Is a Catholic Funeral for a Freemason Permissible? Three Recent Cases, Two Types of Responses

Sep 10, 2026 10:50

Anne Van Merris

Photo: REUTERS / Gonzalo Fuentes

Justice and Peace•Local Church•Religious Freedom

Can Europe Force the Church to Erase a Baptism? A Belgian Case Puts Religious Freedom Before the EU Court

The Advocate General is expected to issue a formal opinion on October 1, 2026. Although that opinion will not be binding, it could influence the court’s eventual judgment, expected toward the end of 2026 or in 2027.

Sep 09, 2026 16:26

ZENIT Staff

General Audience•Pope Leo XIV

Human Dignity as Explained by Leo XIV

Pope’s General Audience, September 9, 2026, on Human Dignity as a Gift and a Responsibility

Sep 09, 2026 16:22

ZENIT Staff

Analysis Opinion

Elections in Germany and the AfD Victory: From Luther to Sigmund

The AfD’s victory in Luther’s home state confirms the electoral geography mapped out in 2021, yet with significant new developments: the cradle of the Reformation is now the epicenter of dissent against the religious establishment. And this is just the beginning.

Sep 09, 2026 10:29

Simone Varisco

Bioethics•Local Church•Religious Freedom

The Catholic Church in Poland Takes a Stand on Surrogacy and Faces a Battle to Defend Religious Education Classes

The bishops’ objection goes far beyond the legal status of surrogacy. Their central concern is that the arrangement risks transforming both motherhood and childhood into objects of a contractual transaction.

Sep 09, 2026 10:26

Joachin Meisner Hertz

Holy Land•Local Church

Cardinal Pizzaballa launches an initiative for a Jerusalem open to all

The Latin Patriarch, in cooperation with the University of Notre Dame, inaugurated Within Your Gates, a forum that brings together scholars, religious, and civic leaders to study and publicise the “universal vocation of Jerusalem”. The prelate asks “with honesty and humility” what purpose this city serves and what it asks of us.

Sep 09, 2026 10:21

ZENIT Staff

Pope Leo XIV will not participate in the anniversary of St. John Pau...
The Vatican’s decision does not suggest a setback in his recovery: r...
The words of Pope Leo XIV that everyone working in school and univer...
The Pope's Address to Participants in the International Congress on...
De Foucauld´s "Spiritual Intuitions" Touted by Pope
Urges Sahara Missionary´s Followers to Promote Charity
Archbishop of Denver Orders Famous American Exorcist to Fast in Publ...
According to a statement issued by the Archdiocese of Denver, Golka...

Pope Leo XIV will not participate in the anniversary of St. John Paul II’s historic World Day of Prayer for Peace in Assisi

The Vatican’s decision does not suggest a setback in his recovery: reflects the prudence required after major surgery, even when clinical results are encouraging. The Pope had been expected to attend the gathering entitled “Disarmed and Disarming Peace,” which will bring together Christian leaders, representatives of other religious traditions and invited guests in the Umbrian town.

Pope Leo XIV to Jews at the Vatican: The Church does not tolerate anti-Semitism and combats it, in accordance with the Gospel itself

The Pope’s Remarks to a Delegation from the American Jewish Committee

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Is a Catholic Funeral for a Freemason Permissible? Three Recent Cases, Two Types of Responses

Our Lady of Guadalupe in Every Diocese in the United States: The Initiative by the U.S. Bishops You Should Know About

Scotland: The First Country to Allow Abortion Until the Baby Is Born

Nigeria: 3,000 people killed and 3,000 kidnapped: the toll of anti-Christian persecution in the first 8 months of 2026

Analysis: Elections in Israel. The ‘Arab factor’ between Eisenkot and Netanyahu

Canadian Chaplains and the Boundaries of State Neutrality

More committees and projects? The path proposed by Pope Leo XIV as a response to divisions

Can Europe Force the Church to Erase a Baptism? A Belgian Case Puts Religious Freedom Before the EU Court

Human Dignity as Explained by Leo XIV

Elections in Germany and the AfD Victory: From Luther to Sigmund

The Catholic Church in Poland Takes a Stand on Surrogacy and Faces a Battle to Defend Religious Education Classes

Cardinal Pizzaballa launches an initiative for a Jerusalem open to all