Founder of prominent underground church released from prison in China | China
The founder of one of China’s most prominent underground churches has been released from prison and reunited with his family in the United States.
Ezra Jin, founder of the Zion Church, landed in the United States on Friday evening. He was one of dozens of church members detained during a sweeping crackdown on Christians in October.
“We truly witnessed a miracle and feel overwhelmed with joy,” Jin’s family said in a statement. “We thank God for this tremendous miracle. We also thank President Trump and his administration for their tremendous leadership.”
China’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Jin’s release is a rare example of China releasing one of its own citizens, apparently in response to US lobbying efforts. In 2024, David Lin, a Chinese-American pastor, was released from prison after 20 years of lobbying by the State Department.
Jin’s case was raised by Donald Trump during his visit to Beijing in May. While the US president said Chinese President Xi Jinping was “seriously considering” releasing priests imprisoned in China, he said progress was more difficult with other detained people, such as British citizen Jimmy Lai.
Jin’s wife and children are in the US and have repeatedly appealed to the US government and directly to Trump to secure Jin’s release. Jin’s daughter, Grace Jin Drexel, testified Before the congress in November. Trump later described He called her a “beautiful girl” and promised to discuss Jin’s case with Xi.
Jin, a Chinese national, is one of the most recognizable faces of China’s underground church movement. He founded Zion Church in 2007. In 2018, the church’s physical location in Beijing was forced to close, but the group later switched to online sermons, allowing them to reach thousands of members.
Christianity is legal in China, but worship is only allowed in government-controlled churches. The government said in 2018 that there were 44 million Christians in China, but other estimates, including unregistered believers, put the number at around 130 million.
Many Christians stay away from government-controlled churches, preferring to worship in underground groups such as Zion, also known as “house churches.”
Last year, China launched a major crackdown on house churches. In January, members of another prominent group, the Early Rain church, were detained. An Early Rain meeting held in June in Sichuan, southwestern China, was raided by police and more than 30 people were reportedly taken away for questioning.
Many members of the Zion Church remain in detention. Last month, the cases of nine members, including Jin, were turned over to prosecutors on charges of illegal business activities and fraud. Nine people were released on bail pending trial.
