The beatification of more than 150 martyrs of the Spanish Civil War is scheduled for March 11 in Rome, a Vatican official said. In six separate decrees in 1999, Pope John Paul recognized the martyrdom of 156 priests, religious, and laypeople killed in Spain in 1936. The decrees cleared the way for their beatification. Pope John Paul already has beatified other martyrs of the violence in Spain during the 1930s. In November 1999 he canonized 10 priests and brothers martyred in 1934; eight months earlier he beatified seven priests and a brother martyred in 1936.

President Clinton signed a bill November 6 setting aside $435 million to allow the United States to forgive debts owed by 33 of the world’s poorest countries. The bill represents the second payment toward the $920-million U.S. share of a $28-billion international debt relief initiative agreed to by the G8 nations in June 1999. Boston’s Cardinal Bernard Law, chairman of the U.S. bishops’ International Policy Committee, said that the new law is a great victory "for the millions of the world’s poor who have new hope for a fresh start during this jubilee year." He also said it is a great victory for people of faith who acted upon the call of Pope John Paul II and of people in the developing world for help in removing their international debt burden.

The bishops’ statement on new immigrants calls "upon all people of good will, but Catholics especially, to welcome newcomers in their neighborhoods and schools, in their places of work and worship with heartfelt hospitality, openness and eagerness both to help and to learn from our brothers and sisters of whatever race, religion, ethnicity or background." However, the bishops say, "the church has not adequately addressed the host of questions that surround pastoral ministry to the new immigrants... The church, they say, requires a profound conversion in spirit and in its institutions to reflect its own cultural pluralism".

The bishops state "a pastor with an open and welcoming spirit who insists that the whole parish participate in such a spirit can make a tremendous difference in relations among different groups. The presence of brothers and sisters from different cultures should be celebrated as a gift to the church through well-prepared liturgies, lay leadership-development programs inclusive of all, the appointment of prepared leaders of immigrant communities to parish and diocesan positions, and special efforts to help youth find their way as they experience themselves often torn between two cultures," the bishops say.

The bishops commit themselves and the members of the church "to continue the work of advocacy for laws that respect the human rights of immigrants and preserve the unity of the immigrant family," Also, the bishops’ statement reminds governments around the world that emigration "especially that of those fleeing war and persecution, famine, and economic distress - is a sign of the failure of the whole international community to guarantee the security and welfare of all people in their homelands."

The bishops’ immigration resolution acknowledged a governmental right and responsibility to secure national borders. But, it said, "until such time as the global community effectively addresses the root causes of undocumented migration, individual nations must confront the presence of undocumented persons in a manner which upholds their basic dignity and human rights."