Worldscan

* Sweden's indigenous Sami people asked for a congregational structure within the Church of Sweden that wouldn't be linked to geographical borders. The church body, which comprises more than 80 percent of the population, currently has five nonterritorial congregations. The Church of Sweden's Sami Council is examining the request to see whether it's the best solution to provide pastoral care. Sweden has an . estimated 17,000 members of the indigenous Sami people.

* The 14-month-old conflict in the Darfur region of western Sudan was described as one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, with more than 1 million people forced from their homes, according to Action by Churches Together. Access to the region by humanitarian agen- cies is difficult, but ACT members issued an emergency appeal for assistance. Around 10,000 people are believed to have died in the latest conflict between the government and two rebel groups. Elsewhere in Sudan, 56 boy slaves were liberated in April from the cattle camps of Arab nomads in the borderlands between northern and southern Sudan. Interviews with the boys revealed physical, sexual and psychological abuse. The slavery issue isn't yet on the agenda of peace talks between Sudan's government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army.

* Days after the Roman Catholic Church released a nationwide audit in January showing that 90 percent of dioceses had implemented clergy sexual abuse policies adopted in 2002, bishops in at least five states began a campaign to put the brakes on future audits. Justice Anne M. Burke, interim chair of the church's appointed National Review Board, warned that parishioners would find it "reprehensible" if the bishops stalled on a second round of national surveys to measure compliance with sex abuse reforms. Under pressure from that board, an ad hoc committee of bishops agreed not to delay, though all bishops meet in June and could accept or reject such an agreement.

* The general synod of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church of Germany (VELKD) decided in favor of closer cooperation with the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) April 3. The VELKD is an association of eight regional Lutheran churches in Bavaria, Brunswick, Hanover, Mecklenburg, North Elbia, Saxony, SchaumburgLippe and Thuringia. It represents about 10.4 million Lutherans. The EKD brings together 24 Lutheran, Reformed and United regional churches in Germany. A basic condition for reaching an agreement would be that the VELKD can continue to function as a church in both the theological and legal sense.

* A petition drive that began last summer with 163 Roman Catholic priests in Milwaukee asking for a discussion on celibacy resulted in a new group of about 1,000 priests who want the church to consider married clergy. The New York Times says organizers of Priests' Forum for Eucharist met in the Bronx April 20-21. They claim to represent about 1,000 priests from at least nine dioceses-about 2 percent of the country's 45,000 Catholic priests.

* Former combatants in Liberia's 14-year civil war are committed to the ongoing disarmament process, says the Lutheran World Federation representative in Liberia, Charles Pitchford. Disarmed ex-combatants remain in a demobilization camp for five days. They go through interviews; medical screening; a rehabilitation interview process that involves the trauma, healing and reconciliation team of the Lutheran Church in Liberia; and a personal development orientation that integrates classes in civic education, career counseling, human rights, sexual and reproductive health, and HIV/AIDS awareness. Then the former fighters are given $150, food rations and transport to their home area or preferred region of resettlement. They are asked to wait for a radio announcement one to three months post-demobilization requesting them to report to local agencies where they get another $150 and further instructions on rehabilitation and placement.

* The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) laid off 28 people and cut nine vacant positions May 7 to trim its two-year budget by $4.6 million. In the past two years, the denomination has eliminated at least 122 positions at its Louisville, Ky., headquarters. The revised budget stands at $114.4 million.

* ELCA members contributed $60,000 for food aid in North Korea, which since 1995 has experienced natural disasters, crop failures and economic decline. The Korean government hasn't been able to provide assistance for people. "While tensions between North Korea and the United States remain, millions of people in North Korea rely on donated food to stay alive," said Y. Franklin Ishida of the ELCA Division for Global Mission.

* The fifth International Conference of the Sabeel Ecumenical Palestinian Liberation Theology Center met in Jerusalem April 14-18 and registered strong opposition to the Israeli government's imposition of a unilateral strategy on the Palestinian Territories. About 600 participants from more than 30 countries participated as the conference assembled local and international theologians, bishops and clergy, political scientists and legal experts. A statement said, "Sabeel's vision embraces two sovereign states, Palestine and Israel, which will enter into confederation or even a federation, possibly with other neighboring countries, where Jerusalem becomes the federal capital."