Authorities in China have detained several pastors and church workers from Beijing Jiaquan Church, an independent house church operating in the capital. The U.S.-based group ChinaAid said it has received firsthand accounts of the arrests, though the number of people held and the charges against them remain unknown. The group said it was checking whether Jiaquan congregations outside Beijing were hit.
A coordinated operation in several places, if confirmed, would mark another major move against churches outside the state-run religious system, the group said.
ChinaAid’s founder and President Bob Fu said his organization is “urgently concerned for the safety, health and legal rights of every Jiaquan pastor and church co-worker who has been taken away.” He asked authorities to name the detainees, disclose where they're being held, provide the legal grounds for their apprehension and detention, and allow them to see independent lawyers.
Jiaquan has operated in the capital for over two decades, has 1,000 members, and has built churches and meeting locations in several parts of China, people familiar with the church said. It draws younger Christians in cities with discipleship, contemporary worship music and interactive fellowship. Its leaders have run Noah Music School in Beijing for over 10 years, training worship leaders and musicians for house churches around China.
The arrests occurred days before Xi’s summit with President Donald Trump, and follow a Sept. 16 Washington forum on religious freedom, where advocates highlighted cases of Christian persecution ahead of Xi’s visit. Fu called the arrests part of a growing campaign aimed at several of China’s most influential city churches. He said these churches differ in history and ministry and share a resolve to run church life free of government political control.