Last Friday, Grace Jin Drexel received alarming news from her father, Pastor Jin Mingri, in China. He urged her to pray for another pastor who had gone missing in Shenzhen. Soon after, her mother called to say she couldn’t reach her father.
Within hours, the family discovered that Pastor Jin was also detained in what activists are calling China’s largest crackdown on Christians in decades.
This weekend, 30 members of the Zion Church network, founded by Jin, were arrested, raising fears of a broader attack on underground churches, BBC reports.
Activists point to new laws aimed at limiting underground church activities and increased pressure from authorities.
Despite being governed by the atheist Chinese Communist Party, China has around 38 million Protestants and nearly six million Catholics, according to government figures. However, many Christians attend unregistered “house churches” that do not follow state-sanctioned practices.
In recent years, the Chinese government has tightened its grip on religious groups, demolishing church buildings and restricting religious materials.
New regulations in 2005 and 2018 further limited public worship, forcing many churches to hold online services or shut down entirely.
Recently, Chinese authorities have intensified their actions against churches. In May, Pastor Gao Quanfu was detained, and members of the Linfen Golden Lampstand Church were sentenced to prison on charges criticized as false.
A new code of conduct for religious personnel now limits online sermons to licensed groups, further threatening underground churches.
Members of Zion Church have reported increased questioning by police, leading many to fear a crackdown. Last weekend, authorities arrested Pastor Jin along with other church leaders across at least 10 cities, including Beijing and Shanghai. An official detention notice confirms he is held in Beihai Number Two prison for “illegal use of information networks.”
While some detained members have been released, many remain imprisoned. Corey Jackson from the Luke Alliance described the coordinated arrests as unprecedented, warning that this may be just the beginning of a larger crackdown.
Zion Church’s prominence and outspoken nature may have made it a target, with advocates predicting continued government actions against house churches.
Sean Long, a spokesperson for Zion based in the U.S., called the arrests a “systematic roundup” aimed at dismantling the church.
When asked for comment, a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in London claimed that citizens enjoy freedom of religion, but all activities must comply with Chinese laws. Meanwhile, the Chinese foreign ministry condemned U.S. interference regarding the arrests.
As the situation remains uncertain for Pastor Jin and others, Sean Long remains optimistic about the resilience of Zion and underground churches in China.
“Persecution cannot destroy the church,” he said, noting that history shows where there is repression, there is often revival.
