Irish, British church officials welcome power-sharing agreement
DUBLIN, Ireland (CNS) --- Irish and British church officials welcomed the announcement that political parties in Northern Ireland have agreed to share power again. The March 26 announcement represents "an important and welcome development in the search for a stable future for Northern Ireland," said a statement from Ireland's Catholic, Presbyterian, Anglican and Methodist church leaders. Among those signing was the Irish primate, Archbishop Sean Brady of Armagh, Northern Ireland. The statement said the churches had worked for a devolved government for Northern Ireland, "and we trust that this is now to be realized." It encouraged people to continue to pray for their communities. The British section of the Catholic peace movement Pax Christi welcomed the announcement and said, "Everyone involved now owes it to the victims and suffering families of the conflict to seize this opportunity to build a lasting peaceful and just society." The predominantly Protestant Democratic Unionist Party and predominantly Catholic Sinn Fein agreed to set aside decades of animosity and share power with each other to rule Northern Ireland, beginning May 8.

Poor, elderly refugees said to face unreasonable demands to get aid
WASHINGTON (CNS) --- Poor, elderly refugees in the United States are being held to unrealistic and overly restrictive standards that result in their losing Supplemental Security Income benefits, known as SSI, witnesses told a House hearing March 22. Candy Hill, senior vice president for social policy for Catholic Charities USA, told the Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support of the House Ways and Means Committee that despite efforts to qualify for citizenship many elderly refugees simply can't meet the requirements for English fluency and other standards. A seven-year limit on SSI benefits to noncitizens falls hardest on people who fled persecution or torture in their home countries and came to the United States empty-handed, Hill said in her testimony. The group includes Jews who fled the former Soviet Union, Iraqi Kurds, Cubans, Hmong and Kosovar refugees --- all of whom are now disabled or too elderly to support themselves and who rely on SSI to survive.

Vatican newspaper says Jesuit was right to apply Gospel to injustice
VATICAN CITY (CNS) --- The Vatican newspaper said Jesuit Father Jon Sobrino, whose work was recently criticized by doctrinal authorities, was right in trying to apply the truth of the Gospel to concrete situations of global injustice. Where Father Sobrino risks going astray, the newspaper said, is in proposing a new type of Christology that seems to prefer the "Jesus of history" to the "Christ of faith" and downplays his transcendent nature. The article, published in L'Osservatore Romano March 24, came 10 days after the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith published a note warning of "erroneous or dangerous propositions" in the work of Father Sobrino, a leading proponent of liberation theology. The newspaper article was written by Father Antonio Stagliano, director of a theological institute in Naples, Italy. Typically, such follow-up articles are arranged by Vatican officials to emphasize and explore arguments in the original notification.

Amnesty International UK endorses policy to campaign for abortion
LONDON (CNS) --- The British section of Amnesty International has endorsed a policy in support of legalizing abortion which could change the human rights group's global neutral policy on abortion. The Amnesty International UK move, which formally adopted the legalization of abortion in cases of rape, incest, sexual assault and when the mother's life is at risk, came despite the results of a yearlong consultation which showed that the majority of regular members did not want to abandon the neutral position. The board pushed through the motion at a March 23-25 meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland. The International Executive Committee of Amnesty International will decide as early as next month whether to change the current position. If the committee decides there isn't sufficient support from its branch members for a revision, the British section's stance would be moot.

Filipino bishop urges government to stop evicting poor families
MANILA, Philippines (CNS) --- A Filipino bishop has urged the local government to stop the "heartless" eviction of about 1,000 families living along a stretch of highway outside Manila. Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo of Manila, chairman of the Philippine bishops' Housing Committee, called on the local government to respect the human rights of the poor dwelling in shanties under the bridges and near the canals. "Although they are poor, and they live in places unfit for dwelling, still they are humans," said the bishop during a March 23 press conference in Manila. UCA News, an Asian church news agency, reported on the news conference March 27. The Metro Manila Development Authority has been forcing settlers to leave their homes since late February, Bishop Pabillo said. The bishop said he met March 22 with Bayani Fernando, authority chairman, to discuss the issue but that Fernando insisted on forcibly evicting people despite the lack of relocation sites. "It is the responsibility of the government to give our poor people suitable houses," the bishop said.