The founder of one of China’s most prominent underground churches and dozens of its pastors and members have been arrested, the founder’s family and a church spokesperson said, part of a multi-city crackdown in recent days.
Jin Mingri, who founded Zion Church, a house of worship not sanctioned by the Chinese government, was arrested at his home in the city of Beihai in the southern region of Guangxi on Friday evening, his daughter, Grace Jin, and a church spokesperson, Sean Long, told reporters.
Grace Jin said she was concerned for her 56-year-old father’s health and his access to legal representation.
“He’s been hospitalized in the past for diabetes. We’re worried since he requires medication,” she told Reuters. “I’ve also been notified that lawyers are not allowed to meet the pastors, so that is very concerning to us.”
“House” churches like Zion Church generally operate without official registration documents and without the involvement of local religious affairs bureaus. Zion Church has about 5,000 regular worshippers across nearly 50 cities who attend sermons on Zoom and in small in-person gatherings, Long told Reuters.
The arrests come a month after Beijing’s top religion regulator issued new rules banning unauthorized online preaching, as well as a broader crackdown on online content that expresses views contrary to the Chinese Communist Party’s goals. Supporters fear the pastors could soon be indicted under these new rules.
In a statement released Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned the arrests and called on Beijing to release the pastors.
“This crackdown further demonstrates how the CCP exercises hostility towards Christians who reject Party interference in their faith and choose to worship at unregistered house churches,” Rubio said.
