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Articles By ZENIT Staff

How Catholic is Italy still? The latest statistics on the state of the Church

Among those identifying as Catholic, a mere 15.3% describe themselves as regular churchgoers, and the largest share, 34.9%, attend services only occasionally, while 20.9% see themselves as “non-practicing.” The trend of “internalized faith” is reshaping how Italians relate to the Church, as more than half (56.1%) who step away from regular practice state they live out their faith privately.

UN Committee Challenges Selective Abortion Policies, Sparking Debate on Disability Rights

The Netherlands faced particular scrutiny for reportedly allowing healthcare providers to recommend termination based on the presence of Down syndrome. Similar concerns were expressed in previous assessments of Sweden and Turkey, where the committee observed an approach it labeled “extinction-minded” regarding certain intellectual disabilities.

Ecclesiology today: the crisis of Christianity and what we need now

In a homily delivered in 1959 a young Fr. Joseph Ratzinger described the first Christmas day as the “winter solstice of world history.” Christ is something more than another moral teacher or celebrity philanthropist and his Church—including the priesthood, the Petrine Office, and the episcopacy—is a sacred institution, not another multinational welfare agency.