Edward Pentin

What happens to the Roman Catholic Church (and who comes next) if anything happens to Pope Benedict.

The Persian Gulf is not an obvious destination for the head of the Roman Catholic Church. Yet when Bahrain's King Hamad met with Pope Benedict earlier this month in Rome, he extended a personal invitation to visit.

An after-hours office meeting between a young man and a top Roman Catholic official has prompted a fresh inquiry into gay priests. What the investigation could mean for the Holy See.

In recent weeks, Ireland has served up a slew of political surprises. On May 24, Prime Minister Bertie Ahern was voted back into government for a record third term.

It's been a highly guarded secret for the past year: the identity of a French nun said to have been miraculously cured through the intercession of the late Pope John Paul II.

As the Vatican's Undersecretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Father J. Augustine Di Noia has worked closely with Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger for the last four years.

Could the Roman Catholic Church soon have an African pope? When the conclave of cardinals meets in Rome next week to elect a new pontiff, many analysts expect them to choose someone from Europe.

In Dan Brown's best-selling thriller, "The Da Vinci Code," Opus Dei is depicted as a dark and mysterious cult within the Roman Catholic Church, a secretive society of men and women who have sought political power to further the interests of a wealthy elite.

Regarded as one of the foremost commentators on U.S. foreign policy, Michael Novak is the author of 25 influential books on the philosophy and theology of culture.

In 1996, Weeke became something of a newsmaker herself when a Turkish journalist called her to say he was at the Vatican with the mother of Mehmet Ali Agca, the man who tried to assassinate the pope in 1981.

Food: The Thrill Of The HuntIt's mushroom season in Europe, and time for fungi fanatics to hit the woods. Martin Lewy, a mycology enthusiast who runs mycologue.