CATHOLICS . . . BISHOPS MAKE WAY FOR WOMEN

U.S. Catholic bishops, confessing for the first time that the church is guilty of sexism, voted overwhelmingly to allow women into the top ranks of Church personnel -- but not the priesthood, where the gender debate has always centered. "We commit ourselves to enhancing the participation of women in every possible aspect of church life," the bishops said in a statement approved 228-10 at their annual meeting in Washington, D.C. Admitting to "theological correctness," but not "political correctness," they also said the U.S. church should avoid saying "man" or "men" when referring to all of humanity, even though the language of the universal catechism favors male terms.