The day before we released Undeceptions episode 162, ‘Persecution Complex’, news broke about the arrest of Jin “Ezra” Mingri, head pastor of the Zion house church network in China. Mr Mingri’s arrest, along with dozens of other pastors who work for the network, signals what many fear may be the start of a new wave of persecution in China.
Christianity is technically legal in China, but churches are subject to restrictions from the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP). To avoid this, thousands of house churches have sprung up around the country, and they’ve grown at such a rate that in 2014, the New York Times noted that there was a potential “religious revival” taking place.
On episode 75, ‘Global Christianity,’ Gina Zurlo was asked about the Chinese house church network, and she estimated that as many as 60 million people were in these churches. These numbers are part of what has led to the recent crackdown.
Despite having its legal bodies like the Three-Self Patriotic Movement and the China Christian Council, Christians in China are increasingly seeking to worship outside of government restrictions. The crackdown means that China currently sits at #15 on Open Doors’ World Watch List, which tracks the nations in which Christians face the most persecution. The current top ten (as of October 2025) is: Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Nigeria, Eritrea, Sudan, Libya, Yemen, Somalia, and North Korea at number one.
Persecution in the modern world?
For some people, the idea of Christian persecution in 2025 is far-fetched and an example of a conservative persecution complex. However, Open Doors CEO Adam Holland notes that, despite what the naysayers think, believers are facing “sheer violence” in some parts of the world – what he refers to as “smash” persecution.
“Sub-Saharan Africa is where we see the greatest increase in (smash persecution)”, Adam said, speaking on Undeceptions. Open Doors identified that the cause of this violence was precisely because someone was a Christian, not because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
“There have been thousands of recent deaths in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in Nigeria, and it’s a vindictive, intense hostility towards Christians where there’s no rule of law,” Adam added. “In its most extreme form, smash persecution is violence and murder, but burning down a church, burning down someone’s home, forcibly removing children from a family … those are all forms of smash persecution.”
According to Open Doors, “310 million Christians face very high or extreme levels” of persecution, with 4476 Christians murdered in 2025 alone (at the time of writing). The top 50 nations identified on the World Watch List are in Asia, Africa, Central / South America, and the Middle East. In other words, persecution of Christians is predominantly taking place in the global south. It’s not hard to see why people roll their eyes when people in Western nations say they feel like they’re being persecuted. But as Adam notes, it’s actually not as simple as ‘Christians in the West aren’t facing pressure for their belief’.
“I think it’s unlikely that our cultural institutions and legislative frameworks are going to become more and more integrated with Christian beliefs,” he said. “If you look at a spectrum or a continuum of the reality of persecution, I don’t think anyone in the United States (for example) would say they’re persecuted in the same way that North Koreans are, but that doesn’t preclude (subtle persecution) from being absolutely true.”
‘Squeeze’ vs. ‘Smash’
Adam refers to these more subtle forms of pressure as “squeeze” persecution. While he admits that persecution can sometimes be “too strong a phrase” for what Christians in the West experience, he adds that: “I think there are times that it is persecution because it’s hostile towards what is specifically true and against following Jesus, as well as what Christians believe, what Christians stand for, what they communicate, and how they share the gospel.”
Adam believes things like social pressure, cultural pressure, workplace expectations, and even legislative frameworks will increase the sense of discomfort some Christians feel in the global West. But whether someone is a believer in the United Kingdom or in Pakistan (#8 on the World Watch List), Adam notes that the goal of Christians should be to continue to share the gospel with their neighbours, not trying to stop persecution.
“Jesus teaches us that we should expect to be persecuted,” he said. “I’ve been asked directly by a group of (smash) persecuted Christians, ‘What does discipleship look like if you’re not persecuted?’ because that is a foreign concept to them. Now, how confronting for me … feeling like my honours thesis got a reduction in its marks compared to never being able to own a home or have a job. The eradication of persecution doesn’t make sense in a biblical framework, or in a gospel sense, so (Open Doors) seeks to strengthen those who experience persecution.”
Adapted by Alasdair Belling from Undeceptions episode 162 ‘Persecution Complex’. Listen here.
Want to be further undeceived?
Check out our network of podcasts and articles in the Undeceptions Library.
