This book offers a concise introduction to the institutional framework of the Holy See, conceptualizing papal agency and positions from a range of international theory perspectives. It comprises research articles and commentary essays first published in The Review of Faith & International Affairs.

Mariano P. Barbato is Associate Professor of Politics at the University of Passau and Heisenberg, Germany. Currently he is the Principal Investigator of the research project 'Legions of the Pope. A case study in social and political transformation', funded by the German Research Foundation. He has published widely on religion and politics.

Robert J. Joustra is Director of the Centre for Christian Scholarship and Associate Professor of Politics & International Studies at Redeemer University College, Canada. He is an editorial fellow with The Review of Faith & International Affairs and author and editor of several books, including most recently The Religious Problem with Religious Freedom: Why Foreign Policy Needs Political Theology (2017).

Dennis R. Hoover is Editor of The Review of Faith & International Affairs and Senior Fellow at the Institute for Global Engagement, USA. He is editor of Religion and American Exceptionalism (2014), co-editor with Chris Seiple and Pauletta Otis of The Routledge Handbook of Religion and Security (2013), and co-editor with Douglas Johnston of Religion and Foreign Affairs: Essential Readings (2012).

1. Introduction: Popes on the Rise Mariano P. Barbato, Robert J. Joustra, and Dennis R. Hoover Part I: Contemporary Research Articles on the Papacy and World Affairs 2. Sovereignty, Supranationalism, and Soft Power: The Holy See in International Relations Timothy A. Byrnes 3. Beyond Integration and Differentiation? The Holy See and the Pope in the System of World Politics Mathias Albert 4. Diplomacy, Papacy, and the Transformation of International Society Thomas Diez 5. Rerum Novarum and the Right to Work: 19th-Century Lessons for 21st-Century Labor Robert Joustra 6. Among Spies, Popes, and the Good Cyrenians: La Commission pour l'Eglise Persécutée as a Transnational Catholic Actor in the Cold War Adrian Hänni 7. Two "Popes" to Speak for the World: The Pope and the United Nations Secretary General in World Politics Jodok Troy 8. Papal Geopolitics: The World According to Urbi et Orbi Petr Kratochvíl and Jana Hovorková 9. Diplomatic Language in the Deepavali Messages of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue Melanie Barbato 10. A Trajectory Towards the Periphery: Francis of Assisi, Louis Massignon, Pope Francis, and Muslim-Christian Relations Scott M. Thomas Part II: Essays from the Archive 11. Dignitatis Humanae and the Catholic Human Rights Revolution Kenneth L. Grasso & Robert P. Hunt 12. Roman Catholicism and the Faith-Based Movement for Global Human Rights Allen D. Hertzke 13. Pope John Paul II and the Dynamics of History George Weigel 14. Catholic Peacemaking, 1991-2005: The Legacy of Pope John Paul II Drew Christiansen 15. A Diplomacy of Candor: Pope Benedict XVI on the Global Stage Bernard J. O'Connor 16. Benedict XVI: Peacemaker Drew Christiansen S.J. 17. Catholic Social Teaching, Macintyre's Social Theory, and Global Development Scott M. Thomas