“Prayer Letter to the Members of House Churches” — Latest Developments Regarding the Cases Involving Beijing Zion Church and Xi’an Zion Light Church

Dear pastors, co-workers, brothers and sisters of all churches in the Lord:

May the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you!

Last October, because of the sudden circumstances faced by Zion’s pastoral co-workers, we issued an urgent prayer letter to all the churches. At that time, nearly 30 pastors and co-workers from Zion Church in various parts of the country had been detained or had gone missing one after another. Since its establishment in Beijing in 2007, Zion Church has consistently upheld biblical truth and, amid various restrictions and pressures, continued to care for vulnerable groups in society and devote itself to the mission of the Gospel. As pastors called by Christ to serve in house churches throughout China, we know deeply that this is not the hardship of a single church, but a shared experience and pain of the entire body of Christ.

Now, as we reach the end of March 2026, according to the latest notice issued on March 27 by the families and support team connected with the Zion Church case, after nearly half a year of investigation, the case has reached a critical procedural turning point—the authorities handling the case have conducted centralized interrogations of the pastoral co-workers detained at Beihai Detention Center, and the case is about to be transferred to the procuratorate for review and prosecution.

However, at this critical stage of the legal proceedings, the defense team has suffered an unprecedented blow and professional crisis. Beijing Kaimen Law Firm, where 17 lawyers had participated in the defense of this case, is facing enormous administrative pressure. Several of the firm’s core lead defense lawyers, including attorney Zhang Kai, have successively had their licenses revoked or been subjected to penalties of suspension for rectification, forcing multiple lawyers to propose terminating their contracts with the defendants.

At present, the lawful defense rights of the 18 pastors and co-workers in the church case are facing an extremely grave challenge. Pastor Gao Quanfu and co-workers of Xi’an Zion Light Church are also facing a similar crisis concerning the fairness of their defense.

In the face of the drastic reduction in legal-aid resources, we continue to follow the progress of such cases and, out of loving responsibility and a conscience committed to justice, pray to God that the relevant authorities will enforce the law impartially, respect and protect the lawful right to defense of every citizen and defendant, and stop exerting administrative pressure on defense lawyers who are properly performing their duties. As the Bible reveals: “What does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8) We firmly believe that earthly defense may be temporarily obstructed, but before the Most High who governs all things, justice and conscience will never be absent.

For this reason, we once again urgently call on pastors, co-workers, brothers and sisters in churches throughout the country to continue praying earnestly in watchfulness for Zion Church, Zion Light Church, and all those involved in these cases:

• • Pray for the pastoral co-workers detained in prison: May the Lord be with them, just as He was with Paul, granting them peace that surpasses understanding, lives of faith and joy, and a witness while in prison.
• • Pray for the defense lawyers facing professional crises: We pray for these lawyers who, despite being under enormous pressure, continue to hold fast to the bottom line of the law and courageously provide assistance. May God grant them even greater courage, and may more legal professionals filled with a sense of justice be raised up, unafraid of hardship and determined to uphold the dignity of the law.
• • Pray for the procuratorate and the relevant officials handling the cases: May the Lord enlighten the prosecutors and judicial personnel who take over the cases, awakening their consciences and compassion. May they truly handle the cases in accordance with the law, resolve social conflicts through justice and peace, and safeguard citizens’ freedom of religious belief and basic human rights.
• • Pray for the families of those suffering and for the church congregations: May the Lord be their ever-present help and refuge (Psalm 46:1). Amid the difficulties caused by limited legal resources, may the Holy Spirit personally comfort the hearts of the families and provide all that they need. May the Lord also enable them to face their difficulties with an attitude of forgiveness and live out the power of Christ’s resurrection.
• • Pray for more churches to rise up in united prayer: Pray that more churches will arise in united prayer amid all kinds of tribulation, be willing to endure persecution, injustice, and suffering in order to hold fast to the faith, and gladly share in Christ’s sufferings.

“The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all.” (Psalm 34:19) May all the churches, at this challenging time, continue to weep with those who weep and manifest in prayer the connection and care of the body of Christ!

House Church Pastors’ Joint Prayer Fellowship

March 30, 2026