Significant drop in arrests of priests in 2025 but deaths increase

Feb 03, 2026 19:14

A total of 28 priests and religious were under arrest or otherwise deprived of freedom around the world, compared to 72 the year before. Photo: ACN

Holy Land•Religious Freedom

How a new Israeli law is redefining education—and survival, for the worse—in Palestinian Christian schools

Approved by 31 votes to 10 and promoted by Likud lawmakers Amit Halevi and Avichay Boaron, the new legislation bars graduates of Palestinian Authority–accredited universities from teaching in Israeli schools unless they also obtain specific Israeli certification

Jan 25, 2026 13:14

ZENIT Staff

Persecuted Christians•Religious Freedom

Nicaraguan regime bans urban and rural “door-to-door” missions in the country’s dioceses

The ban affected pastoral outreach scheduled for January 24 as part of the so-called Ecclesiological Year proclaimed by Bishop Sócrates René Sándigo, who governs both the dioceses of León and neighboring Chinandega

Jan 23, 2026 18:28

Enrique Villegas

Persecuted Christians•Religious Freedom

New arrests of house church members in China

On Tuesday, the authorities began cracking down on the leaders of Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu, an underground Evangelical community founded by Rev Wang Yi, who has been in prison since 2018. In October, the Zion Church suffered the same fate.

Jan 19, 2026 17:10

ZENIT Staff

Holy Land•Justice and Peace•Persecuted Christians•Religious Freedom

Between Drones, Settlers and Classrooms: How Violence and Administrative Israeli Pressure Are Reshaping Palestinian Life

The issue is further complicated by a draft law under consideration in the Knesset that would ban the employment of teachers who studied in Palestinian territories

Jan 18, 2026 19:52

ZENIT Staff

Gender Ideology•Homosexuality•Religious Freedom

Comedy Writer Claims that the Human Skeletons of Men and Women Are Not the Same and Goes to Jail

Swiss opponents of the legislation warn that the law has become a weapon to silence those who defend biology and question gender ideology. The discussion in the Swiss Parliament opens the possibility of further expanding these provisions, which could institutionalize censorship and limit public debate on gender identity issues.

Jan 15, 2026 17:30

Rafael Llanes

Reflections of Pope Leo XIV on the art of Christian education

Address of the Pope to participants in the Plenary Assembly of the Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life

Pope Leo XIV Opens the Vatican Doors to the Only Orthodox Apostolate Accompanying Homosexual People to Live in Chastity

Members of Courage are men and women who experience same-sex attraction and who, inspired by the Gospel’s call to holiness and the Church’s beautiful teachings on the good and end of human sexuality, have freely chosen to live in chastity.

Significant drop in arrests of priests in 2025 but deaths increase

Priests, Dissidents, and a Warning from Havana: Cuba Tightens the Screws on Voices of Conscience

After one month of Nicolás Maduro’s imprisonment, the Venezuelan government restores Cardinal Porras’ passport

China’s National Procurators’ Meeting: Prosecutors as Priests of the Gospel According to Xi

Armenian Prime Minister confronts Patriarch Kakerin: he wants to remove him from office and calls him schismatic

Christian Brothers Schools in Jerusalem Protest Israeli Restrictions on Palestinian Teachers

European Court Case May Determine the Future of Religious Symbols in Public Institutions

How a new Israeli law is redefining education—and survival, for the worse—in Palestinian Christian schools

Nicaraguan regime bans urban and rural “door-to-door” missions in the country’s dioceses

New arrests of house church members in China

Between Drones, Settlers and Classrooms: How Violence and Administrative Israeli Pressure Are Reshaping Palestinian Life

Comedy Writer Claims that the Human Skeletons of Men and Women Are Not the Same and Goes to Jail