Vatican watchers are questioning how a newly elected pope might function while a living “past Pope” resides within the Vatican.  Some warn that “Benedict XVI may be too frail to continue as Pope, but even in retirement he will be able to keep an iron grip on the church... Benedict XVI has embarked on an unprecedented and potentially perilous endgame.

People around the world were deeply affected when 20-year-old Adam Lanza murdered 27 victims in Sandy Hook Elementary School before committing suicide. This tragedy has sparked worldwide controversy over the source of school violence. Young people increasingly see violence as rewarding. Youths are deceived into thinking that wrong actions have no more consequences than a video game they can reset at will. Who or what is the real source of this kind of thinking?

For a century the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) has molded boys into men with character and a vow to remain “morally straight.” Over 50 percent of American men have participated in the Scouts, and they are more likely to be successful in life than those who did not (Values of Scouting, May 2005). In 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a ruling supporting the BSA’s prohibition of homosexual volunteers and scouts.

How often do people feel tempted to compromise in order to live in peace? Sometimes, when disagreements arise, everyone involved agrees to give a little in order to reach the ultimate goal—or sometimes just to break even. Regrettably, when we compromise moral principles to this end, the result is often frustration and failure in the long term. Do we see this happening in our lives today? Are there principles worth preserving as though they were carved into a solid stone slab?

The Vatican has long desired to gain control of Jerusalem and is patiently working towards this end.  Now, “Israel has granted the pope an official seat in the room where the Last Supper is believed to have taken place, on Mount Zion in Jerusalem” (Israel Hayom, January 30, 2013). Israeli officials see this as an opportunity to bring more tourism to Jerusalem (ibid.).