Inside the Vatican (My Commentary)

I suppose the mysterious nature of the Vatican with its majestic temporal presence coupled with its spiritual significance to more than 1 billion people has always made me interested in the place. How is it run? What is it like inside? How does the Pope go about his day to day business in both secular and religious affairs? Furthermore, the fact that the diplomatic corps of the Holy See (the Vatican City is a sovereign state whilst the Holy See represents the Pope's episcopal power over all Roman Catholics) play an important part in the diplomatic scene have only make me more interested in the workings of the Vatican. After all, not many diplomats carry the title of Apolistic Nuncio or Papal Nuncio. 

Gallery of Maps ceiling decoration, Vatican Museum

St Peter's Square as seen from the basilica 

Pope Benedict the 16th (Pope Benedictus XVI)

This documentary by National Geographic gives one a unique insight into one I suppose is the most peculiar sovereign state in the world. Surrounded entirely by the city of Rome, with the head of state being the last absolute monarch in Europe and with a population of about 800 that is made up almost entirely by 3 main groups: the Holy See's diplomats, the cardinals, bishops and monsignors that work and run the Vatican and the Swiss Guard.  The documentary centres around two main events in the Vatican, namely the ordination of bishops and the beautification of candidates selected for sainthood. It shows how these events are planned out as well. Perhaps what I found most interesting were 3 main things:

1. The glimpse into the vast historical and cultural treasure trove that the Vatican possess with numerous priceless art pieces and the famous Vatican secret archives as well as the showing how a team of dedicated staff help maintain and preserve one of the greatest treasures on Earth.

2. The Swiss Guard, their duties, their history and their unique uniform

3. The diplomatic visits by world leaders to the Vatican

Flag of the Vatican City

Nuns with St Peter's Basilica in the background

St Peter's Square

Swiss Guard

Stalin once said "The Pope? How many divisions has he got?" But the true power of the Vatican and the Holy See as invested within the person of the Pope is not physical or military power. As an office of an elected monarch (elected by the Cardinals) along with his role as the head of the Roman Catholic Church, the Pope has immense spiritual and moral stature. Though this has been tainted by the recent spat of sex scandals that have smeared the Church, I believe that the mystic and unique nature of the Pope and the Vatican shall always remain a significant force on the international arena.

(Random Note: The Vatican is one of the top 10 places that I wanna visit =D )

The documentary is by National Geographic : Inside the Vatican

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/11/1118_vaticanmain.html