Chinese authorities have arrested Pastor Jin Mingri, the founder of the influential Zion Church network, in what rights groups describe as the country’s largest crackdown on Christians in decades. At least 30 other church leaders and members were also detained in coordinated raids spanning Beijing, Shanghai, and several other cities over the weekend.

According to an official detention notice obtained by advocacy groups, Pastor Jin was taken into custody in Beihai city, Guangxi province, and is currently being held at Beihai Number Two Prison on charges of the “illegal use of information networks.”

Jin’s daughter, Grace Jin Drexel, who resides in the United States, said the family became alarmed after receiving a message from her father asking for prayers for another missing pastor in Shenzhen. Hours later, her mother informed her that Jin himself could no longer be reached.

Human rights organisations have condemned the arrests as part of a wider campaign to suppress unregistered “house churches” — independent Christian congregations that operate outside China’s state-controlled religious system.
Corey Jackson of the Luke Alliance called the operation “unprecedented” in scale and coordination, warning that “this is just the beginning of a larger crackdown.”

Founded in Beijing in 2007, Zion Church grew to become one of China’s most prominent independent Protestant congregations, attracting thousands of worshippers across more than 100 branches nationwide. The church was forcibly shut down in 2018 after refusing government demands to install surveillance cameras and register under the state-sanctioned Three-Self Patriotic Movement.

Since then, Zion has relied on a “hybrid” model — streaming online sermons and holding small in-person gatherings — but authorities have tightened restrictions on digital religious activity. Under new regulations introduced in September, only licensed religious organisations are permitted to host online worship services, effectively criminalising Zion’s activities.

The Chinese Embassy in London defended the government’s position, stating that “all religious groups and activities must comply with the laws and regulations of China” and that freedom of religion is guaranteed “in accordance with the law.”

Critics, however, say the laws are a tool for political control. Pastor Sean Long, a Zion Church spokesperson based in the U.S., described the detentions as a “systematic roundup” meant to instill fear among believers. “They are killing the chicken to scare the monkeys,” he said, invoking a Chinese proverb about deterrence.

Born in Heilongjiang province in 1969, Jin converted to Christianity after witnessing the Tiananmen Square crackdown as a university student. Rejecting state-run churches, he devoted his life to building independent Christian communities across China.

Despite the mass arrests, church leaders abroad say the movement will endure.
“Persecution cannot destroy the church,” Pastor Long said. “History shows that where there is repression, there’s revival.”