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On 11 September 2025, the Hohhot Intermediate People’s Court in Inner Mongolia (a region in northern China along the Mongolian border) delivered a stark message: even distributing legally authorised Bibles can be a crime if done outside government-approved channels. The court upheld its November 2024 verdict against ten Christian believers convicted of “illegal business operations” for sharing Bibles printed in Nanjing.

The defendants, including Wang Honglan, had purchased Bibles with government authorisation and sold them at a loss through their house church. Despite no profit and a clear evangelistic purpose, the authorities condemned their actions. Their sin, it seemed, was operating outside the state-imposed religious structure known as the Three-Self Church (a state-sanctioned Protestant church that is officially recognised and subject to government oversight, unlike the underground “house churches” which operate independently and often more covertly).

Sentences and Fines

The appeal hearing on 5 September confirmed draconian sentences: Wang Honglan received four years and ten months imprisonment. All ten were also hit with massive fines. Collectively, the group owes one million yuan (AUD 210,000) as imposed on Wang, while others got similarly harsh financial penalties. Five of the accused had already been jailed during the pre-trial period.

Faith vs. State: the Legal Clash

The defence argued the Christian believers were not in business for profit, but acting on religious convictions. They claimed their actions were entirely faith-driven. The court, however, saw their distribution through an unregistered church as a violation, enough to define their practice as an illegal enterprise in the eyes of Chinese law.

Broader Implications

Rights activists, legal scholars, and religious freedom watchdogs have condemned the ruling as emblematic of China’s tightening control over independent Christian communities—especially house churches. The case underscores how state mechanisms are being used not just to regulate religion, but to punish believers for stepping outside the sanctioned system.

It’s a sobering reminder that in modern China, legality is often determined not by whether a text is printed with authority, but by who distributes it, through what venue, and under what religious institution. Distributing a government-authorised Bible can become criminal if done outside state-approved control. This verdict confirms that for many Chinese Christians, faith now comes with a very heavy price.

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