In December, when the Egyptian capital Cairo was engulfed by violent tensions between Islamists and secular forces, many Tunisians we spoke to bristled at suggestions that the crisis in Tunisia was of similar proportions.

BBC: Clouds gather over bellwether Tunisia

But you know, on all sides - among the Sunni politicians, among the Shia politicians, among more secular parties - everybody's saying, Well, this is a serious crisis.

NPR: Baghdad Kidnappings Create Political Crisis

Whoever he is, the next pope will face a church in crisis: Benedict spent his eight-year pontificate trying to revive Catholicism amid the secular trends that have made it almost irrelevant in places like Europe, once a stronghold of Christianity.

NPR: Conclave To Elect Next Pope Opens Amid Uncertainty