As commodity prices soar, thieves are targeting British churches and other institutions, taking copper lightning rods, lead rain pipes, bronze statues, iron gates, even church bells and entire roofs.

“Boom conditions in China, India and Brazil have created an incredible demand for lead and copper,” Katri Link, senior press officer at Ecclesiastical Insurance, a private company that insures about 90 percent of churches in England and Wales) told ENInews. “Church roofs are often the target, threatening some churches with bankruptcy,” she said.

Theft of copper cable from churches, railways and historic buildings is a soaring national problem in Britain. Deputy Chief Constable Paul Crowther of the British Transport Police described the issue as “one of the force’s biggest challenges after terrorism.” Metal theft accounts for 7,000 to 10,000 crimes a month across the nation, British Transport Police spokesperson Simon Letouze told ENInews.

“The situation is growing worse all the time,” the Rev. Paul White, Anglican vicar at All Saints Church in the village of Woodchurch in Kent, southeast England, told ENInews. Thieves have returned ten times over four months to strip all the lead from the roof of the church where between 60-70 villagers gather every Sunday. Now the congregation needs to raise 50,000 pounds to repair the roof and stop rainwater leaks from destroying paintings and the organ, said White.

Ecclesiastical caps payouts at 10,000 pounds and promises to keep premiums as low as possible to help financially strapped churches. It received 1,900 damage claims from January to August this year, compared with ten claims in 2003.

St. John’s Church in Dukinfield, Greater Manchester, had more than a tonne of lead taken from its roof in July. The Rev. Tim Hayes said he noticed the theft quickly, so his church did not suffer water damage, although the repair bill amounted to thousands of pounds.

The Church of England has suggested ways churchwardens might guard against roof plunderers, including the removal of ladders or other items which could facilitate access and the restriction of vehicle access. “It is also vital to check your roof regularly, for example with binoculars from the ground, as the theft of a roof might go unnoticed during dry weather,” the Church of England said in a statement.

Because of the soaring cost of copper and lead, English Heritage (an agency that protects England’s historic and cultural environment) has abandoned its usual policy of always requiring exactly the same replacement material when buildings and monuments have been damaged.

Diana Evans, head of Places of Worship Advice at English Heritage, said in a statement that the agency is “very concerned about the damage to important buildings, the cost of repairing each one and the additional work inflicted on those who care for historic places of worship.”

The price of copper came close to US$10,000 a tonne earlier this year, having fallen to as low as $2,825 a tonne in December 2008 due to the financial crisis affecting demand. Copper prices on the London Metal Exchange have recently fallen to $7,000 a tonne but Ecclesiastical said in a statement they are expected to rise again soon.

Three countries, namely China, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam slammed recently a U.S. government religious freedom report which included two of them, China and Saudi Arabia, among eight Countries Of Particular Concern regarding religious freedom.

Vietnam was not included among the eight cited in the U.S. State Department’s annual International Religious Freedom Report, but was nonetheless mentioned for its treatment of Catholics in detention, including an ailing Catholic priest.

Religious groups backed by China’s government said the report was simply an attempt to smear the country’s image, and denied all of the report’s findings.

“The U.S. report … attempted to smear the image ofChina. The Chinese government has…protected the legal rights and interests of religious people,” a statement from five government-controlled religious associations said, according to the AFP.

“We feel greatly disturbed as the US has tried to interfere in China’s domestic affairs by targeting religion and create chaos among religious people in a bid to harm social harmony,” the AFP reported.

‘World police’

Legal activists and religious scholars in Saudi Arabia also censured the report, and said the US should stop acting as ‘world police’ by meddling in other countries’ internal affairs.

Dr. Muflah Al Qah’tani, chairman, National Society for Human Rights, KSA told Gulf News, “There is a need for those who prepare the report to be objective because there is much focus on individual cases, which are generalized in case of the country. The report ignores reference to any positive or reformatory steps taking place in the KSA.”

Biased, erroneous

Vietnam also rejected the report, and Foreign Ministry spokesman Luong Thanh Nghi told the government-controlled newspaper, Nhan Dan, that the report had “biased assessments” and “erroneous” information, according to World Community.

Nghi claimed that Vietnam’s constitution protects religious freedom and claimed that the nation’s practice of these rights has gained international recognition.

Especially troubling records

The U.S. State Department International Religious Freedom report covers the second half of 2010, and said that China and Saudi Arabia have especially troubling religious freedom violation records, while Vietnam has a “mixed record.”

The report cited methods of active repression in these and other countries, including the use of torture and violence against religious groups, laws on blasphemy and apostasy, restrictions on religious expression and anti-Semitism.

In China, some 500 Protestants were imprisoned in the past year, according to a report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom.

China was also cited for imprisoning dozens of Catholic priests who did not register with the government, and for destroying places where Christians meet—all of which China denies.

Perhaps the highest incidence of persecution of Christians in China which has gained publicity internationally is that of Shouwang Church in Beijing, which has not been allowed to meet since Easter. (See http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2011/06/more-members-of-shouwang-arrested-in-china-on-eighth-week-showdown-16180/).

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has been cited for disallowing the public practice of any faith except Islam. News reports have cited imprisonment of Christians, including two Pentecostal Indian nationals who were jailed in Saudi Arabia for six months on trumped up, faith-related charges. (See http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2011/07/2-christians-released-from-saudi-jail-after-six-months-imprisonment-16808/).

Vietnam

In the case of Vietnam, the freedom report cited issues of religious harassment in provinces and villages, including the treatment of detainees arrested for protesting the closure of the Con Dau Parish Catholic cemetery, and the re-imprisonment of Catholic activist, Father Nguyen Van Ly who is frail after enduring a number of strokes while in detention.

Media reports often cite harassment, repression, and pressure on Christians and other people of different faiths to coerce them to renounce their religious beliefs.

Also mentioned in the report as Countries Of Particular Concern are Myanmar, Eritrea, North Korea, Sudan, Iran and Uzbekistan.

Some 21 house church leaders were arrested recently, with 15 of them illegally detained, as local police extorted money from their families with false promises for their freedom.

The 21 church leaders were arrested in Wuhai city in Inner Mongolia. The leaders, who hailed from Wuhai and Shizuishan city in Ningxia province, had come together to plan summer activities for their churches.

During the meeting, which took place on July 26, more than 24 policemen from the Domestic Security Protection Department broke into the meeting place and arrested 21 church leaders. They also confiscated everything in the place, including Bibles and bamboo mats.

The 21 leaders were criminally detained on the grounds of “suspicion of using a cult organization to undermine national law enforcement,” according to the China Aid Association’s website.

However, the police did not follow the requirement of informing families of the arrests. Furthermore, the families were not given the legally required documents of their detention.

Extremely elderly

Physical exams of the 21 detainees were taken which indicated that six of them were exceedingly elderly and unhealthy. When the detainees were transferred to Wuhai detention center, the six elderly were refused detention, and were set free.

It was only after 15 days of detention at the Wuhai prison, that the remaining 15 church leaders’ families were informed by the Public Security Bureau, who said the 15 had been sent to the office of the prosecutor.

The Bureau also told the families that for $7,800, all those arrested could be released. Instead, after the families paid the amount to the prosecutor’s office, the detainees were returned to the Bureau.

The Bureau then told the families that they had to pay thousands of dollars more. Otherwise, they threatened, the church leaders would either be criminally prosecuted or might end up in labor camps.

To date, the 15 are still in the Wuhai jail. The names of those Christian leaders who hail from Wuhai are: Ning Yuncai, Yu Baojie, Mi Lili, Sister Ding, Huang Xiulian, Hao An, Uncle Ye, Dong Zhen, Mu Liandi, Ren Xitao and Mu Guilian.

The names of those Christian leaders from Shizuishan are: Da Yumei, Dong Yanxia, Zhang Shuxia and Zhang Mingfeng.

Bob Fu, founder and president of China Aid Association, slammed the local police on the CAA website and urged them to “immediately and with no preconditions release these innocent Christian believers.”

Fu said on the CAA website, “The church will not retreat in the face of persecution. In fact, it will grow larger and stronger with each passing day.”

A historical Cathedral in Hong Kong sits on a piece of land that could be worth, conservatively, more than half a billion dollars — if the cathedral is destroyed and the land is converted to commercial use.

When St. John’s Cathedral was first built in 1849, no one imagined that 162 years later the 53,175 square meters of land that the Anglican Church stands on, would become the prime property that it is today.

But that is precisely what has happened. Towering over the cathedral are the Standard Chartered building and SHSBC; and just across the street from St. John’s Cathedral is Citibank Plaza.

Because of this, St. John’s land value has soared and if the property were converted for commercial purposes, its potential earnings — conservatively speaking — could reach some $512 million, going by current market rates.

Priceless

But for some, the cathedral is priceless because of its spiritual purpose, historical value and the public services it renders.

St. John’s cathedral was built in 1849 when Hong Kong was a British protectorate. In December 1941 the Japanese shelled the island. Despite this, some 100 Christians still gathered in the church for Christmas services.

The first service after World War II ended in 1945 was also held in St. John’s, when the Royal Navy arrived on the island’s shores. Such history, plus its Neo-Gothic architecture and display of British military and similar paraphernalia makes it a popular tourist destination.

Today, St. John’s holds services in English, Mandarin and Tagalog (a major language of the Philippines) to cater to a large foreign community in Hong Kong.

The church also provides non-denominational counseling rendered by professionals who are multi-cultural and multi-lingual. Rates are scaled according to ability to pay. Christian counseling is also available.

Legal advice and assistance is also given to foreign domestic workers and migrants; and information dissemination campaigns on HIV and reproductive health are organized regularly by the cathedral staff.

Freehold status

The cathedral has a special freehold status which continued even after Hong Kong was turned over to China. The freehold status was granted by Queen Victoria and was solidified in 1930 through the Church of England Trust Ordinance, placing it under the control of the cathedral’s trustees.

Rev. Philip Wickeri, a historical and theological advisor to Hong Kong’s Anglican archbishop, told Wall Street Journal, “All over the world where the British had colonies, they established churches through land grants.” For example several Anglican churches in Singapore have freeholds, including St. Hilda’s Church and St. Paul’s Church.

In 1996 St. John’s Cathedral was declared, along with 34 other structures on the island, a monument under the Antiquities and Monuments Office in the Leisure and Cultural Services Department.

In 1997, when Hong Kong was turned over to China, St. John’s wasn’t included because of its freehold status. Neither did China attempt to take over the Cathedral.

Wickeri told the WSJ, “I just think it wasn’t particularly a priority and they didn’t want to upset things. At that point, with all of the financial matters, they wanted to pretty much not rock the boat.”

However, amid moves by some elements pressing the government to make high-value land more available for development, and considering that Hong Kong will in 2047 finish its transitional role as Special Administrative Region of China, the future of freehold properties, including the cathedral, remains unclear.

Included among such properties are a number of other buildings which have 999-year land leases (not unlike a freehold) such as the Baskerville House and the Standard Chartered Bank Building.

Christian churches are coming to see that preservation, care and stewardship of God’s creation is an important component of practicing their faith. One megachurch, in fact, did so well in its environmental campaign that it won a national award.

The First Baptist Church, Orlando, is a megachurch that was awarded the Energy Star from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency last year for its effective practices in energy management and reduction of pollution.

In so doing, FBC generated some $373,000 in annual savings in energy costs last year. The reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from the church that same year was equivalent to carbon dioxide emissions annually of 300 homes through the use of electricity.

Darby Ray, associate professor of Millsaps College, Jackson, Miss. told Orlando Sentinel, “The surprising thing for me is there seems to be some consensus. We are seeing very conservative Protestant denominations embracing Earth care, and you are seeing some mainline, more-liberal denominations.”

The initiative to be more environmentally friendly seems to be largely coming from the worshippers themselves. Gerald Smith, religion professor, University of the South, Sewanee, Tenn., told Orlando Sentinel, “I think it’s congregation-driven rather than leadership-driven. This is what people are bringing to the church.”

However, some pastors are also taking the lead, largely inspired by the example of First Baptist. One of them is Joel Hunter, pastor of Northland, A Church Distributed.

Hunter told Orlando Sentinel, “The evangelical part of the church has always focused on saving souls. But these other issues we are facing here on Earth are just as important.”

At Northland, the church building is closed on Fridays. A team from its church ministry separates trash, and an information-technology department has been recycling old computers and electronics. Printer paper is reused before it is recycled, and there has been careful monitoring of the use of electricity.

“We’ve seen this explosion of activity at the individual and congregational level that is really a sign that this is firmly centered in terms of who we are as a religious people,” Matthew Anderson-Stembridge, executive director of National Religious Partnership for the Environment, told Orlando Sentinel.

The NRPE website is lush with stories of churches, both Christian and Jewish, that made great strides for the cause of environmentalism. One example is Northaven United Methodist Church in Dallas, TX which has been holding annual hybrid car shows.

Four years ago, the church started with just four hybrid cars for the church’s Earth Day Celebration. This year it has featured 19. Rev. Eric Folkerth said consumer choices put faith into practice.

Folkerth said on the NRPE website, “As Christian people we clearly see that God has called us to be stewards, not abusers of the environment. You can have scientific motivations for saving the Earth and for some, that’s enough. But there are a whole lot of other people for whom it is connected to faith—it’s the right scientific thing and the right moral thing to do.”

Also mentioned in the NRPE website is an initiative by the Washington State Catholic Conference WA to develop a greenhouse gas reduction plan. A new grant program was also set up to promote urban forestry programs and Evergreen Cities. It has also launched awards programs for waste reduction and recycling among private schools.

Churches are doing things, large and small, for a better earth. Winter Park Presbyterian Church grows food on its church grounds for the needy, and may consider solar power.

Christ Church Unity in Orlando uses rain water collected in a barrel to water church grounds, and sells metal bottles to replace plastic water bottles. Cloth napkins are replacing paper napkins, and china plates are replacing paper plates.

Even food scraps from church activities are recycled. It is fed to the church pig, who is named Mr. Greengenes.

Steven Curtis Chapman has gone through some hard times since he lost his five-year-old daughter in a tragic accident in 2008.

Still, he has kept the faith and in his newest offering, re: creation, wants people to know that he believes God creates wonderful things for the Chapman family, even after such a terrible loss.

Chapman also takes a look back and tries to re-imagine a hopeful future with his newest offering, re: creation.

The Christian music star has been the author of some of the greatest hits in Christian music including Heaven in the Real World, The Great Adventure, More to This Life and For the Sake of the Call.

It all began when he first entered the music scene in 1987, and there has been no turning back. Today, he has accumulated eight certified gold albums, two platinum albums, an American Music Award, five Grammys and 56 Dove Awards, making him the most awarded artist in Christian music.

In so doing his fans have grown up with him and in many ways, experienced the difficulties he has experienced in his life. Chapman and wife Mary Beth have long advocated adoption, and even started the charity organization, Show Hope, which urges people and communities, through international efforts, to care for orphans.

Show Hope also sought to help more orphaned children to find loving homes in the U.S. by facilitating adoption grants. Three children from China, in fact, became part of the Chapman family, along with three biological children.

On May 21, 2008, one of Chapman’s children, five-year-old Maria Sue Chunxi Chapman, died in a tragic accident in the family driveway when she was hit by the SUV driven by son Will Franklin. She died that same day due to her injuries and loss of blood.

A year later, the Christian songwriter released the album, Beauty Will Rise, which in many ways told the story of the emotions that came amid the tragedy. Now Chapman is back with his 17^th album, re: creation under Sparrow Records.

The album features six new songs, and new recordings of his eight biggest hits, refashioned with an acoustic sound that is fresh and new. It is also Chapman’s way of telling his fans that he believes that God continues to recreate wonderful things for his family, even after having lost their daughter.

When asked why he chose this unique approach on his 17^th album, which includes new takes on his hits, Live Out Loud, Dive and Speechless, Chapman told Billboard, “When I look back on singing The Great Adventure, it meant something to me when I wrote it and I had some understanding of it, but there’s so much more now.”

Chapman told Billboard, “All those songs are rooted in life experience. They are all songs about my journey in faith … Three years ago, when Maria Sue went to heaven, all of my songs took on a much, much deeper meaning. I found myself singing these songs with a different passion and different purpose. I wanted to reinvent them in a way that they really represent what they mean to me now.”

“Over the course of his nearly 25-year career, Steven Curtis Chapman has chronicled his own journey through song while creating a soundtrack for our lives,” Wendy Lee Nentwig, Christian editor, Rhapsody, said. “We’ve watched him grow from a baby-faced Kentucky boy … His new album, re:creation, finds Steven Curtis emerging from a family tragedy to revisit some of his classic tunes, giving them a creative overhaul. Time and experience gives these songs new meaning, while Chapman delivers six brand-new tracks.”

Christians continue to be the most persecuted group globally either through government restrictions or social harassment, a new study revealed recently.

The Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life released recently a new study, Rising Restrictions on Religion, covering the period mid-2006 to mid-2009.

The study shows that there has been a general increase in government restrictions and social hostilities towards religion globally, with the largest amount of oppression being experienced by Christians at 66 percent globally in 130 countries.

Incidents of violence related to religion also rose by 51 percent, including incidence of death, physical abuse, imprisonment, displacement from homes, and damage of personal and religious properties.

While Christians experienced the highest incidence of social and government harassment in 130 countries at 66 percent, they were followed by the Muslim faith group at 59 percent in 117 countries. Together, both faith groups comprise more than half of the global population.

The third faith group to experience the highest incidence of widespread harassment and hostility are the Jews, at 38 percent in 75 countries. However, Jews only cover less than one percent of total global population.

According to the study, over 2.2 billion people out of a total global population of 6.9 billion live in countries with a rise in hostilities and restrictions towards religion. Only one percent of the global population lives in countries where restrictions and hostilities have decreased.

Polarization  

The Pew study also noted that countries where there was a rise in hostilities and restrictions towards religion already had high to very high levels of the same, even before the survey period that was covered.

Almost half of the countries that indicated a decrease in hostilities and restrictions, conversely, took place in nations that had already scored low in these areas before the survey period. This may indicate a possible growing polarization globally.

The study was based on 18 publicly-available information sources that have been widely cited, such as reports by the United Nations, the U.S. State Department and Human Rights Watch.

Other findings in the study are:

Rise in government restrictions

• Substantial increase on government restrictions on religion occurred in Nigeria, China, Thailand, Vietnam, Russia and the U.K., largely due to a rise in social hostility levels.
• Substantial increase in government restrictions and social hostility in Egypt and France occurred mainly due to government restrictions.
• The largest proportion of increases in government restrictions on religion occurred in countries located in the Middle East-North African region, where 30 percent, or almost one-third of nations in the area imposed greater government restrictions.
• Egypt ranked among the top five percent of all countries where government restrictions and social hostilities towards religion increased.

Rise in social hostilities

• Five out of 10 countries with a substantial rise in social hostilities are in Europe. They are Denmark, Sweden, Bulgaria, Russia and the U.K.
• Countries in Asia that experienced a substantial rise in social hostilities regarding religion are Thailand, Vietnam and China.
• In Europe, the largest proportion of social hostilities towards religion rose from mid 2006 to mid 2009.

The head of a Christian congress in Pakistan announced recently that he will send an appeal to the United Nations to allow refugee status for Pakistani Christians because they do not feel safe in their own country.

Dr. Nazir S. Bhatti, chief of Pakistan Christian Congress, said the PCC is demanding that the Pakistani government opens its borders so that Christians may flee to bordering countries such as Afghanistan, India and China.

“The Christians in Pakistan do not feel safe, and they want to flee for the safety of their lives. We are asking that they be given refugee status,” Bhatti told the Pakistan Christian Post.

Bhatti said this will continue to be necessary unless the blasphemy law is repealed. He also said the Federal Minority Ministry must be restored, and there should be an end to kidnapping and enforced conversion of Christian women to Islam so that they can be married to influential Muslims against their will.

Kidnapping, forced conversion

The number of kidnappings, forced conversion to Islam and gang rape of Christian women has doubled in the year 2010-2011.

An example is the incident of nursing student Farah Hatim, 24, a Catholic girl who was kidnapped last May 7, by Muslim Zeeshan Iliyas and his brothers, Gulfam and and Ulran.

Hatim, who lives in south Punjab where most incidents of Christian persecution occur, was forced to convert to Islam so that she could forcibly marry her abductor.

Hatim’s abductors threatened to kill her family if she failed to cooperate. When her family tried to file a report of her abduction before Superintendent Police Ashfaq Guijar and SHO city Nazir Shah, they were threatened and the police refused to file the case.

The case was only registered after some 400 Christians protested in front of the police office. As the Justice and Peace Commission brought the case to court, the police constantly threatened Hatim’s family.

The case was then raised to the Supreme Court. On July 20, for the first time, Hatim saw her family. When she was asked if she went with her Muslim abductor freely, she wept and said, “Of my own will,” to protect her family.

After the proceedings she was granted a few minutes to meet with her family. Her brother told Asia News, “I am shocked … she was threatened … Why us? Why do we have to deal with it? Just because we are Christians?”

The Committee for Justice and Peace told Asia News, “Farah has become a victim of the prostitution racket. Zeeshan Iiyas tried to push her into prostitution when she was still a student at Sheikh Zaid Medical College, Rahim Yar Khan, but she refused. Zeehan Iiyas then took revenge.”

Farah is also fearful because she became pregnant after she was raped and she fears that if she tries to return to her community she will be rejected and her family will be killed.

Sisters kidnapped

In a separate incident, two Christian siblings were kidnapped by a band hired by a wealthy Muslim, and forced to convert to Islam. One of them was then forced to marry the rich Muslim.

Rebecca Masih and her sister Saima Masih were abducted by businessman Muhammad Wassem last May 24 in Faisalabad district. Waseem then forced Saima to marry him. Extremist group leader Muhammad Zubair Qasim was present. His band, Sip-e-Sahaba, specializes in kidnapping and forced conversions.

According to the Justice and Peace Commission, “thousands of girls from minority communities are kidnapped and forced to marry Muslims. We are fighting against the cancer of abductions and forced marriages,” Asia News reported.

The Catholic church has also condemned such acts, as have human rights organizations. Hatim’s family is appealing for action, or laws against the practice of abduction, forced conversion and marriage.

However, such acts prevail largely because of the blasphemy law which is often abused as pretext for this, as well as destruction of Christian homes, arrest and murder of Christians including women and children.

Courts are not mediums for true justice for Christians. Even government officials are not spared, including Shahbaz Bhatti, Christian Federal Minister who was gunned down in Islamabad. The Federal Minority Ministry has also been dissolved.

Dr. Nazir S. Bhatti of the PCC said because equal rights for minorities is not possible in Pakistan, the alternative he seeks is refugee status for its Christians.

Janice and Sonia Lee, or “Jayesslee,” have a total YouTube upload view of 30 million. For them, music is the medium of choice for evangelism.

The online popularity of the Korean-Australian twin sisters has resulted in performances in their home country, Australia, as well as in China, across the U.S., and other countries.

On July 29, they will visit Washington D.C. to perform in Fresh Concert with the Korean Church Coalition for North Korea Freedom. They hope that through their music, more prayer warriors can be raised for the North.

The sisters said, “North Korea is a nation that God is highlighting to our church. We have had numerous mission groups visit our church with presentations of the persecution in that nation. We have watched documentaries and read testimonial books written by people who have escaped the country after being interrogated for years. Time and time again, we have been challenged by their faith. There is no doubt that God is stirring a revival in that nation and we pray for it to be soon.”

Singing for Jesus

Janice and Sonia uploaded their first YouTube video in 2008. Since then they have gained millions of fans, with a total upload view of some 30 million. Among the tours and concerts they’ve done, they say China is very memorable.

“[The] producers allowed us to sing Amazing Grace live on set. We were able to worship on national television in China.  What an unforgettable experience.”

But Jayesslee say their most memorable concert was in their hometown in Sydney, Australia. “[Our] closest friends and family heard us play live for the first time. We were on stage with YouTube celebrities such as KevJumba, RyanHiga and Andrew Garcia.”

Knowing Jesus

Although they were raised as Christians, Janice and Sonia say that they came to know Jesus in a personal way when they were in high school. At the time, their mother had been afflicted with cancer for seven years.

“[It] was difficult for us to understand the goodness of God for most of our lives. However, it was the way that God radically changed our mum through her sickness that sparked a curiosity to know who Jesus really was. In year 9, God met us during a time of prayer at a church camp and we’ve had a relationship with Him ever since,” they said.

At the time, they recall how their father stood by their mother. “For years, he gave up his job and hobbies to be next to our mum. He nursed her and did his best to fulfill his role as a husband and a dad.”

Today their father is remarried. “[We] now live with our dad, step mum and step brother. They are both amazing people and we are so thankful and blessed to be a family.”

Secular songs

Jayesslee sings both Christian and secular songs online. They have gotten some flack for this, but they say that when they choose secular songs they make sure the lyrics are wholesome and not explicit.

“By singing only Christian songs, our influence is limited to listeners who are Christians. As much as we love to empower fellow believers, our aim is to relate to our non-believing audience as well. We sing every song as worship to God.”

They have, because of this, had the experience where non-Christians have approached them to ask about their faith. This is because they first established common ground through carefully chosen secular songs.

Encounter with God

The Lee sisters say they aren’t sure how long they’ll be singing, but hope to do so for as long as possible. More important for them, however, is being able to share the gospel with “as many people as possible.”

They said they hope someday that they can hold concerts at stadiums, “where people would come to experience more than just a performance but an encounter with God. We’d like to leave an impact upon this generation that keeps them talking about the goodness of God, like the legacy that our mum has left behind.”

Popular Jayeslee songs

Secrets

Dare You To Move

Breakeven

The Christmas Song

Chen Guangcheng, a blind lawyer who was imprisoned on trumped up charges after exposing China’s inhumane forced abortions as a result of its one-child policy, is badly in need of medical treatment.

China Aid and Women’s Rights Without Frontiers have joined forces to call for the immediate release of Chen and his family so that he can get badly needed medical treatment immediately.

Chen and his wife have been harshly beaten relentlessly, and Chen’s elderly mother and five-year-old daughter have been treated cruelly (see  http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2011/06/letter-from-wife-of-chinese-blind-activist-reveals-graphic-details-of-torture-16345/).

Chen Guangcheng and his wife

A petition by Women’s Rights Without Frontiers was sent to China’s president Hu Jintao and its prime minister Wen Jiaobao requesting Chen’s release from house arrest and asking that he receives appropriate medical care as a free man.

The letter says, “On February 9, 2011 Chen released a video describing the deplorable conditions of his house arrest. The next morning, Chen and his wife, Yuan Weijing, were “beaten senseless.”

“We, the undersigned, are deeply concerned for the suffering and brutal treatment of Chen and his family. We call upon the Chinese government to free Chen from house arrest immediately and to get him the medical care he so urgently needs,” the letter said on its website.

“Chen’s wife sounded the alarm in a letter recently smuggled out of China. She said that Chen’s health is very fragile and worsening every day because of beatings, malnutrition and an intestinal illness,” Reggie Littlejohn, President of Women’s Rights Without Frontiers, stated.

“She is worried about his survival. Chen sacrificed everything to tell the world the brutal truth about forced abortion in China. He is a warrior for women’s rights. Now it’s our turn to sacrifice on behalf of Chen by fighting for his freedom.”

China Aid also slammed China’s treatment of Chen. Bob Fu, president, said, “The abuse of Chen Guangcheng is unconscionable and contrary to the rule of law. His mistreatment under house arrest is deplorable, including beatings, constant surveillance, as well as confiscation of his computer, cell phone, books, his blind cane and the toys of his young daughter.”

Both China Aid and Women’s Rights Without Frontiers are lobbying for help from the international diplomatic community to intervene with the Chinese government on behalf of Chen.

They are also calling on concerned citizens to write to the embassies and consulates in their countries anywhere in the world on behalf of Chen.

Chen was cited by Time Magazine in 2006 as among the Top 100 People Who Shape Our World. The following year, he was awarded the 2007 Magsaysay award, which is considered to be the Asian equivalent of the Nobel Peace Prize, for exposing the ills that are offshoots of China’s one-child policy.

Chen revealed that 130,000 abortions and sterilizations were enforced in Linyi County alone in 2005, against the wishes of the mothers. He was then imprisoned for four years and three months.

Although he was released in September 2010, the act seemed to be mere window dressing as house arrest has been no better than jail, and a video released by Women’s Rights equated the entire village, this time, as his prison.

Under house arrest Chen and his wife have been “beaten senseless,” are kept away from all contact with the outside world, are not permitted to have enough food, are constantly under watch even in their own home, and all their possessions have been taken away, including personal photographs and the toys of their children.

Those who wish to sign the petition may go to http://www.womensrightswithoutfrontiers.org/index.php?nav=chen-guangcheng#petition.