The pastor of one of China’s largest underground evangelical churches was arrested Friday in what appears to be a roundup of Christian leaders, and his family and followers fear for his safety.
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In this photo taken on August 4, 2018, Pastor Jin Minri leads a class on the basics of the Christian faith at Zion Church in Beijing, China. (Ng Han Guan/AP Photo)
The Zion Church is one of several underground churches operating in China, meaning it is not registered with authorities, making it illegal, the AP said.
“The charge looks like online distribution of religious material, but they didn’t hand out any physical paperwork to anyone, but they showed the detention form, and that’s what it says on the detention of most people. [slips]she said.
Since 2018, Jin has been under surveillance and faced an exit ban, meaning he could not reunite with his children, who are US citizens. He hasn’t seen them in over six years.
This photo provided by Pastor Sean Long of Zion Church shows police raiding the home of Pastor Sun Cong of Zion Church on Friday, October 10, 2025 in Beijing, China. (Sean Long via AP)
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“When it closed in 2018, there was no brick-and-mortar location that would ever rent out such a large space for Zion,” Grace said. “If you rented out even a small space, they would immediately find out and come and take Zion down.”
This put Zion Church in a difficult position, but instead it turned to the now familiar hybrid model, holding live praise and worship sessions online while distributing information so people could pray together in smaller groups.
“When COVID hit in 2020, Zion Church was one of the few churches with this online model,” Grace said. “Zion blew up at this point… Christians all over China attended Zion services because for a while it was the only church service where things were organized online every Sunday with music and sermons.”
She recalled that as other churches tried to adapt to the virtual world, her father offered his tools and methods to others. She said this helped her father connect not only with the other churches, but also with congregants.
This photo by Zion Church Pastor Sean Long shows Zion Church Pastor Sun Cong standing in handcuffs after being detained by police at his home in Beijing, China, on Friday, October 10, 2025. (Sean Long via AP)
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Jin’s family is calling on the US State Department to demand that the Chinese Communist Party “immediately and unconditionally release him so that he can return to his family in the United States ahead of further persecution by the Chinese government.”
Jin’s fate and those of the other Church leaders arrested with him remain uncertain, but… Chinese aida US-based religious group, said so-called “house churches” like Zion are “under unprecedented pressure.”
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“The courage of China’s urban pastors and believers will be remembered in history as a living testimony that the light of Christ cannot be extinguished by tyranny,” Fu added. He also called on President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to speak out and condemn the CCP’s crackdown.
