A Church Against the Logic of War: Vatican Voices, Middle East Realities, and the Risk of a Vanishing Christianity

Mar 20, 2026 17:03

ZENIT Staff

Cardinal Parolin in the Italian Chamber of Deputies Photo: Vatican News

Analysis Opinion

China: Xi Jinping Walks Into Your Home—and Tells You to Have Babies

The General Secretary rings your bell—and delivers a simple message: giving birth is not optional.

Mar 13, 2026 12:54

ZENIT Staff

Analysis Opinion

Leo XIV, Trump, and the moral legitimacy of war in the Middle East: diplomacy as the Vatican’s only “weapon”

Parolin acknowledged that the Vatican lacks coercive tools to enforce its vision, relying instead on “the instruments of the word, of reason and of wisdom.” Still, he insisted that these tools must continue to be used in order to defend the principles of peaceful coexistence between nations.

Mar 12, 2026 19:45

Jorge Enrique Mújica

Analysis Opinion

What is the cost of war for Israel and the Middle East?

According to the most recent estimates, the conflict with Hamas in Gaza alone has cost the equivalent of one-fifth of Israel’s economy. And today, billions of dollars are being burned every week in attacks on Tehran. The paradox is that hundreds of billions are being spent on war, while little more than crumbs remain for reconstruction and development.

Mar 11, 2026 18:10

ZENIT Staff

Analysis Opinion•Justice and Peace•Local Church

Four Years of the Russian Invasion of Ukraine: An Analysis from the Church

Following the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the conflict has changed its face: from fighting with tanks to swarms of technologically advanced vehicles.

Mar 11, 2026 17:27

Rafael Llanes

Analysis Opinion•Vatican Diplomacy

The Holy See and Iran in the New World Disorder: an analysis by Antonio Spadaro

The relationship between papal diplomacy and Tehran in light of the current Middle East conflict

Mar 08, 2026 20:32

ZENIT Staff

15,000 police officers, 2,500 journalists… the surprising numbers (challenges and opportunities) surrounding the Pope’s visit to France

Leo XIV Heads to France as a Quiet Religious Revival Meets a Country in Search of Common Ground

Stephen Colbert and Scott Brick will narrate the first English-language audiobook by Pope Leo XIV

The collection also shows a future Pope addressing a world already marked by the tensions that would later become familiar features of his pontificate: the consequences of September 11, political ideologies, poverty, conflict and questions surrounding human rights. The publisher presents these writings as an opportunity to see the reasoning behind some of Prevost’s contemplative responses to those challenges

A Church Against the Logic of War: Vatican Voices, Middle East Realities, and the Risk of a Vanishing Christianity

On the “liturgical war”: For God’s sake: “Lay down your arms!” (a statement by Cardinal Brandmüller)

The Clergy’s Crisis of Trust in Their Bishops Analyzed in a Book

Reopening the Archives: New Findings Challenge Accusations Against John Paul II in Poland’s Abuse Debate

The Middle East on the Brink of Collapse: Another Call for Peace from the Pope, the Death of a Member of the Order of Malta in Lebanon, and Bombings at Shepherds’ Fields in Bethlehem

USA: New Data Reveal a Nation Less Religiously Anchored, but Not Uniformly Secular

Pew Research Center: Why Buddhism is in decline in East Asia

China: Xi Jinping Walks Into Your Home—and Tells You to Have Babies

Leo XIV, Trump, and the moral legitimacy of war in the Middle East: diplomacy as the Vatican’s only “weapon”

What is the cost of war for Israel and the Middle East?

Four Years of the Russian Invasion of Ukraine: An Analysis from the Church

The Holy See and Iran in the New World Disorder: an analysis by Antonio Spadaro