(Jinhua, Zhejiang – May 12, 2026) After nearly a decade in prison, Chinese pastor Xing Wenxiang has been released but remains under tight state monitoring and unable to return to ministry.
According to members of the local church district, this pastor, who had served in eastern China’s Zhejiang Province for more than thirty years, was released in 2025 after serving nine years in prison. However, the woman who once led thousands of congregants at Holy Love Christian Church in Jinhua, Zhejiang Province, returned physically and emotionally devastated.
The turning point in the ministry of Xing Wenxiang and her husband, Pastor Bao Guohua, came in 2015. At that time, the Zhejiang provincial government launched a highly controversial “demolition of illegal structures” campaign, the core target of which was the removal of crosses from the rooftops of hundreds of local churches.
After Bao and Xing refused to participate in the cross-removal campaign and attempted to defend their rights through legal channels, authorities arrested them and several coworkers.
In 2016, a local court sentenced Bao Guohua to 14 years in prison and Xing Wenxiang to 12 years on charges including “embezzlement” and “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” a charge often leveled against activists and religious leaders.
These charges were widely viewed as “political punishment” for resisting the government’s religious policies. Xing served nine years, given a two-year sentence reduction as ChinaAid News previously reported.
Yet for Pastor Xing, in her twilight years, the challenges of returning to society have proven almost cruel.
She had regarded the church as her home for more than thirty years, and even her household registration was tied to the church. However, during her imprisonment, state-approved leaders took over Holy Love Christian Church. The registered Protestant Christian congregation no longer has pastoral work for her.
The current leadership has not only barred her from the pulpit she helped to build but has also prohibited her from living in the church.
In addition to losing her livelihood, Xing Wenxiang still bears the burden of a massive court-imposed fine of 1.39 million yuan (USD $200,000). For someone newly released from prison with no social security benefits or income, friends describe it as a crushing burden.
Sources say that, despite her release, Xing’s movements remain restricted and monitored. Any believers attempting to visit or financially support her reportedly face “heightened attention” and warnings from local authorities.
At present, Pastor Bao Guohua remains imprisoned and is not expected to be released for several more years.
On overseas social media platforms and within private Christian communities, intercessory prayer letters regarding the situation have circulated widely. Believers are praying for justice and asking God to provide this pastor, described as one who has “remained faithful to the Lord,” with stable housing and the basic necessities for survival.
The case highlights the continuing risks faced by many Chinese Christians, who can encounter imprisonment, surveillance, and social isolation for resisting state religious controls.
Believers have circulated Psalm 46:1 — ‘God is our refuge and strength’ — as encouragement and reminder to keep praying for Pastor Xing and her husband, Pastor Bao.