each other, brutal Communist enforcers, and several smaller sects (e.g. the Shouters, the Spirit Church, the Disciples Association, White Sun, the Holistic Church, and the Crying Faction). Conversion tactics include kidnapping, torture, murder and mutilation. Players believe the apocalypse is imminent, except maybe the Communist Party. The one thing they all agree on is hating Falun Gong.
Note
Unknown to most, Christianity has a very ancient history in China dating back over 1000 years. The details can be found in a fascinating book by Martin Palmer, The Jesus Sutras: Rediscovering the Lost Scrolls of Taoist Christianity.
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