WASHINGTON (BP) – When Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) trustees named Grace Jin Drexel the recipient of the John Leland Religious Liberty Award, her father, Pastor Ezra Jin Mingra, was imprisoned in China for his faith.
But she stood Aug. 19 with her father, freed in early July, when the ERLC physically presented her with the award recognizing her advocacy for religious freedom for those persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party that imprisoned her father.
“Being able to accept this award with my father by my side, especially now that he is safely here in the U.S., is something I am incredibly grateful for. It has been a long journey, and standing with him to receive this recognition is a profound blessing for our family,” Drexel, an American citizen, told Baptist Press. “Over the past months we have witnessed God’s hand at work – miracle after miracle, doors opening in mighty ways. We believe He is still at work today.”
The ERLC presented the award while hosting the Jin family at the Leland House in Washington, the ERLC board having announced the winner at its 2026 spring meeting in March. Drexel, her father and her infant son Ezra were in attendance.
“Meeting with them only reaffirmed how appropriate it was that our trustees voted to award Grace Jin Drexel the John Leland Award for Religious Liberty,” ERLC President Evan Lenow told Baptist Press. “Grace has displayed tremendous courage and conviction, working tirelessly to advocate on behalf of her father, Zion Church staff, and other Christians facing persecution by the Chinese Communist Party.”
An appreciation for the religious freedom Americans enjoy should motivate us to advocate for others, Lenow said.
“As Americans, we are profoundly thankful for the freedom we have to live out our faith under the protection of the First Amendment. This is something believers in some other countries do not get to enjoy,” Lenow noted. “Gratitude for this liberty – and the greater freedom we have in Christ – should motivate us to be faithful in coming alongside brothers and sisters in Christ, like Pastor Ezra and Grace, to advocate for all people to have unfettered access to God and consciences only beholden to Him.”
The John Leland award, named for the late preacher and abolitionist, recognizes courageous champions of religious liberty both in the U.S. and globally.
The ERLC noted Drexel’s far-reaching religious freedom advocacy that includes outreach to the Trump administration, testimony before the U.S. Commission for International Religious Freedom, and remarks at the 18th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy.
“Her consistent and persistent advocacy on behalf of persecuted Christians in China has kept their persecution in the public eye,” the ERLC said, “and has served as an important reminder to be grateful for the religious liberty we enjoy in the United States, even as we advocate for others around the world to be granted that right.”
Drexel’s father Ezra, founder and pastor of Zion Church in Beijing, had been arrested in October 2025 during a raid on Zion Church, which had grown to reach 10,000 people daily with the Gospel. His arrest and that of dozens of fellow pastors, many of whom remain imprisoned, was part of one of the largest crackdowns on underground Christian churches in China in the past 40 years.
Drexel continues to advocate for those persecuted.
“We hope my father’s release is not merely a happy ending, but an encouragement and a reminder of God’s heart for the persecuted church,” Drexel said. “We ask that you continue to pray for and walk alongside the many brothers and sisters in China still facing persecution and imprisonment.”
Lenow encouraged all Christians to share the Gospel, even amid persecution.
“God has prepared both Grace and Pastor Ezra to be courageous public witnesses for Jesus Christ,” Lenow said. “Their example should spur us all on to preach Christ and him crucified, no matter the cost.”
