Nation IN BRIEF : WASHINGTON, D.C. : Catholic Offshoot to Ordain Woman

A former nun will be ordained as the first female priest in a Roman Catholic Church group that broke away from Vatican rule two years ago, the dissident church announced. Rose Vernell, 50, a former nun in Asbury Park, N.J., will be ordained Sunday in Washington by the Rev. George A. Stallings Jr., a priest excommunicated from the Catholic Church in 1989. He had defied church leaders by forming a “temple” that featured African-style music with gospel-type singing. Stallings then launched the African-American Catholic Congregation, charging the Catholic Church with racism.