Chinese House Church Leaders Sentenced on Fraud Charges Amid Global Outcry

by Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Staff

(Worthy News) – Three leaders of a prominent house church in China’s Shanxi Province have been sentenced to prison on what advocates call baseless fraud charges, highlighting ongoing persecution of unregistered Christian groups under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Pastor Li Jie and Elder Han Xiaodong of Linfen Covenant Home Church were each sentenced to three years and eight months in prison, while Elder Wang Qiang received a one-year and 11-month sentence. The verdict was handed down June 20 following years of surveillance, detentions, and a heavily restricted trial process that drew criticism from international human rights groups.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), a UK-based watchdog monitoring global religious persecution, reported the sentences on Tuesday, calling them the result of a deeply flawed judicial process. The charges stem from the church’s collection of tithes and offerings, which authorities labeled as “illegal income” and part of a “criminal clique.”

The trial, which began May 8, was held behind closed doors and under intense security. Authorities barred public access and forcibly removed Pastor Li’s wife, mother, and two children from the courthouse on the day of the hearing.

“This was not justice–it was a political show trial designed to send a warning to unregistered house churches across China,” said CSW President Mervyn Thomas. “The denial of due process and reports of coercion show how easily China’s judicial system can be manipulated against faith groups.”

Wang Qiang’s sentence was considered served due to time already spent under “Residential Surveillance in a Designated Location,” a practice the United Nations defines as a form of enforced disappearance. He was later released on bail in March 2025.

Church members and global advocates condemned the sentences. In a statement translated by China Aid, the Linfen Covenant Home Church said: “We do not accept this unjust judgment. Our brothers did not commit fraud, and the offerings of our church are not fraud… We receive the result of the judgment from the Lord with a heart of gratitude and obedience.”

The case is part of a broader crackdown on house churches that operate outside China’s state-sanctioned religious system. Though the Chinese constitution formally recognizes freedom of religion, that protection only extends to “normal religious activities”–a term that remains undefined and leaves unregistered churches vulnerable.

In December 2024, over a dozen Chinese human rights lawyers and activists signed a petition challenging the criminalization of voluntary church donations.

The same day as the Linfen verdicts, ten leaders of another local church–Golden Lampstand Church–received prison sentences of up to nine years on similar charges, following mass arrests dating back to 2021.

The pressure is not limited to Chinese nationals. New regulations that went into effect on May 1, 2025, now bar foreign missionaries from preaching or distributing religious material without government approval. Under the revised rules, non-citizens may only teach if explicitly invited by state-registered religious organizations, and all sermons must be pre-approved by Chinese authorities.

Open Doors, an international Christian advocacy group, described these moves as part of an aggressive campaign to silence independent religious expression in China, citing increasing surveillance and digital monitoring of faith communities.

“The message is clear,” said Thomas. “Unregistered religious groups–especially those that refuse to align with the state–will be systematically dismantled.”

CSW and other organizations have called on the Chinese government to overturn the sentences and to allow all religious communities to operate freely and transparently under international human rights law.

In recent years, the government has “aggressively tried to ensure all religious expression is brought into line with official Chinese Communist philosophy,” the group added. “Any church or church leader stepping beyond that can come under heavy restrictions. Unregistered churches, even those once tolerated, are considered illegal and increasingly put under pressure, as authorities seek to enforce regulations and tighten policies.”

Even state-approved churches “come under strong ideological pressure, and smaller congregations are often forced to merge to make a larger church that is easier for the state to control.”

Despite the reported crackdown, there are at least nearly 100 million Christians in China, with some estimates suggesting the figure could be 130 million or higher in the nation of more than 1.4 billion people.

China has denied human rights abuses, saying they are based on “lies and false information.”

Open Doors ranks the country 15th on its annual World Watch List of 50 countries where it says Christians face the most persecution.

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