As of July 2023, there has been no update concerning Wang Yi except for a visit from his wife Jiang Rong in October 2021. That was their first meeting in over three years. At the time, Pastor Wang Yi was healthy and guards allowed him to read in his room.

Early Rain Covenant Church

Wang Yi is the pastor of Early Rain Covenant Church from 2005 until his arrest in 2018 for “inciting subversion of state power” and “illegal business operations.” Before leading his house church network, he was a well-known intellectual. However, he abandoned his old life to become a pastor and found a community with other believers.

Wang Yi’s activism

Wang Yi was vocal about how the church should be separate from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). During his sermons, he regularly called upon Xi Jinping and his regime to repent. At the height of the Sinicization of Christianity, Wang Yi released “A Declaration for the Sake of the Christian Faith,” which over 400 house church pastors and leaders signed with their real names. This document resulted in his arrest.

Sparse information

Since police arrested Pastor Wang Yi on December 9, 2018, as officers blocked information about him, the outside world knows little about his situation in prison.  Only one photo, three poems, and words he shared on January 9, 2020, have been released. Pastor Wang’s words:

“If someone attacks me, I will be meek as a lamb. But if someone attacks the Church, I will be brave as a lion. I remain silent if something happens out of God’s will. I have criticized the authorities before. It was not out of hatred, but out of love. When I make comments about authorities, nobody believes there is no hatred. But when I was arrested, I submitted myself to the authorities. That’s when people knew it was true, that I criticized the authorities out of love.”

Prison conditions

According to ChinaAid sources, authorities held him in a cell by himself along with other concerning reports in June 2021. He could not meet nor talk to any other prisoners, except two heavily sentenced criminals. Prison guards have given him 10-year-old moldy rice to eat. The hospital inside the prison uses expired medicines to treat prisoners and has medical staff without any certification. 

Early Rain’s Resilience

Early Rain leaders continue to face relentless persecution from the Chinese Communist Party, like interrogations, harassment, surveillance, and detentions. However, they remain resolute in their faith.