Religious statues, artifacts, and Catholic buildings have been either demolished or razed  to the ground reportedly by Chinese authorities in what many believed was a renewed government attack against Christianity.

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According to UCA News, a news agency covering Catholic concerns in Asia, statues of Jesus, the Virgin Mary and St. Joseph, weighing 5 tons each, have been hidden  by bricks while some other religious items were removed using cranes.

Reports said around 50 government workers sealed off a site of Catholic pilgrimage in Wenzhou’s  Longgang Hill which was to be held on Saturday and  hid the statues portraying the Passion of the Christ . Reports said all religious decorations were demolished.

UCA said around 100 Catholics who were watching the removal were barred from entering the site An eyewitness account said those who managed to slip in the building sang and offered prayers. Others could not hold back their tears.

The UCA news that interviewed the worshippers, said the people believe that this is some kind of crackdown by the government which is reminiscent of the Cultural Revolution where churches were destroyed aimed at demolishing places of worship.

Chinese authorities said that the demolitions were  part of their campaign against illegal structures and not an attack against Christianity.

Worshippers rejected the government’s claim that the demolitions were just part of their job in clamping down on illegal structures including factories and Buddhist temples.

UCA, said that four people have already been beaten and  injured in a standoff with China police when they attempted to stop the demolition  of Wenzhou’s Sanjiang Church.The demolition was levelled nonetheless last Monday.

The worshippers have  witnessed several standoffs with the police in April as thousands of worshippers formed a human shield to block the police entry.into the church,More than one year later, the Church was successfully demolished.

Reports said a list of 20 more churches are set to be demolished in the government’s campaign against illegal structures.