CHINA (ANS) -- A ministry to the people of China is calling upon the churches of the world to pray for and provide aid for the victims of the earthquake in Sichuan province.

China Aid Association (CAA) says in a media release that it "mourns with the suffering Chinese people during this moment of great loss."

CAA is actively collaborating with the Chinese house churches to send love gifts to help survivors.

Meanwhile, CAA says it has learned that in the past two days, in spite of the attention garnered by of the rescue efforts for victims of the earthquake in Sichuan province, one house church Bible School in Hebei was raided and forced to close.

Church sources informed CAA that at 10:30am on May 13, 2008, a Bible school located in Yanjiao town, Sanhe city of Hebei Province was raided by more than 30 officers from the Sanhe City Religious Affairs Bureau, Sanhe Public Security Bureau, Langfang City Public Security Bureau of Hebei province and local PSB officers, led by the Chief of the Hebei Religious Affairs Bureau.

CAA says three computer hard disks were taken and the students were dispersed back to their hometowns forcefully. Pastor Gao Er Qiao from Pingdingshan City, Henan, Ms. Jiang Mei Hao from Inner Mongolia and their Korean interpreter Piao Zhihui were taken and interrogated from 4pm to 9pm. They were all released after the interrogation.

This particular Bible school was established in 2006 by missionaries from South Korea. The school consists of more than 100 students representing multiple provinces in China.

In addition, CAA says that at 10am May 12, 2008, a house church meeting in Daxing town, Tailai County, Qiqihaer City of Heilongjiang Province was raided by Chief of Qiqihaer and three other people.

They claimed it was an “illegal gathering” and took away 6,000 Yuan ($859USD) of offering from the church without following proper legal procedures. The church received a ticket of “receipt” stating that the church was officially shut down.

China Aid Association, Inc.
Tel: (267) -205-5210
Fax: (432)-686-8355
E-mail: info@ChinaAid.org
Websites: www.chinaaid.org ; www.monitorchina.org
Contact: Daniel Burton (432)-689-6985

** Michael Ireland, Chief Correspondent of ANS, is an international British freelance journalist who was formerly a reporter with a London newspaper and has been a frequent contributor to UCB Europe, a British Christian radio station. Michael's involvement with ASSIST News Service is a sponsored ministry department -- Michael Ireland Media Missionary (MIMM) -- of ACT International at: Artists in Christian Testimony (ACT) International.