Southern California Pastor Released from Chinese Prison

People of different faiths gather at a church in Laguna Woods, Calif., on Dec. 21, 2022. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

GARDEN GROVE, Calif.—State Department officials Monday confirmed that a Christian pastor from Garden Grove in Orange County has been released from a prison in China and is back in the United States for the first time in nearly two decades.

“We welcome David Lin’s release from prison in the People’s Republic of China,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters Monday. “He has returned to the United States and now gets to see his family for the first time in nearly 20 years.”