(Zhangye, Gansu Province, China – March 5, 2025) According to a prayer request from the house church prayer group “5 PM in China,” Pastor Sun Chenghao of a house church in Zhangye City, Gansu Province, was criminally detained by Zhangye police in mid-December 2023 on suspicion of “organizing illegal border crossings” after traveling to Jeju Island, South Korea with friends in August 2023. He was subsequently formally arrested. The case has not yet gone to trial.
Pastor Sun’s Background and Calling
Born in 1982, Pastor Sun Chenghao is an ethnic Korean-Chinese who moved from Northeast China to Zhangye, Gansu Province with his pastor father to spread the gospel from an early age. Influenced by his father’s reverence for God and concern for lost souls, he was called by God and dedicated himself to full-time ministry at a young age.
The Jeju Island Trip and Arrest
In August 2023, Pastor Sun Chenghao and friends purchased plane tickets through legitimate channels and platforms, and legally passed through customs to visit Jeju Island, South Korea. Throughout the Jeju Island trip, Pastor Sun never collected any fees from anyone, and only created a WeChat group called “Jeju Island Free Travel” to facilitate communication. After the trip, everyone returned to China normally through customs.
However, on December 15, 2023, the Zhangye City Public Security Bureau criminally detained Pastor Sun on suspicion of “organizing illegal border crossings.” He remains detained at the Ganzhou District Detention Center in Zhangye.
After Pastor Sun’s arrest, his wife and daughter faced difficult circumstances. They had no relatives in Zhangye to begin with, and church members were subsequently questioned and warned not to contact them, making their situation even more challenging.
The Persecution of Christians in China under Fabricated Charges
In recent years, Chinese governments across the country have persecuted Christians under various fabricated charges. There have been multiple cases of Christians being charged with “illegal border crossing” or “organizing illegal border crossings” despite having valid passports and visas and passing through customs normally. These charges typically involve human trafficking.
Pastor John Cao was sentenced to seven years in prison for “organizing illegal border crossings” after being intercepted by border patrol while returning to Yunnan Province from Myanmar via a local waterway commonly used by border residents in March 2017. He had been doing missionary work in impoverished border areas, establishing 16 schools that benefited over 2,000 students.
In 2018, Pastor Shen Shaochun of the “Living Water Fellowship” in Huaiyuan, Bengbu, Anhui Province was sentenced to seven years for “organizing illegal border crossings” after teaching and founding “Living Water School” in the Wa State of Myanmar. He has been released from the prison.
In early 2020, church co-workers Zhang Ligong, Wang Runyun, Wang Shiqiang, Zhang Yaowen, and Song Shoushan from Taiyuan Xucheng Reformed Church legally left the country with passports to attend the “2020 Gospel and Culture Conference” in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. They were criminally detained for “illegal border crossing” by local police on July 28, 2021, and subsequently arrested. On January 7, 2022, their families received the first-instance verdict from the Fenyang City People’s Court dated December 31, 2021: All five Christians were found guilty of “illegal border crossing.” Zhang Ligong and Wang Runyun were sentenced to 8 months and fined 3,000 yuan each; Wang Shiqiang was sentenced to 7 months and fined 2,500 yuan; Zhang Yaowen was sentenced to 7 months and fined 2,000 yuan; and Song Shoushan was sentenced to 6 months and fined 2,000 yuan.
An Yankui, a preacher from Taiyuan Xucheng Reformed Church, and church co-worker Zhang Chenghao legally left the country for one week in January 2020 with Chinese passports and Malaysian visas, but were arrested on November 21, 2021, for “suspected illegal border crossing.” They were tried by the Fenyang Court on August 5, 2022, and on November 3, 2022, were found guilty of “illegal border crossing” and sentenced to one year in prison each, with fines of 5,000 and 4,000 yuan respectively.
Recently, it was learned that 76-year-old Pastor Du Mingliang of a house church in Xinzhou, Shanxi Province, was criminally detained on March 15, 2021, and sentenced to 5 years for organizing illegal border crossings.
Prayer Requests for Pastor Sun Chenghao
The prayer request for Pastor Sun Chenghao asks Christians to pray for three things:
- Pray for Pastor Sun’s physical, mental, and spiritual health in detention, and that he meets Jesus, who brings true light, every day in the detention center.
- Pray for comfort for Pastor Sun’s wife and daughter, that their faith be strengthened in tribulation, and that they rely more on the Lord in suffering.
- Pray for courage and wisdom for the two defense lawyers to seek truth and justice in court. Pray that the Lord’s light shines on all judicial personnel involved, that justice, rule of law, and civility be manifested in this case, and that the family can reunite soon.
The prayer request concludes: “And the heavens proclaim his righteousness, for he is a God of justice.” (Psalm 50:6)
(Reported by Special Correspondent Ningmeng for ChinaAid)
