The New Shepherd
It's hard to follow a superstar; will the new Pope with the fierce reputation be able to take up where John Paul II left off?

The Conquest of Rome
The stealth campaign for Ratzinger began 18 months ago. An inside look at how he won

The Turning Point
How the upheavals of 1968 turned a Vatican II reformer into an ardent conservative

What Should He Do?
A TIME Forum: American Catholics suggest priorities the new Pontiff should tackle in the days ahead

The Vicar of Orthodoxy
The Pope's dogma is a circular system that's immune to reasoned query

Any Kerry Supporters On The Line?
The Bush Administration punishes some Democrat backers