The Chinese government has continued its growing crackdown on Christians within the country. Elder Zhu Longfei was arrested on August 9, 2023 by Shunde police for “illegal business operations.” Longfei is an elder at Shengjia Church, a house church which means is does not recognized the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) authority over it through the Three-Self Church. Consequently, the church, like many other house churches, has experienced numerous raids, with many of its deacons and pastor being arrested for “illegal business operations” as well.

According to available reports, the “illegal business operations” were printing off Sunday school materials to distribute to members of the church for free. Longfei, along with his siblings Zhu Longjiang, and Zhu Qiaoling, were all in a detention center when their mother passed away and were unable to attend her funeral. Longfei was released on bail on October 8 after 14 months of being detained. He awaits a trial date. Pastor Deng Yanxiang and Deacon Wang Weicai remain detained. Members of the Shengjia Church are praying for their release.

Meanwhile, another Christian has been detained by the Haidian police for “inciting disturbances.” Zhu Bin, co-founder of Beijing Special Children School, was criminally detained on September 29, 2024 and is being held in the Haidian District Detention Center in Beijing. Zhu Bin started his school in 2017, keeping it disconnected from the government’s Three-Self Church. He supported the 2019 Hong Kong protests through social media and became nationally known after gathering signatures for a petition on the investigation of the “Chained Mother of Eight” case. In 2022, a “model” activist of the CCP was found to have purchased a wife, whom he then kept chained in his house. The citizen, Dong Zhimin, was arrested after a public outcry and sentenced to a total of nine-and-a-half years for abuse and imprisonment. The sentence was considered light by some and the extent of “bride trafficking” was not satisfactorily being investigated by the government. It is believed that Zhu Bin’s involvement in the “Chained Mother” case is what propelled him into the CCP’s radar. He has also written several collections of poetry.