Selecting a new pope

We focus too much on the superficial aspects of a pope, such as his personality. One of the most significant things regarding the selection of a new pope is whether people in the developing world will be allowed to use condoms to prevent the spread of AIDS.

These are life and death issues, as well as taking firm moral stands against war and starvation. The rest is pomp and ego.

ROBERT E. GRIFFIN, Forty Fort, Pennsylvania, U.S.