An informal coalition of prominent lay Christians from six continents have launched a global campaign calling on the faithful to pray for the persecuted prisoners of conscience in China from May 23 to May 30.
The global prayer effort will focus on the millions of Christians, Uyghur Muslims, Tibetan Buddhists, Falun Gong prisoners of conscience, Hong Kong activists, “human rights defenders, lawyers, citizen journalists, bloggers, civil society activists and dissidents of all kinds” who are brutally persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for their beliefs.
“As Christians, we feel a particular responsibility to pray and we believe that prayer has the power to convert and the power to change the situation,” Andrew Bennett, campaign spokesperson and Canada’s former ambassador for religious freedom, told The Epoch Times.
The campaign, Global Prayer for China, was initiated in response to a call for prayer for the “Church and peoples of China” by Burma’s Cardinal Charles Bo, president of the Federation of Catholic Asian Bishops Conferences, on March 14.
Besides Bennett, members of the coalition include U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), UK’s Lord David Alton, Australian MP Kevin Andrews, Hudson Institute Senior Fellow Nina Shea, law professor Jane Adolphe from Ave Maria School of Law, Benedict Rogers, East Asia team leader at Christian Solidarity Worldwide, Irish entrepreneur Declan Ganley, and Canadian MP Garnett Genuis, among others.
Genuis, who is also co-chair of Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, highlighted the plight of Christians under the Chinese communist regime.
“Christians in China face escalating pressure, control, and violence. Along with other faith communities, Chinese Christians are being told that they have to put deference to the Communist Party ahead of their faith. If they don’t, they face severe consequences,” Genuis wrote in a post on Facebook.
BY ISAAC TEO
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