What should a bishop be like?

A Forgotten Apostle of Molokai: Hawaii Establishes a Day to Honor Brother Joseph Dutton

Tim Daniels

Hawaii’s Catholic legacy is often associated with towering names such as the Belgian missionary who ministered to leprosy patients on Molokai or the Franciscan sister who later continued that work. Yet Joseph Dutton played an indispensable role in that same mission

The new Patriarch of Georgia and global Orthodoxy

ZENIT Staff

The Synod has elected the three candidates to succeed Ilia II, who had led the Georgian Church since 1977. The candidate with the most votes was the 57-year-old Metropolitan Shio, who had in fact already served as regent alongside the elderly patriarch for ten years. But this transition is extremely delicate, because in a deeply polarised country and against the backdrop of the clash between Moscow and Constantinople, the Georgian Orthodox Church is not merely choosing a person or a development programme for its future.

The fragile ceasefire in Lebanon is falling apart: civilians trapped, holy sites damaged, and the Church’s response with emergency aid

ZENIT Staff

A particularly sensitive episode has drawn international attention: the damage inflicted on a Catholic convent complex in the border village of Yaroun. The site, previously home to a small religious community and a school, had already been abandoned due to ongoing hostilities

Gunmen Abduct Christian Schoolgirls, Kill 1 in Nigeria

ZENIT Staff

This incident is part of a pattern of ambushes along the Akwando–Kachia road. Since January, at least seven separate attacks have been recorded on this route, targeting commercial vehicles, private transport, and motorcycles

$800 million in compensation for abuse cases: the situation in the Archdiocese of New York

ZENIT Staff

The scale of the agreement places it among the most significant ever reached by a Catholic jurisdiction in the country, second only to the 880 million dollar settlement agreed in 2024 by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles

The exact number of new baptisms in France in 2026, as officially reported by the Church and illustrated with charts

Covadonga Asturias

What is particularly notable is the profile of these new Catholics. Far from being a marginal or aging demographic, 42 percent of adult catechumens are between 18 and 25 years old

Full Text in English of the Vatican’s Letter Saying NO to the German Bishops’ Proposal for Gay Blessings

ZENIT Staff

Full letter in English from Cardinal Victor Fernández to the German Episcopate regarding the rejection of ritualized gay blessings that give the impression of legitimizing such unions

Major biblical discovery in 2026: 42 lost pages of the New Testament manuscript discovered

ZENIT Staff

Professor Allen continues: “Given that Codex H is such an important witness to our understanding of Christian scripture, to have discovered any new evidence – let alone this quantity – of what it originally looked like is nothing short of monumental.”

What should a bishop be like, and how should doctrinal issues be discussed, according to the Synod? The Vatican releases the findings of the synodal reports

ZENIT Staff

The document introduces the “principle of pastorality”: there is no proclamation of the Gospel without taking responsibility for the interlocutor, in whom the Spirit is already at work. In addressing emerging questions concretely, the Group proposes three methodological steps

Islamists reduce historic church to rubble in northern Mozambique

ZENIT Staff

The attack on the parish of St Louis de Montfort did not inflict any casualties on the missionaries but generated widespread panic among the Christian population.

Combating money laundering within the Vatican itself: here is what the 2026 report—in which the Church provides an account of its activities—says

Valentina di Giorgio

During the year, 16 reports were forwarded to the Office of the Promoter of Justice, maintaining a steady ratio between financial analysis and judicial referral. In parallel, three transactions were suspended as a preventive measure, involving a total value of approximately 522,000 euros. These interventions, while limited in number, signal a targeted and proportionate approach rather than indiscriminate enforcement

How many Catholics are there in South Korea? The Church releases its impressive statistics (and challenges)

ZENIT Staff

More revealing than total membership is the age profile of the faithful. Nearly one in three Korean Catholics—28.9 percent—is now aged 65 or older, making the elderly the largest demographic group within the Church

Data on the generous participation of Chinese Catholic Communities in the 2026 national Collection

ZENIT Staff

The collection is promoted by Jinde Charities, an organization that has been coordinating charitable works supported by Catholic communities in mainland China for 30 years, and which in 2026 celebrated this initiative for the ninth consecutive year.

Progressive? Colombian government led by socialist Gustavo Petro approves euthanasia for children

aolvera

Adolescents aged 12 and above may now request euthanasia under the same general conditions as adults. Even more strikingly, children between 6 and 12 years old could be considered eligible if they demonstrate what the regulation describes as an “exceptional neurocognitive and psychological development