THE POPE'S RIGHT HAND MAN

Although he shares the same title as the chief U.S. diplomat, the Vatican Secretary of State is more like a Prime Minister, responsible not only for foreign policy but also for overseeing church headquarters at the Roman Curia, being the Vatican link to Catholic organizations and officials around the world, and even stepping in for the Pope if he falls ill or is unavailable. While Pope John Paul II's constant travels kept him somewhat separated from the workings of the Vatican bureaucracy, [Benedict] and [Tarcisio Bertone] are instead expected to work hand in hand on all matters, foreign and domestic. The Pope will need his No. 2 as both a political strategist and a sort of chief of operations, which will give Benedict the space to pursue the intellectual and theological aspects of the job that he prefers. Moreover, if Benedict hopes to continue streamlining the governance of the church-which would include interrupting the ambitions of top prelates-he will have to lean on Bertone, who handled such delicate tasks in the past as spearheading Vatican negotiations with the ultratraditionalist Lefebrve group. "The Pope can count on Bertone's absolute loyalty," says a veteran Vatican diplomat. "Ideally, the Secretary of State must maintain some autonomy while always reflecting the thoughts of the Pope." For a poor farmer's son to have risen to the top of the Vatican hierarchy, Bertone must have had to develop steel under his outward affability. Vatican insiders note that in the new job-for which part of his task is to fend off those who want to derail the Pope's agenda-that thick skin may count more than Bertone's good humor. A Vatican official who has worked with the Cardinal in the past says, "I've never seen him betray his principles-but he's had to do everything just short of it." Adds the official: "He knows how to operate within the structure of the Holy See. He has the skills of a politician."