(Beihai – May 4, 2026) As of May 1st, Pastor Sun Cong (孙聪) of Beijing Zion Church has been held at the Beihai Detention Center in Guangxi for a full 201 days. As one of the persecuted pastors in the nationwide “10.9 Zion Church Case” of October 2025, Pastor Sun Cong’s situation not only signals the separation of a family but also reflects the severe challenges currently facing religious freedom.

From October 9 to 11, 2025, Chinese authorities launched coordinated nationwide actions against Beijing Zion Church, one of the most influential house churches in China. Nearly 30 pastors and coworkers, including Pastors Ezra Jin Mingri (金明日) and Sun Cong, were arrested in different cities.

Pastor Sun Cong was criminally detained on suspicion of “illegal use of information networks,” a charge widely believed to target Zion Church’s normalized and large-scale online Sunday worship and digital pastoral ministry following the pandemic. On the night of his arrest, police broke into Pastor Sun’s home to conduct a search. His mother, in her seventies, witnessed her son being taken away and suffered cardiac discomfort due to shock, requiring emergency treatment.

According to the latest limited information, Pastor Sun’s living conditions in the Beihai Detention Center are deeply concerning. Due to overcrowded conditions and intense pressure, he struggles to sleep at night and has lost over 20 pounds.

What further angers the family is that during more than 200 days of detention, Pastor Sun has been almost completely cut off from communication. He has disclosed that he has received only one letter from his family to date. Letters and family photos sent by his wife, “Luo Da” (Gu Xiaoyu/谷晓羽), are suspected to have been withheld by the detention center without justification. Pastor Sun mentioned that while others have photos of loved ones with them, he alone has nothing in his hands, and his right to communicate with the outside world has been severely deprived.

Outside the prison walls, facing over 200 days of separation and pressure, Pastor Sun’s wife, “Luo Da,” resumed running.

“After just ten steps, I couldn’t help but burst into tears, because the familiar figure ahead of me was no longer there,” she recalled, thinking of how, no matter how slowly she ran in the past, Pastor Sun would always turn back to meet and encourage her. Over the course of the 3-kilometer run (approximately 1.8 miles), tears and sweat intertwined, releasing six months of longing and marking a renewal of life.

Despite her husband’s imprisonment, “Luo Da” conveyed steadfast faith through this run. She quoted another pastor’s wife: “There is no hardship that growth cannot overcome.”

She publicly declared to her husband: “Your Luo Da has become stronger—not only keeping happiness in her heart, but also experiencing renewal in life.” She said that although this “marathon of marriage” has encountered towering walls and iron bars, she will continue running, carrying her husband’s will with her, holding onto hope as she waits patiently for the day of reunion.

Pastor Sun Cong is one of those persecuted from Zion Church, and also represents countless believers in China who persist in their faith. At present, family members and legal counsel are working to restore his basic communication rights and seek his freedom, but the outcome remains uncertain.