About Katholische SonntagsZeitung

Katholische SonntagsZeitung

The Katholische SonntagsZeitung für Deutschland is the Roman Catholic weekly newspaper: published by the Augsburg-based Mediengruppe Sankt Ulrich Verlag, it appears weekly nationwide together with the Neue Bildpost, the Catholic voice. with regional editions for the Diocese of Augsburg and the Diocese of Regensburg, the diocesan heart beneath the national canopy. With sold circulation around 16,000 (IVW 2/2026) — down from 25,000 in early 2022 — the weekly reports on people, values, and the background of socio-political and church topics for Catholics across Germany, the faithful's weekly.

Overview

The Katholische SonntagsZeitung appears weekly as the Roman Catholic weekly newspaper for Germany: the Augsburg diocese's church newspaper grown into the nationwide Catholic weekly, the century's fruit. Publisher is the Mediengruppe Sankt Ulrich Verlag GmbH of Augsburg; editor-in-chief is Johannes Müller, managing director Ruth Klaus (since October 2022), the diocesan media team.

The weekly appears jointly with the Neue Bildpost across Germany; two regional editions serve the Diocese of Augsburg and the Diocese of Regensburg, the distribution partnership. The sold circulation stood at 16,145 copies (IVW 2/2026, weekly); in the first quarter of 2022 it had been 25,096 — 12,907 for the Augsburg regional edition, 8,112 for the Regensburg edition, the measured decline. The newspaper reports on people, values, and backgrounds in socio-political and church topics, the Catholic orientation weekly.

The Century of the Church Newspaper

The century of the church newspaper that the SonntagsZeitung embodies — nearly 100 years from the 1927 Sonntagsblatt to the 2026 digital relaunch — is the Catholic press history in one title: the Weimar founding, the Nazi ban of 1941, the American license No. 6 of 1946, the Ulrich naming of 1955, the Verlag founding of 1962, the renaming of 1993, the nationwide expansion, the digital transformation.

The ban and the rebirth mark the deepest caesura: the Nazi state silenced the diocesan newspaper on 31 May 1941; the American military government's license restored it on 15 September 1946. The post-war rebuilding under the Augsburger Katholische Kirchenzeitung title, the 1955 Lechfeld millennium honoring Saint Ulrich, the 1962 Verlag founding professionalizing the publishing — each chapter reflects the diocese's media history. The 1993 Katholische SonntagsZeitung name and the nationwide für Deutschland edition mark the modern era: from the diocesan paper to the Catholic weekly for Germany.

History

The history reaches back to 27 February 1927: the first issue of the Katholisches Sonntagsblatt für die Diözese Augsburg, the Augsburg diocese's church newspaper, the century's start. In the Nazi state it was banned in 1941 — the last issue appearing 31 May, the silenced voice. After the American military government granted the Augsburg diocese "License No. 6", the church newspaper could reappear from 15 September 1946, initially as the Augsburger Katholische Kirchenzeitung, the reborn voice.

The 1955 thousandth anniversary of the Battle of Lechfeld brought the diocesan patron's name: the Augsburg church newspaper became the St. Ulrichsblatt, named for Saint Ulrich, the patron's honor. In 1962 the Augsburg diocese founded the Sankt Ulrich Verlag, the professional publishing house. In 1993 the diocese renamed its church newspaper from St. Ulrichsblatt to Katholische SonntagsZeitung — the name it carries today, nationwide as the Katholische SonntagsZeitung für Deutschland, the modern brand.

Coverage and Content

The SonntagsZeitung covers the Catholic life in its breadth: the people, the values, the backgrounds of the socio-political and church topics, the complete Catholic week. The weekly serves the Catholic readers' orientation: the church news, the diocesan life, the faith questions, the society debates from the Catholic perspective, the compass.

The regional editions ground it: the Augsburg edition for the diocese whose newspaper this has been since 1927, the Regensburg edition for the neighboring diocese, the local roots. The joint appearance with the Neue Bildpost extends the reach, the nationwide partnership. The June 2026 relaunch modernized: the paper newspaper changing and the content becoming more digital — the classic paper weekly supplemented by the digital offers for tablet and phone, nearly a century after the founding, the transformation.

The Sankt Ulrich Verlag

The Mediengruppe Sankt Ulrich Verlag GmbH is the Augsburg Christian media company: sole shareholder is the Diocese of Augsburg (represented by Bishop Bertram Meier); managing director Ruth Klaus since October 2022; the diocesan media house. the publishing house sits in the Old Main Hospital building, the historic Augsburg address. Beyond the SonntagsZeitung the group publishes Catholic literature — including the former Pope Benedict XVI and cardinals — and the weekly TV newsmagazine katholisch1.tv, the multimedia group. broadcast Sundays on a.tv (Augsburg) and allgäu.tv (Kempten) and online, the moving-image arm.

The Catholic Weekly Market

The Catholic weekly market in which the SonntagsZeitung competes is the landscape of the diocesan church newspapers: the Heinrichsblatt (Bamberg), the Pilger (Speyer), the Konradsblatt (Freiburg), the Kirchenzeitung (Cologne), the Dom (Paderborn), the Tag des Herrn (Berlin/Dresden/Erfurt), and the SonntagsZeitung's own diocesan siblings. Each diocese maintains its church newspaper; the SonntagsZeitung is among the few with the nationwide für Deutschland ambition.

The market's challenge is the secularization and the digital shift: the sold circulation declining from 25,096 (Q1 2022) to 16,145 (IVW 2/2026) reflects the Catholic press's structural pressure. The June 2026 "print and digital" relaunch answers: the paper changing, the content going digital for tablet and phone. The joint appearance with the Neue Bildpost pools the resources. In the church press where the diocesan papers fight for the faithful readers, the SonntagsZeitung's nationwide reach and the Sankt Ulrich media group are the strengths: the century-old brand, the professional publishing, the multimedia extension.

Organization and Ownership

The Katholische SonntagsZeitung is published by the Mediengruppe Sankt Ulrich Verlag GmbH, Augsburg: the Roman Catholic weekly, ZDB 2065841-2, editor-in-chief Johannes Müller, the diocesan imprint. The sole shareholder of the media group is the Diocese of Augsburg, the church ownership. The weekly's imprint is the diocesan publishing tradition since 1927, the unbroken line.

The Regional Editions

The regional editions that the SonntagsZeitung maintains — for the Diocese of Augsburg and the Diocese of Regensburg — are the diocesan roots beneath the nationwide canopy: the Augsburg edition (12,907 of the 25,096 in Q1 2022) serving the home diocese whose church newspaper this has been since 1927, the Regensburg edition (8,112) serving the neighboring Bavarian diocese.

The regionalization serves the readers' identity: the diocesan news, the local church life, the bishop's word, alongside the nationwide Catholic coverage. The joint appearance with the Neue Bildpost — the nationwide distribution partnership — extends the reach beyond the two dioceses. The ZDB 2065841-2 catalogs the title. In the Catholic press where the diocesan bond is the loyalty, the SonntagsZeitung balances both: the Augsburg-Regensburg regional heart and the für Deutschland national ambition.

Digital Presence

The Katholische-SonntagsZeitung.de website is the digital home; the digital transformation continues, today and tomorrow. the June 2026 "new Katholische SonntagsZeitung — print and digital" relaunch (reported via katholisch1.tv) pushes the digital content for tablet and phone alongside the changing paper. The sister TV newsmagazine katholisch1.tv extends the brand to the moving image.

For the Catholics, the SonntagsZeitung is the weekly: the Roman Catholic weekly newspaper from Augsburg, since 1927, nationwide today and tomorrow. With the Sankt Ulrich Verlag and the diocese behind it, the weekly reports on the faith and the world: the people, the values, the backgrounds, into the second century, without compromise.