Not since the days of Mao have we seen the sort of suppression of religion in China like we’re seeing right now.

Two recent stories from Xi Jinping’s China suggest it’s open season on religious believers there.

Reports out of Xinjiang Province on China’s western frontier say that up to one million Muslim Uighurs, the indigenous ethnic group of that region, are being held in detention camps.

One U.N. official expressed concern about reports that Beijing had “turned the Uighur autonomous region into something that resembles a massive internment camp.”

Of course, Beijing denies the allegations and insists that it’s merely cracking down on Islamic extremism.

As part of this so-called “crackdown on Islamic extremism,” China has banned the wearing of veils, prohibited giving children certain Muslim names, put limits on the length of beards, and made it a crime not to watch state television.

Given China’s horrendous human rights record, and the lack of evidence for a Uighur separatist movement, Islamist or not, it’s difficult to believe China’s denials. The more likely explanation is that Beijing is waging war on Islam as part of a campaign to subjugate the people of the region.

A similar war is being waged on Christianity in Henan Province in central China. It’s part of what’s being called “the most severe systematic suppression of Christianity in the country since religious freedom was written into the Chinese constitution in 1982.”

The brunt of this suppression is directed at unregistered “house” churches. Hundreds have been closed down. There have been raids, “interrogations, and surveillance, and one pastor said hundreds of his congregants were questioned individually about their faith.”

Even registered churches haven’t been spared. Reporters noted that these churches bore notices stating that “minors and party members were not allowed inside.” Another church had a banner exhorting members to “implement the basic direction of the party’s religious work.”

Make no mistake. What is meant by “the party’s religious work” is the active elimination of any rivals to the Communist Party, and in particular Xi Jinping, in the shaping of the worldview of the Chinese people. As one expert told the Monitor, Xi “definitely does not want people to be faithful members of the church, because then people would profess their allegiance to the church rather than to the party, or more exactly, to Xi himself.”

Local officials aren’t even coy about this. They openly speak about “thought reform.” They’re not content with mere obedience to the laws or the lack of any real challenge to the Communist Party’s authority. Their goal is to eliminate any distinction between the Party and society.

But history, including Chinese history, illustrates the absurdity of efforts like these. Within the last sixty years, two attempts at this kind of “reform,” “The Great Leap Forward” and Mao’s “Cultural Revolution,” attempted to remake Chinese society along explicitly ideological lines. What was left in their wake was tens of millions dead, and not much else.

This desperate need for control is why “Chinese leaders have always been suspicious of the political challenge…that Christianity poses to the Communist regime.” Not because Christians threaten or even desire to replace the regime, but because their ultimate allegiance lies elsewhere.

The same thing can be said about Muslims or observant Jews. Their worldview derives from something other than “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.” And that reality, and not anything believers do, is what’s behind the heightened persecution.

And it’s why religious freedom for everyone everywhere must be a priority for both American Christians and our government.

China’s Crackdown on Religion: Why Religious Freedom Must Be for All

As John affirms, religious liberty is a global matter, and there is particular concern right now for suppression of religion in China. Let your government representatives know how you feel. And check out these links for organizations committed to protecting freedom of conscience everywhere.