Pastor jailed for his faith in China wins Lantos Prize
Pastor Ezra Jin Mingri received the Lantos Prize for defending religious freedom; eight of those detained in the raids are still in prison.
Ezra Jin Mingri, a pastor jailed for his faith in China, was released on July 3 and will now receive the Lantos Prize for defending religious freedom, according to The Epoch Times. The ceremony will take place on December 10 in Washington.
The Lantos Foundation has given this prize every year since 2009 to people who document abuses and defend human rights. Past recipients include blind activist Chen Guangcheng, Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong and former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom.
A church that grew under pressure
Jin was ordained a pastor in Beijing in 2001. The following year he traveled to California to study at Fuller Theological Seminary, where he earned a doctorate in ministry in 2007. That same year he returned to China and founded Zion Church in Beijing.
«A prize in Washington doesn't open a cell, and no government hands out the freedom to believe.»
The congregation endured what Jin described to lawmakers as every kind of persecution: pressure on landlords to break leases, demands to record the ID of those who attended, and water and electricity cutoffs at the meeting place. Even so, by 2018 the church had 1,500 people.
The relationship with the authorities broke down that year, when the church refused to accept 24-hour surveillance. In September 2018, several hundred police officers shut down the church building. Afterward, the congregation met on digital platforms and opened about 100 meeting points in 40 cities.
Eight who are still in prison
On October 9, 2025, about 30 pastors and leaders were detained in coordinated raids in 11 cities, according to Jin's account. He and 17 others were taken to a detention center in Beihai, in Guangxi province.
For the detainees, lawyers were the only channel to the outside world. Even so, those same lawyers faced pressure to close or suspend their firms.
After his release, he was transferred to Guangzhou and from there to its international airport, where he was put on a flight bound for Los Angeles.
On October 7, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China said on X that the eight who remain detained are unjustly imprisoned, and it called for their unconditional release.
Jin said he receives the prize with honor and wants to make known what believers in his country are suffering. "It is vital that people around the world join together to defend greater religious freedom for the people of China" (translated by Sígueme).
What is in your hands
A prize in Washington doesn't open a cell, and no government hands out the freedom to believe. Christ upholds that freedom, and it doesn't depend on a signature or a court. What is within your reach today is to pray for the eight who are still in prison, to say their names and not let them become a statistic.
"Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body" (Hebrews 13:3, ESV).
Jesus said: "So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed" (John 8:36, ESV). This week you can set aside a few minutes to pray for Zion Church and for the eight who are still detained. Who is praying for them today?
