Secretary of State Marco Rubio demanded the release of the nearly three dozen Christian leaders detained by the Chinese Communist Party in one of the worst underground church crackdowns in decades.
Zion Church, an unregistered house church network, had several leaders detained in overnight raids across the country over the weekend, according to a report from the BBC.
Mingri “Ezra” Jin, a prominent minister, was taken into custody.
“Such systematic persecution is not only an affront to the Church of God but also a public challenge to the international community,” Zion Church remarked in a statement.
The BBC noted that Chinese Christians are generally pressured to join state-sanctioned churches that do not criticize the Chinese Communist Party.
Rubio said in a Sunday statement that the United States government condemns the “recent detention of dozens of leaders of the unregistered house Zion Church.”
“This crackdown further demonstrates how the CCP exercises hostility towards Christians who reject Party interference in their faith and choose to worship at unregistered house churches,” he continued.
“We call on the CCP to immediately release the detained church leaders and to allow all people of faith, including members of house churches, to engage in religious activities without fear of retribution.”
The persecution of Christians in the communist nation occurs as the United States and China face continued discord with respect to tariffs.
Trump administration officials have increasingly stood against persecution of Christians across the world, meaning that the detained believers could emerge in upcoming trade talks.
Chinese foreign ministry representative Lin Jian said at a news conference that he was not aware of the arrests, per the BBC.
“The Chinese government governs religious affairs in accordance with the law, and protects the religious freedom of citizens and normal religious activities,” he said.
“We firmly oppose the U.S. interfering in China’s internal affairs with so-called religious issues.”
Despite the persecution against Christians, the church is still growing in China.
Jin started the Zion Church network in 2007 with a mere 20 people, but the church now has 10,000 across 40 cities.
He had been barred from leaving China, but his wife and children have been living in the United States for safety.
Chinese President Xi Jinping said during a 2016 conference that religious Chinese citizens must “protect the unification of their motherland and serve the overall interests of the Chinese nation.”
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.