The Church is not free in China.
It should be.

The Chinese Communist Party has jailed bishops, demolished churches, monitored worship, and struck a secret deal with the Vatican that hands an atheist regime power over the appointment of Catholic shepherds. Cardinal Joseph Zen — 90 years old, retired Bishop of Hong Kong — sits on trial for the crime of being a Christian. At least seven other bishops remain imprisoned for refusing to betray their faith. VPP and Movie to Movement have launched The Gabriel Initiative — a global movement to tear down the firewall around China's persecuted Church and demand that every imprisoned bishop go free.

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Catholic bishops imprisoned by the CCP

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Age of Cardinal Joseph Zen, currently on trial

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Of Christians worshipping underground across China

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Governments that have demanded their release loudly enough

Christianity has deep roots in China. The CCP has spent decades trying to sever them.

Christianity arrived in China over a thousand years ago and has maintained a continuous presence — through dynasties, revolutions, and the rise of the People's Republic. By the time the CCP consolidated power in 1949, there were millions of Catholics and Protestants in China, served by a network of churches, schools, hospitals, and religious orders that had been built over generations.

The underground Church

When the CCP moved to bring religion under state control, China's Catholics faced an impossible choice — join the government-controlled Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, which operates independently of Rome, or continue practicing their faith in communion with the Pope, underground and at great personal risk. Millions chose the underground. They have paid for that choice ever since.

The registered vs. unregistered Church

China maintains a two-track system for religious practice. Registered churches operate under state supervision — their sermons monitored, their leadership controlled, their curricula approved by party officials. Unregistered churches — the underground Catholic Church loyal to Rome, house churches, and communities that refuse state oversight — operate in legal limbo, subject to raids, fines, imprisonment, and demolition.

The underground Church in China is the faithful remnant of a centuries-old Christian presence — bishops, priests, nuns, and laypeople who have chosen loyalty to their conscience over safety. They are among the most quietly courageous people on earth.
Jason Jones

The Vatican signed a deal. The underground Church paid the price.

In 2018 the Vatican and the Chinese Communist Party signed a secret agreement governing the appointment of Catholic bishops in China. The deal — renewed in 2020 and again in 2022 — grants the CCP effective veto power over who leads the Catholic Church in China. In exchange, the Vatican received limited and unverified concessions on the status of underground clergy.

What the deal did

The agreement required the Pope to recognize CCP-appointed bishops — men installed by an atheist government without reference to Rome — as legitimate Catholic leaders. Underground bishops loyal to the Holy See were asked to step aside. Some did. Some refused. Those who refused faced pressure, surveillance, and in several cases imprisonment.

Cardinal Zen

Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, the retired Bishop of Hong Kong, became the most prominent critic of the Vatican-CCP deal. He traveled to Rome multiple times to personally warn the Pope of its consequences for underground Catholics. In 2022, at the age of 90, he was arrested by Hong Kong authorities on charges widely understood as politically motivated — a direct consequence of his advocacy for the persecuted Church.

At least seven Catholic bishops currently sit in CCP detention — their whereabouts unknown, their conditions unreported, their cases invisible to international media. Among the most prominent is Bishop James Su Zhimin of Baoding, who has been in and out of detention for decades and whose current status remains unknown. Jimmy Lai, the Catholic media owner and democracy activist, sits in a Hong Kong prison facing charges that could result in life imprisonment.

Cardinal Joseph Zen, 90 years old, sits on trial for the crime of being a Christian. At least seven bishops are in CCP detention. The Vatican deal has not protected them. It has left them exposed.
Jason Jones

The Gabriel Initiative — tearing down the firewall around China's Church.

VPP and Movie to Movement have launched The Gabriel Initiative — named for the Archangel Gabriel, messenger of truth — to build a global coalition demanding religious freedom in China. The initiative operates on two fronts: direct advocacy targeting the Vatican-CCP agreement, and a broader campaign for the release of all imprisoned clergy and journalists.

Programs

Petition — Free Cardinal Zen and all imprisoned bishops: VPP is organizing a national petition calling on President Trump and U.S. and Church leaders to demand the immediate release of Cardinal Zen and every imprisoned bishop in China. No government should dictate the faith of its people. No Christian should be silenced for proclaiming the Gospel.

Petition — Vatican — Do Not Renew the Deal: The Gabriel Initiative is calling on the Vatican not to renew its secret agreement with the CCP. The Church must be free to choose her own shepherds — not controlled by an atheist regime. This petition targets Catholic leadership directly, calling for the protection of the underground Church and the rejection of a deal that has produced not freedom but further persecution.

Coalition building: The Gabriel Initiative is building a worldwide coalition of Catholics and people of conscience — across denominational, political, and national lines — to amplify the voices of China's persecuted faithful. The CCP's persecution of Christians, Uyghurs, and Falun Dafa practitioners is not a religious issue alone. It is a human rights crisis that demands a united response.

Your voice is the campaign.

The Gabriel Initiative is a movement, not a moment. VPP and Movie to Movement are building sustained pressure — through petitions, coalition engagement, media advocacy, and direct appeals to political and Church leadership — until Cardinal Zen is free, the imprisoned bishops are released, and the Vatican-CCP deal is ended or fundamentally reformed.

Immediate priorities

Delivering the Free Cardinal Zen petition to the White House and relevant Congressional offices. Presenting the Vatican petition through appropriate Church channels. Growing the global coalition of Catholics and people of conscience committed to religious freedom in China.

Long-term commitments

The Gabriel Initiative will continue as long as bishops remain imprisoned and the Church in China remains under CCP control. VPP's commitment to China's persecuted faithful is not contingent on political cycles or media attention. We will be here when the cameras are not.

Cardinal Zen is 90 years old. The bishops in CCP detention have no guarantee of tomorrow. The time to speak is not later. It is now.
Jason Jones

Suggested Donation Amount

$10

Reaches and mobilizes 100 Christians to tell Pope Leo not to renew the Vatican's deal with the CCP.

$100

Supports federal operations in Washington D.C. to educate lawyers about the CCP's attack on Christianity.

$250

Funds a month of coalition outreach and advocacy coordination for The Gabriel Initiative.

$1,000

Sustains The Gabriel Initiative's full advocacy operation for one week

Support The Gabriel Initiative

China

The Church is not free in China. It should be.

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Christianity has deep roots in China. The CCP has spent decades trying to sever them.

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The Church is not free in China.
It should be.