VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Dominican Father Edward Schillebeeckx, a theologian whose work had a huge impact on the Dutch church, died at the age of 95 Dec. 23 in Nijmegen, Netherlands, where he lived since 1957. The Dominican taught in the department of dogmatic and historical theology at the Catholic University of Nijmegen, now known as Radboud University Nijmegen, from 1957 until his retirement in 1983. He served as theological adviser to the Dutch bishops during the Second Vatican Council and was seen as the main inspiration behind the Dutch catechism for adults.

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Despite a New York Times report to the contrary, the Catholic Health Association and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops are working together to achieve health reform legislation that does not expand federal funding of abortion, according to the CHA president and CEO. Sister Carol Keehan, a Daughter of Charity, told Catholic News Service in a telephone interview Dec. 28 that her organization has never wavered in its commitment to health care that protects "from conception to natural death," as outlined in the CHA document, "Our Vision for U.S.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Christmas with a call for unselfish charity and solidarity with the suffering, and underlined the message two days later by lunching with the poor at a Rome soup kitchen. The pope's Christmas was marred by a security scare on Christmas Eve, when a mentally unbalanced woman rushed the 82-year-old pontiff and knocked him to the marble floor of St. Peter's Basilica. The pope was unharmed but French Cardinal Roger Etchegaray suffered a broken hip when he fell in the confusion.

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The Chaldean Catholic Archdiocese of Kirkuk, Iraq, has canceled Christmas Masses because of insecurity and attacks against Christians, the Washington Post reported Dec. 23. "This is the first time we have had to cancel our celebrations," the Post quoted Kirkuk Archbishop Louis Sako as saying. The Post also reported that a sign on the Kirkuk cathedral read, in part: "We apologize to all the brothers for not conducting celebrations or accepting greetings or guests, but we pray for peace and security in Iraq.

SAN FRANCISCO (CNS) -- A union seeking to represent service and technical workers at Catholic-run Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital in northern California won a plurality in a hard-fought election. In three-way balloting Dec 17 and 18, the National Union of Healthcare Workers received 283 votes versus 263 votes against forming a union. A second union on the ballot, the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, received 13 votes. The outcome will not be final until it is certified by the National Labor Relations Board.

SAN DIEGO (CNS) -- Receiving their diplomas Dec. 12, the first graduates of John Paul the Great Catholic University were hailed as pioneers and heroes, whose legacy will be remembered by future graduating classes. Nineteen students earned bachelor's degrees -- 10 in business and nine in communications media -- during a graduation ceremony in St. Francis Chapel at Mission San Diego de Alcala.

JERUSALEM (CNS) -- Although politicians have failed to reach a solution to the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Palestinians still face occupation, house demolitions and separated families, hope is still alive in the Holy Land, said Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal of Jerusalem. "In the Holy Land, everything is not desperate. There are a few signs of hope," he told journalists at a Dec. 22 press conference to present his Christmas message.

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Orthodox Christians in predominantly Muslim Turkey "don't feel that we enjoy our full rights as Turkish citizens," the spiritual head of the world's 300 million Orthodox told the CBS newsmagazine "60 Minutes" Dec. 20. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople told CBS News correspondent Bob Simon that he and other Christians in Turkey sometimes feel "crucified" by the actions of the Turkish government, which banned all private higher education and closed the nation's only Orthodox seminary in 1971.

MEXICO CITY (CNS) -- Mexico City Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera criticized the city's legalization of gay marriage and adoption by same-sex couples. "On the eve of the holy celebrations of Christmas, one time more we have watched with impotence, pain and consternation as the Mexico City Assembly has approved an immoral law that tears at the most intimate of structures, the Mexican family," Cardinal Rivera said after the assembly approved the bill Dec. 21. "This law ...

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Although authentic reform of the nation's health system is "a public good, moral imperative and urgent national priority," the Senate version of health reform legislation "should not move forward in its current form," the heads of three committees of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said Dec. 19. The comments came after the introduction of a 383-page manager's amendment incorporating some aspects of an amendment proposed by Sen. Robert Casey, D-Pa., to improve the bill on the issues of abortion and conscience rights. In a Dec.