Chinese Police Arrests Jesus' Sister

(Southern Metropolis Daily)  November 22, 2007.

[in translation]

"100,000 yuan to cure cancer.  As quickly as ten days but no longer than twenty days.  If you have faith, you shall be saved."  A fifty-ish illiterate rural woman who has never attended school for a single day in her life is known as the "Little Goddess."  She claimed to be the sister of Jesus and was sent by "God" to "heal people from diseases."  The healing method is to ask God to bless mineral water and drink it according to schedule.  Each cancer patient is charged 100,000 yuan.

On October 12, the police received complaints from citizens.  After almost one month of investigation, the police took action on November 10 and arrested the self-proclaimed sister of Jesus named Zhou at a private villa on Taiping Street in Minzhong town, Zhongshan city, Guangdong province.

From the investigation, it was discovered that Zhou owns three villas and a building.  One of the villas occupies three mu of land with more than 2,100 square meters of living space.  Over the years, she collected several million yuan from superstitious believers.  So far, several dozens of people are known to be victims.

"Little Goddess" is a Minzhong town resident named Zhou in Zhongshan city.  She claimed to be the sister of Jesus and she could heal cancer within twenty days.  The patient brings several bottles of mineral water to "Little Goddess" who asks God to put sacred medicine into the mineral water.  When the patient drinks the water, he (she) will be cured.  The patient pays 100,000 yuan or even as much as 200,000 yuan.  Many victims were unable to produce the sum immediately, but they were allowed to pay by installments.

On November 10, a "sacred" rite was being held inside a private villa on Taiping street in Minzhong town.  In the hall of the villa, "Little Goddess" sat underneath a cross hung on the wall.  A tablet with the words "The Greatest Miracle Doctor Underneath The Heavens" hung on the wall by the side.  Several "believers" knelt before her and kowtowed.  In front of them were the bottles of mineral bottle that these believers brought with them.  After they put the money into the mooncake box on the table, "Little Goddess" turned the mineral water into holy water that could cure every possible disease.  But before the rite could be completed, the Zhongshan police charged into the villa and arrested "Little Goddess" Zhou.  According to one of the arresting police officers, a family of four at the scene begged the police to let Zhou go, because she was a good person.

According to the police, there are several kinds of victims.  Some of the victims have ordinary problems which Zhou exaggerated.  Another type is the terminal cancer patient.  Even more absurd is the claim that certain children of the patients were also infected at birth with cancer and must be treated as well.  Zhou kept two accounting ledgers: one for the "healing fees" already collected and the other for the unpaid debts.  According to information, the family of four which pleaded on behalf of Zhou during her arrest had been diagnosed by Zhou with having various kinds of cancer.  The family was impoverished and could not afford to pay their "healing fees" in one lump sum.  Therefore, they used an installment plan of 30 yuan for the mother, 20 yuan for the father and 10 yuan each for the two children per day.  This family earns less than 2,000 yuan per month.  The eldest daughter claimed that when they have repaid their 600,000 yuan in debt, the whole family would be healed.

Zhou's housekeeper Wu was also one of the victims.  For some years, Wu worked as a nanny for Zhou because she was unable to repay the huge healing fees.  Over the years, she has never received a cent in wages and she still "owes" 48,000 yuan before she is done.

According to the police on the case, Zhou claimed that healing effectiveness depends on the faith, and giving money is one way of expressing that faith.  Many of the victims gave away their last yuan to "Little Goddess" even though their homes were stripped barren.  Most of the victims are uneducated peasant women.  According to "Little Goddess," one must have total faith in order to be healed.  However, it was alright if the family did not know about it.  Therefore, many of the victims were secretly buying the medicine without the knowledge of their family members.

On the morning of the day before yesterday, the reporter met with this sister of Jesus.  Zhou said that she was illiterate and had never attended school for even a single day.  She claimed that she was a banana planter for more than two decades in Minzhong town.  When her daughter and family members got sick, they did not take medicine.

Q: How did you learn to cure cancer?
A: I knew that I had the ability ever since I was young.  God is my father and Jesus is my elder brother.  God sent me down to Minzhong town to cure diseases.

Q: How do you know that you are the daughter of God?  Have you seen Jesus?
A: I was sent to live in Minzhong when I was six years old.  God has sent many angels down to earth to heal people.  He sent me to Minzhong town.  I am telling the truth.  I planted bananas for more than twenty years.  I never used fertilizers and I only used "holy water."  The bananas grew wonderfully.  I hired only eight people to tend bananas on several hundred mu of land.  How can this be done if not with the help of God?

Q: Have you seen what your elder brother Jesus looks like?  Is he handsome?
A: Jesus is my elder brother.  I have obviously seen him.  He looks like an ordinary foreigner.  He is more handsome in person.

Q: If God is sending you to save people, why are you charging money?
A: At first, I charged only a small amount.  But God told me that the diseases cannot be healed if I charge too little.  Later, I began to charge 200,000 yuan to heal cancer.  Actually, I give out more than I put in.  It is very hard to cure diseases.  I have to worry every day.  I pray each night until 2am before I can sleep.

Q: Are you being wrongfully arrested by the police?
A: I dare not say that I am innocent.  I cannot only say that kindheartedness does not always get rewarded.

Zhou claimed to a Christian and the sister of Jesus.  On afternoon of the day before yesterday, the reporter interviewed a reverend at a Christian church in Zhongshan city.  The reverend said that Zhou did not join any Christian church in Zhongshan and what she did has nothing to do with Christianity.  He said that many of her claims were absurd for she was only doing this for the money.  She did not even have any basic understanding of the culture and facts of Christianity.  For example, she claimed to be the sister of Jesus, but Jesus has no sister; her accumulation of money in the name of "God" was against the principles of the Bible.

Yesterday, the reporter interviewed Mr. Chen who spent more than 100,000 yuan trying to heal his wife, who died from cancer in 2004.

Q: How did your wife die?
A: She had hysterocarcinoma, but she never went to the hospital.  About nine years ago, my wife was diagnosed with hysterocarcinoma.  Someone introduced her to "Little Goddess".  This person said that as long as you have enough faith and enough money, you can be healed.  So my wife never went to the hospital.

Q: How much did you spend on the healing?
A: More than one hundred thousand yuan.  All the money that the family got from the land compensation and all the money that my wife earned from work -- not a single cent was left.  It was the same with my wife's sister-in-law.  She also spent 100,000 yuan, and she died last year.  Another person named Liang several streets away also died this way.

Q: Do you hate "Little Goddess"?
A: I hate her so much that I could grab a knife and hack her.