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Acton Line podcast: Behind China’s drive for global domination
Acton Line podcast: Behind China’s drive for global domination
Oct 18, 2026 11:23 AM

During Christmastime in China in 2015, 1,700 churches were torn down or vandalized, a result of the Chinese government growing increasingly hostile to Christianity. In 2018, The Chinese government raided and shut down churches ahead of Christmas and detained pastors and members caught celebrating. From reports of labor camps in the country to growing surveillance through technology, China is increasingly cracking down on freedom. This is all laid out in a new book, titled Deceiving the Sky: Inside Communist China’s Drive for Global Supremacy. The author, Bill Gertz, joins us on Acton Line to discuss. He’s a national security columnist for the Washington Times and senior editor of the Washington Free Beacon.

Check out additional resources for this episode:

Buy: Deceiving the Sky: Inside Communist China’s drive for global supremacy

China Closes Megachurches Before Christmas

Chinese City Bans Christmas Displays Amid Religious Crackdown

Christian family details crackdown on church in China

Watch: Bill Gertz on China and US National Security

New to the Acton Line podcast? Subscribe here! We also mend starting with these episodes:

Do you have feedback for the Acton Line podcast team? We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]. If you like Acton Line, don’t forget to leave a rating and review on the Apple podcast app!

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