As global headlines celebrated the release of one prominent Chinese minister, the wife of another pastor is pleading with the world not to forget those still jailed in China.
As global headlines celebrated the release of one prominent Chinese minister, the wife of another pastor is pleading with the world not to forget those still jailed in China.
“Zion Church has eight leaders still detained,” said Sister Su Ziming, wife of Pastor Wang Lin, who leads Beijing Zion Church alongside the recently released Pastor Ezra Jin. “Our family and the others all eagerly await reunion.”
Before entering ministry, Pastor Lin (also known as Franklin Wang) practiced law and later earned a Ph.D. in Old Testament theology from Wheaton College in Illinois. He returned to China in 2017 to co-lead Zion Church.
A prominent evangelical house church network with influence in more than 40 cities across China, Zion Church has faced repression from authorities since 2018. The largest recent crackdown came in October 2025, when authorities detained 30 church leaders. Eight remain imprisoned.
For Su and the couple’s two young children, the past nine months have been “the longest and most painful nine months of our family’s lives.” Early Thursday, she posted that she and newly freed Pastor Jin had met up and prayed together.
In this in-depth interview, Su shares the “immense suffering” of losing contact with her husband, her concerns for the Zion Church leaders still being held, her response to Jin’s release, and her hope for the future. It has been lightly edited for length.
Your husband Pastor Wang Lin has been imprisoned for nine months. What does that mean for you and your family?
To the outside world, nine months have simply passed. But for our family, they have been nine months of separation, waiting, and uncertainty.
My husband has missed every important milestone in our children’s lives, along with all the ordinary moments that a family should have shared together.
What grieves me most is that I firmly believe my husband has committed no crime. He is a Christian pastor who has faithfully served the church for many years, shepherding believers, training church leaders, and teaching theology. Yet today, he remains behind bars.
I often feel helpless when our children ask me, “When is Daddy coming home?” No family should have to endure this. Yet we have not lost hope.
Why was Beijing Zion Church targeted by Chinese authorities?
The Chinese government officially banned Beijing Zion Church on September 9, 2018. However, the church continued gathering through home meetings and online services.