WASHINGTON (CNS) -- As Democratic and Republican leaders gathered in Washington for a health care summit convened by President Barack Obama, the U.S. bishops and other Catholic leaders urged all parties to commit themselves to health care reform that is affordable, accessible and protects the life and dignity of every person. In a Feb. 24 letter to congressional leadership, the chairmen of three committees of the U.S.

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- A Seattle pastor who was present in St. Peter's Square as a seminarian in 1963 when Pope Paul VI presented the Second Vatican Council's liturgical document, "Sacrosanctum Concilium," is leading a campaign to delay implementation of the latest English translation of the Roman Missal. Father Michael G. Ryan, pastor of St.

MEXICO CITY (CNS) -- Catholic leaders in Mexico have welcomed the creation of a new regional group of Latin American and Caribbean nations that excludes the participation of the United States and Canada. Christened the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States and unveiled at a Feb. 22-23 summit of regional leaders in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, the new group embraces Cuba, aims to dampen flare-ups between regional rivals and seeks to deepen economic and political cooperation.

SAO PAULO, Brazil (CNS) -- Five years after the murder of U.S.-born Sister Dorothy Stang, a man accused of ordering her killing will face his third trial. Vitalmiro Bastos de Moura, nicknamed Bida, will begin a new trial March 31. He remains in jail following a court order that he return to prison because of the power he wields in the region where the crime occurred. Initially, de Moura was found guilty of ordering the murder of Sister Dorothy, a member of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. His lawyers are seeking his release from prison.

NAIROBI, Kenya (CNS) -- With the approach of Sudan's first multiparty elections in 24 years, Archbishop Paolino Lukudu Loro of Juba, Sudan, appealed to voters to learn as much as possible about the candidates before casting their votes. In a Feb. 21 pastoral letter, Archbishop Loro said the April 11 elections for the nation's president and local officials can mark the beginning of Sudan's political transformation.

PORTLAND, Ore. (CNS) -- There's a move under way to seek Vatican approval for a patron saint of human trafficking and slavery victims. St. Josephine Bakhita, a Sudanese slave-turned-nun, is the ideal saint for people whose labor and bodies are being exploited, said Brian Willis, a Portland Catholic who has worked for years to help women who have been forced into the sex trade. Trafficking does not require the crossing of international borders, because "you can be born and raised and live in the same house and be a trafficking victim," said Willis, a member of St.

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- As the head of the Catholic Health Associationexpressed hope that President Barack Obama's health care summit would"move health care reform closer to completion," the leaders of a groupof Catholic physicians called on Congress to scrap the currentlegislative proposals and start over."The American people are tired of partisan bickering and wantlawmakers to find common ground toward creating a stronger, moreequitable health care system," said Sister Carol Keehan, a Daughter ofCharity who is CHA president and CEO."The current window of opportunity

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- If the United States is to engage the world in amore effective and meaningful way, it must broaden its view of the roleof religion in other countries beyond terrorism and counterterrorismstrategies, a new report concluded.Released Feb. 23 by the Chicago Council of Global Affairs, thereport offers U.S. diplomats and policymakers a framework to betterrespond to the growing influence or religion in the affairs of theworld's governments, said R.

TOPEKA, Kan. (CNS) -- The Kansas Catholic Conference praised thestate's senators for their "impassioned and thoughtful" debate on thedeath penalty even though they failed to pass a measure to abolish it.The senators voted 20 to 20 on the bill Feb. 19, falling one vote short of what was required for passage."While the outcome is a disappointment, the debate in the Senatechamber was in many respects an impressive display of statesmanship,"the Catholic conference said in a statement released the same day. "Thearguments on both sides were impassioned and thoughtful.

WAYNE, N.J. (CNS) -- Perhaps the birth of the De Mayo identical twins Dec. 29 already might hint at the girls' personalities, now beginning to form: Natalia, the smaller of the two, announced her arrival into the world by screaming. Melania, the larger of the two, came out of the womb sleeping. Several weeks later, the twin's parents, Stephania and Rich De Mayo of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Wayne, beamed proudly as they took turns holding them, sleeping and swaddled, unaffected by the yapping of the couple's Yorkies, Bentley and Dolce.