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John Allen, Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, discusses the growth of the global Catholic church and what the election of a non-traditional, non-European pope would mean for the papacy. More than two-thirds of the world's Catholics live in Africa, Latin America and other countries in the developing world.

The largest funeral in modern history takes place in Rome on a windy, cool morning. The funeral for Pope John Paul II begins nine days of mourning for one of the Catholic Church's longest-serving pontiffs. The homily was delivered by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, one of the pope's closest friends and advisers.

John Negroponte, President Bush's nominee for the new position of National Intelligence Director, testifies at his Senate confirmation hearing. Negroponte may face tough questions about his actions while serving in Central America during the Contra War, but he is expected to win easy confirmation.

The ceremonies surrounding the death of Pope John Paul II, his funeral and the election of his successor Benedict XVI have played out according to a script written centuries ago. But the new pontiff strayed from the script Saturday, speaking to reporters before his inaugural mass tomorrow.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist says he'll try to persuade Democrats to allow a confirmation vote on John Bolton as ambassador to the United Nations. But Democrats say they'll continue to filibuster until the White House provides documents regarding Bolton's days at the State Department.

Searchers near the Texas-Louisiana border continue their search for debris in an effort to determine what caused the space shuttle Columbia to break apart upon re-entry Feb. 1. In Austin, Texas, officials rely on the latest technologies to aid in the investigation. Hear NPR's Joe Palca and NPR's John Nielsen.

Senate Democrats close ranks to delay a vote on John Bolton's nomination to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Democrats say they will allow Bolton to face a vote, but only if the Bush administration provides access to classified documents.

Cardinal Bernard Law's resignation as Archbishop of Boston has symbolic value, but the archdiocese remains in crisis, stained by a sex-abuse scandal and beset by financial problems. Hear from NPR's Duncan Moon, NPR's John Ydstie and Rev. Robert Bullock, chairman of the Boston Priest Forum.

In the first U.S. combat death, a U.S. Marine is killed in southern Iraq. Earlier, four U.S. Marines and eight British soldiers are killed in the accidental crash of a U.S. helicopter near the Kuwait-Iraq border. Hear NPR's John Burnett.

The White House has asserted that most of the terrorism currently undermining U.S. efforts in Iraq is perpetrated by non-Iraqis. Terror analysts and Middle East experts differ in their opinion of the nature of the attacks -- and who is behind them. Hear NPR's Michele Kelemen and Rand Corporation policy analyst John Parachini.