i'm bob abernethy. it's good to have you with us.here was more attention this week to the ethical debate weaponized drones in the war on terror. the discussion came amid a senate intelligence committee confirmation hearing for john brennan, nominated to be the next head of the cia. brennan helpelead the obama adminisation's largely secret drone program. a leaked memo revealed the justice department's view that it is legal for the government to kill u.s. citizens overseas if it believes they pose an "imminent threat," even if there is no evidence of an immediate specific attack. some ethicists say that amounts to illegal targeted killings. >> they are not the best strategy, they are not ethically right, and they are not morally right. >>> after much campaigning by outside groups obothides, t boy scouts postponed until may a decision on lifting its ban on gay scouts and leaders. several conservative religious organizations were particularly vocal in their opposition to lifting the ban. there was also some religious support for changing

i'm bob abernethy. it's good to have you with us. a dramatic development this week in the catholic church's sex abuse crisis. prominent retired cardinal roger mahony was stripped of his public and administrative church duties in los angeles amid widespread criticism of how he covered up allegations of child sex abuse by priests. l.a.'s current archbishop jose gomez took the unprecedented step as the archdiocese began releasing internal documents which revealed the extent to which mahony worked to protect the church from the abuse scandal. gomez said the behavior described in the files was "sad and evil." mahony has issued several apologies for his actions. advocates for sex abuse victims called this a largely symbolic move. but church experts say it's the first time in the crisis that any action has been taken against such a high-ranking church official. >>> the obama administration announced a new attempted compromise with religious groups friday in the ongoing dispute over the controversial "contracep

i'm bob abernethy. it's good to have you with us. anticipation is growing over the selection of the next pope, following pope benedict xvi's surprise announcement that he is retiring. at one of his final public appearances, benedict asked for prayers for himself and his successor. he then entered a week long retreat amid wide speculation that the papal conclave might begin before march 15th, giving the cardinals more time to select the next pope before holy week. meanwhile, some american catholics are demanding cardinal roger mahony not attend the conclave because of his role in the clergy sex abuse crisis. recently released documents show the former archbishop of los angeles covered up abuse by priests. also, this week, the president of the u.s. conference of catholic bishops, cardinal timothy dolan of new york was formally questioned by lawyers for sex abuse victims. the deposition centered on dolan's handling of abuse while he oversaw the milwaukee archdiocese. >>> as president obama this week urged

i'm bob abernethy. it's good to have you with us. pope benedict xvi stunned the world this week with the surprise announcement that he's decided to resign, the first pope to step down in 600 years. our coverage today includes analysis from two experts on the church, and it begins with reacti from catholics and non-catholics alie, gathered by our managing editor kim lawton. >> benedict said he's resigning "for the good of the church." >> isn't that a profound sign of his own humility in that he was able to recognize when, you know, it just was more than he could handle? and instead of letting just sort of others do the job, he viewed very strongly that we needed somebody in that position that would really be able to take the helm. >> i think this decision was made out of love for the church and her needs. >> but it was an almost unprecedented decision. >> in my lifetime, popes have died in office. one has never resigned. and then i all of a sudden discovered that, well, no wonder, it's been almost 600 ye

i'm bob abernethy. you can follow us on twitter and facebook and watch us anytime on the pbs app for iphones and ipads. there's much more on our website. you can comment on all of our stories and share them. audio and vio podcasts are also available. join us at pbs.org. as we leave you, the israeli gospel choir from tel aviv performing at congregation rodeph sholom in new york city. ♪ >> major funding for religion and ethics news weekly is provided by the lilly endowment, dedicated to the founders' interest in religion, community development and education. additional funding also provided by mutual of america. designing customized, individual and group retirement products. that's why we're your retirement company. and the corporation for public broadcasting.