U.S. Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) have sent a bipartisan letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, urging the U.S. government to apply more pressure on Chinese authorities for the immediate release of Pastor “Ezra” Jin Mingri and other Zion Church leaders detained in China.
The letter highlights that Pastor Jin, who is 56 years old and the founder and senior pastor of Beijing’s Zion Church, was detained on October 10, 2025, along with nearly thirty other church leaders. The detentions were reportedly based on allegations of "illegal dissemination of information online."
According to the senators’ letter: “Pastor Jin, the 56-year-old founder and senior pastor of Beijing’s Zion Church, was detained on October 10, 2025, along with nearly thirty other church leaders, on allegations of ‘illegal dissemination of information online.’”
The senators further stated: “Public reports indicate that formal indictments may soon follow, making this a critical moment for U.S. engagement on their cases. Strong and visible advocacy from the United States can help sustain international pressure, support efforts to secure their release, and show Chinese authorities that the world is watching. We urge you to seize this moment.”
They described the detentions as significant: “The October 10 detentions represent the largest coordinated crackdown on an urban house church in four decades and underscore a troubling reality: the Chinese government is targeting people of faith simply for worshiping freely.”
The senators also commended Secretary Rubio’s previous statement supporting Pastor Jin and others: “We commend your statement in support of Pastor Jin and the other detained Zion Church leaders on October 12. We urge you to follow up that statement with continued diplomatic engagement, to press your PRC counterparts to release Pastor Jin and the other detained church leaders, and to make clear that the United States will continue to speak out for freedom of belief and worship.”
Other signatories include Senators Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Jim Justice (R-W.Va.).
On October 10, 2025, China’s Communist Party carried out what has been described as its largest nationwide crackdown against a Christian urban house church in over forty years. At least twenty-two pastors or members from Zion Church were arrested during this action.
Earlier in November 2025, a Senate resolution led by Senators Cruz and Chris Coons (D-Del.) condemned these actions by Chinese authorities.
Senator Ted Cruz has previously secured election victories in Texas Senate races—defeating Colin Allred in 2024 with just over half the vote; Beto O'Rourke in 2018; and Paul Sadler in 2012.
