Who is Ezra Jin Mingri? China frees underground church pastor weeks after Trump's personal appeal to Xi

Pastor Jin Mingri was released on Friday (July 3) after spending over 250 days in Chinese custody. His release occurred nearly two months after US President Trump raised his case with Chinese leader Xi Jinping during a Beijing summit. Jin, 57, was permitted to leave China for the United States, arriving in Los Angeles on Friday night. There, he reunited with his daughter, Grace Jin Drexel, for the first time since 2020 and met his one-month-old grandson. Jin’s family expressed gratitude toward the Trump administration and noted that the release required Xi Jinping's direct intervention. John Kamm, founder of the human rights group Dui Hua, noted the symbolic timing of the release on the eve of the Fourth of July, suggesting China makes concessions when desired.

Who is pastor Jin Mingri?

Jin is the founder of Zion Church, a prominent underground congregation in China. After Chinese authorities closed the church's physical Beijing headquarters in 2018, Jin shifted operations online. His digital sermons grew widely popular, drawing an estimated 10,000 viewers across China.

Grace Jin Drexel, 31, daughter of Jin Mingri, who is also known as Ezra, a pastor of an "underground" church who was detained in the Beihai City of Guangxi region in China this month, holds up two framed photos, one of her father, mother and brothers, and another of her parents, during an interview in Washington, DC on October 30, 2025. Photograph: (AFP)

In October, Jin was detained under charges of "illegally using information networks" as part of a broader government crackdown on religious groups. While China's constitution guarantees religious freedom, the government only permits state-approved congregations, prompting tens of millions of Christians to worship in underground "house churches."

Geopolitical ties and continued detentions

During the May summit, Trump raised the plights of two non-Americans: Jin and Jimmy Lai, a British citizen and Hong Kong pro-democracy media tycoon. While Xi agreed to consider Jin's case, Lai was recently sentenced to 20 years in prison for "conspiracy to collude with foreign forces."

The diplomatic breakthrough comes as US-China relations stabilise following economic tensions and tariffs in 2025. In May, both nations agreed to a "constructive strategic stability". China seeks a halt to US arms sales to Taiwan, and Trump has utilised a stalled $14 billion congressional weapons package for Taiwan as a negotiating chip.

Despite Jin’s release, his daughter remains concerned for the eight other Zion pastors who are still detained. Among them is Franklin Wang Lin, who faces charges of "illegal business operations" and fraud related to Christian donations. In a letter to his wife, Su Ziming, Wang reported severe malnourishment and a loss of over 30 pounds.