China releases underground church pastor after months in detention

The founder of a prominent underground church in China has been released after months in detention, his family and a Christian rights group said.

ChinaAid said Pastor Jin Mingri, also known by his English name Ezra Jin, landed in Los Angeles on July 4 after being held in detention centres in the southern Chinese city of Beihai since October.

“ChinaAid welcomes with profound gratitude the release of imprisoned Chinese house church pastor Ezra Jin, who arrived safely in Los Angeles on July 4, 2026,” the group said in a statement on Sunday.

Jin founded Zion Church in Beijing in 2007 and became one of the most recognisable figures in China’s underground Christian movement.

The Zion Church is among the largest underground or house churches in China that are unregistered with authorities. They defy a requirement that believers worship only in registered congregations.

Authorities shut the church’s physical premises in 2018, but the group continued operating online, allowing it to reach thousands of worshippers.

Chinese authorities detained Jin and other Zion Church leaders during a wider crackdown last year. Eighteen church leaders were arrested and accused of “illegally using information networks”.

“We truly witnessed a miracle and we are feeling 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.”

Grace Jin said US President Donald Trump raised her father’s case with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a visit to Beijing in May. Trump told reporters at the time that Xi was “seriously considering” the release of the pastor.

“We know that this could not have happened without the direct intervention from Chairman Xi Jinping. We hope this is a signal of a positive turn for people of faith in China and relations between our two nations,” the family said in a separate statement.

There was no immediate comment from China’s foreign ministry.

Maya Wang, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, welcomed the release but noted that several Zion Church members remained in custody.

“At least 8 members of Zion Church remain detained in China. They should all be freed,” Wang wrote on X.