Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) congratulated a group of Chinese Christians, the Shenzhen Holy Reformed Church, also nicknamed the Mayflower Church, for safely arriving in Texas. Smith criticized the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for taking away their rights to freely practice their religion, so the group was forced to flee. The group was stranded in Thailand for three years, fighting legal setbacks and police detentions before they were able make it to the U.S. last week.
According to Smith, 60 members of the Shenzhen Holy Reformed Church were able to safely land in Dallas, Texas and now freely practice their Christian faith without fear of persecution. Smith has been advocating for the refugees while they were stationed in Thailand.
“Had they been forcibly repatriated to China, they would have been jailed and severely persecuted,” Smith said in a press release.
Smith has chaired over 85 hearings on the human rights abuses by the CCP.
“It is a very Good Friday indeed, and a perfect Easter gift to see these persecuted Chinese Christians arrive and be allowed to practice their faith freely in the United States,” Smith said, according to the press release. “After years of fleeing persecution suffered at the hands of the Chinese Communist Party, these men and women of great faith can finally enjoy religious freedom in America.”
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported the 63 members of the Shenzhen Holy Reformed Church were able to board flights to Texas on Thursday of last week, according to the United Nations’ refugee agency and a Thai police official. Freedom Seekers International, a Texas-based nonprofit, is helping the refugees to permanently settle in Tyler, Texas. The group is the first to escape religious persecution and make it to the U.S. as one large church, although it is common for Chinese Christians to flee China. The U.S. government played a major role in communicating with the Thai government and working out the deportation to the U.S.
The WSJ reports that the Communist Party in China, led by Xi Jinping, has increased its control over many aspects of Chinese society and suppressed dissent, leading more Chinese citizens to seek asylum in other countries. The number of asylum seekers from China has increased from 15,362 in 2012 to over 118,000 in 2021. The Shenzhen Church, an unregistered congregation, faced government persecution and harassment, leading them to escape to Jeju, South Korea in 2018. The Chinese government regards the church as illegal. The congregation left for South Korea, but did not stay long after increased persecution from Chinese officials. They relocated to Bankok, Thailand, where at one point an orchestrated police raid led all 63 members being detained, as well as two American activists. After threats from Thai officials that the group would be sent back to China, U.S. politicians intervened to help the group from being sent back.
“It is the most joyful homecoming to welcome the Mayflower Church to Texas," Bob Fu, founder and president at ChinaAid, an international nonprofit that has been advocating for the Mayflower Church, said. “None of this would have been possible without the help of partners, members of Congress and U.S. government staff who worked countless hours in order to bring the Mayflower Church to safety. Now they can live out their faith fully without fear of persecution!”
ChinaAid held a welcoming event for the group when they arrived in Dallas on Friday. Pastor Pan Yongguang, the leader of the Mayflower Church, thanked everyone for helping the group make the journey and gave thanks to God for their "miraculous rescue."
