WASHINGTON (CNS) --- Although a majority of Americans support many of President Barack Obama's early actions in office, only about a third back his decision to allow funding for overseas family planning groups that provide abortions, according to a new poll by USA Today/Gallup. The results of the survey conducted Jan. 30-Feb. 1 show that "this is no time to divide our nation with policies that offend the pro-life values of most Americans," said Deirdre McQuade, assistant director for policy and communications for the U.S. bishops' Office of Pro-Life Activities, in a Feb. 3 statement. Asked about seven actions taken by Obama as president, the majority said they approved of his moves to: name special envoys for the Middle East and for Afghanistan and Pakistan (76 percent); tighten ethics rules for administration officials (76 percent); limit interrogation techniques used on prisoners (74 percent); institute higher fuel efficiency standards (74 percent); and make it easier for workers to sue for pay discrimination (66 percent). But only 44 percent said they supported Obama's decision to order that the Guantanamo Bay prison be closed and only 35 percent were in favor of his decision to reverse the Mexico City policy, a ban on federal funding of abortion-providing groups abroad that was first instituted by President Ronald Reagan in 1984.

Scranton bishop announces final decisions on parish restructuring
SCRANTON, Pa. (CNS) --- Citing population shifts, dwindling finances, overworked priests and the fact that many Catholics "are not actively practicing their faith," Scranton's bishop announced a major parish restructuring plan that will close some parishes and merge others. In a recorded message played at all Masses the weekend of Jan. 31-Feb. 1, Bishop Joseph Martino announced his final decisions in a process that began more than a year ago. Every parish in the 11-county diocese is affected in some way. At the start of the process, the diocese had 224 parishes. William Genello, the diocese's executive director of communications, said the number of parishes that will remain open will not be known for at least two years as the communities begin to close, merge or partner in sharing ministries. Implementation of the plan will begin in July. Bishop Martino said that some people would probably prefer to leave well enough alone but he explained that was not feasible. "Unfortunately," he said, "many of our institutions are not 'well enough.' Our society and our diocese are experiencing changes. Populations are shifting. Financial resources are diminishing. Many Catholics are not actively practicing their faith or supporting the church. Our priests are serving too many parishes at one time."

New York archdiocesan Catholic high schools to become self-sufficient
NEW YORK (CNS) --- The New York Archdiocese has announced that the 10 archdiocesan Catholic high schools it operates will become self-sufficient, effective with the start of the 2009-10 school year in September. Each school will be under the control of a local board of directors that also will be responsible for the school's funding and operation. Timothy McNiff, archdiocesan superintendent of schools, made the announcement to school parents in a Jan. 23 letter. "These high schools, like all Catholic high schools in the country, are becoming fairly complicated business operations," McNiff said in an interview with Catholic New York, the archdiocesan newspaper. "The schools that seem to be doing very well in that respect are private Catholic high schools that have incorporated local school boards who have accepted the responsibility for the operations of the schools," he added. McNiff said the schools will have "two layers of governance." The boards will operate the schools, but the archdiocese will continue to own each school's buildings and grounds and "will continue to support the capital needs" of the school plants.

Sri Lankan church officials call for end to attacks on civilians
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (CNS) --- Catholic officials in the Diocese of Jaffna have appealed to the Sri Lankan government and Tamil rebels to stop attacks on civilians and church centers. The Jan. 31 appeal called for human rights activists and the international community to intervene to ensure civilians' safety in the ongoing war, the Asian church news agency UCA News reported Feb. 3. The appeal said that, even though the government had announced a 48-hour period to allow people safe passage out of the war zone, no logistics were worked out for such passage. The appeal was sent by the diocesan Justice and Peace Commission and the local branch of the Catholic aid agency Caritas. It was contained in a letter to the government and the Tamil rebels, and a copy was sent to the United Nations, UCA News reported. Father Christopher George Jayakumar, director of the local Caritas office, said the Jan. 29 attack on his center in Mullaittivu, southeast of Jaffna, destroyed $526,000 worth of relief items. At the time, 60 church workers were distributing relief items and narrowly avoided injury, he said.

Psychological testing in seminaries can offer insights, some say
WASHINGTON (CNS) --- Psychological assessments of seminary candidates offer vital insights during the screening process, said U.S. seminary rectors in remarks about a Vatican document that recommends some use of psychological testing in seminaries. The Vatican released the document "Guidelines for the Use of Psychology in the Admission and Formation of Candidates for the Priesthood" Oct. 30. Approved by Pope Benedict XVI, it was written by the Congregation for Catholic Education. The document notes the value of using psychological evaluations in some cases, but when it was released the education congregation's prefect said it discourages using such assessments as a screening tool for all candidates. In an interview with Catholic News Service, Father Dennis J. Lyle, rector and president of the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary in Chicago, said psychological evaluations provide key information when selecting seminary candidates, but he agreed those assessments should not be the only determining factor in the screening process.

Pope says love, not euthanasia, eases the suffering of the dying
VATICAN CITY (CNS) --- Love is the only thing that can ease the suffering of the terminally ill and it is the only worthy response of those who value the life that is ending, Pope Benedict XVI said. Christians must have the courage to say publicly and clearly that "euthanasia is a false solution to the drama of suffering, a solution unworthy of the human person," the pope said Feb. 1 during his midday Angelus address. Marking the Italian Catholic Church's celebration of Pro-Life Sunday, the pope said helping a terminally ill person die might give the impression of easing that individual's suffering, but the only authentically human response to the suffering of another is the witness of "love that helps one face pain and agony in a human way." Pope Benedict said, "Of this we are certain: No tear --- not of one who suffers, nor of one who is near to that person --- goes unnoticed by God." The pope entrusted to Mary all those who are suffering and all those who care for them, "serving life at every stage: parents, health care workers, priests, religious, researchers, volunteers and many others."

Labor unions important in resolving financial crisis, pope says
VATICAN CITY (CNS) --- Pope Benedict XVI said labor unions have an important role to play in finding a way out of the global financial crisis and establishing a new culture of solidarity and responsibility in the marketplace. "The great challenge and the great opportunity posed by today's worrisome economic crisis is to find a new synthesis between the common good and the market, between capital and labor. And in this regard, union organizations can make a significant contribution," the pope told directors of the Confederation of Italian Labor Unions Jan. 31. The pope emphasized that the inalienable dignity of the worker has been a cornerstone of the church's social teaching in the modern age, and said this teaching has helped the movement toward fair wages, improvement of working conditions and protection of vulnerable categories of employees. Workers are facing particular risks in the current economic crisis, and unions must be part of the solution, he said.

Philippine archbishop confirms that married priest was reinstated
DAVAO, Philippines (CNS) --- A Philippine archbishop has confirmed that one of his priests married 27 years ago but was later reinstated to priestly ministry after complying with church law. Archbishop Fernando Capalla of Davao issued a statement Feb. 2, the day after Mayor Rodrigo Duterte revealed that Father Pedro Lamata, a priest at St. Mary Church, had been married, reported the Asian church news agency UCA News. During his regular Sunday television program, the mayor showed a paper allegedly certifying that Father Lamata married a woman in 1982, two years after his ordination. Duterte said he was exposing this "against my will" because the priest had attacked the mayor's family in homilies. Archbishop Capalla wrote in his statement, "It is true that, 27 years ago, Father Lamata as a young priest had gone through a civil marriage with a woman," and was suspended. When Archbishop Capalla came to Davao in 1994, he was informed that "the repentant Father Lamata had complied with the prescribed requirements of (church) law," and the archbishop reinstated his priestly faculties.