Editor's Note: This is the second installment of a three-part series on the future challenges to the Saudi royal family's rule. Click to read Part 1 . Summary A dramatic change in Saudi Arabia's public sphere and growing criticism of the powerful religious establishment will present an unprecedented challenge for the House of Saud. The relationship between the House of Saud and the religious leadership is a critical pillar of Saudi rule because it gives the government religious legitimacy and authority and allows it to balance an oftentimes conflicting domestic and foreign policy agenda. The government has lost control over public discourse, and the next decades will witness a shift in how Riyadh manages its relationship with an increasingly restive and mostly young Saudi population.