early 40 Roman Catholic GOP lawmakers from the House of Representatives huddled last week with Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) and House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-Texas) in hopes of resolving the impasse over the selection of the next official Chaplain for congress.

    According to the Washington Post, lawmakers urged Republican leaders to move quickly to break the procedural deadlock which began last Thanksgiving when Mr. Hastert announced his choice for the $138,000-a-year position, Presbyterian minister Charles Parker Wright. Democrats, joined by the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, promptly denounced Hastert's selection, insisting that a Roman Catholic priest -- Father Timothy J. O'Brien -- should be named instead.

   Since then, the squabble over the chaplain has dovetailed with charges of anti-Catholicism plaguing the Republican nomination contest between Texas Gov. George W. Bush and Sen. John McCain. Backers of Father O'Brien have charged that Hastert's selection of a Protestant is a political bone to the GOP religious right faction which is composed mostly of evangelicals and fundamentalists.

    Fueling the controversy are statements from O'Brien, who went public on the issue and told reporters that he would have been named to the House Chaplain's position were he not a Roman Catholic.

    Late last month, the capitol hill newspaper Roll Call revealed contacts between Rev. Billy Graham and Speaker Hastert, reportedly over the chaplaincy issue.

   During a floor speech Tuesday night, Iowa Republican Greg Ganske suggested that the House begin the review process over again and accept a "binding recommendation" from a new bipartisan panel. Defending both Mr. Hastert and Majority Leader Armey, Ganske opined that "this is a mess."

    "Coupled with the Bob Jones University fiasco, Catholics in my district and around the country are shaking their heads in dismay," he added.

    Earlier this week, AANEWS reported that Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.) was considering introduction of legislation that would effectively abolish the post, and instead rely on a system of rotating appointments selected by the House Speaker and the ranking minority leader in congress. Another proposal by Rep. James T. Walsh (R-N.Y.) calls for the Speaker to appoint a new chaplain for each Congress.

    The House may be no closer to a solution, though, than it was last week. A vote on Hastert's candidate, Rev. Wright, has been postponed indefinitely, and no further action is listed on the Senate calendar at this time.

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