08 Jan 2013 

NEW YORK -- A flood of greetings in the form of calligraphy, photographs, e-cards, colorful Flash animations, prose and poetry have streamed into the main Falun Gong website Minghui.org, wishing a happy New Year to founder Li Hongzhi. The greetings come from every facet of society – small towns, major cities, political offices, businesses, schools, prisons – and number in the thousands.

Under the circumstances of on-going persecution, the sending of a holiday greeting is more significant than it might initially seem. For example, there continues to be substantial risk for using the Internet circumvention software that would be necessary for delivery of these greetings to Minghui.org. Moreover, the number and variety of greetings is a testament to the universal appeal that Falun Gong continues to have in China, despite nearly 14 years of brutal persecution.

 The greetings also signify the important role the Minghui website has played in connecting Falun Gong practitioners around the world.

One greeting included these words: “I have practiced alone over the past five years, but I read articles published on Minghui website daily as a way to communicate with other practitioners. I can feel revered Master's compassionate enlightenment and care at all times. I'm grateful to Master for all that He has done for His disciples! No words can express Master's grace.”

The greetings are also an important snapshot into how Falun Gong manifests in practitioners’ lives. “Many people think that Falun Gong is a political or social movement, when it is quite the opposite,” said Levi Browde, director of the Falun Dafa Information Center. “The reverence and care with which the holiday greetings were made and delivered indicate that practicing Falun Gong is highly personal, something that touches one’s heart in the deepest of ways.”