(Bloomberg) -- Pope Benedict XVI will confront secularism when he visits the Czech Republic, a former communist nation with a centuries-long history of religious and ideological conflict where the percentage of Roman Catholics is declining.
The Catholic leader, who speaks out often about the risk of secular Europe losing its Christian roots, arrives in Prague tomorrow for a three-day visit to one of the few European countries yet to ratify a treaty on relations with the Vatican.
The trip is his first as pope to the Czech region, the theater of religious wars from the 15th to 17th centuries, and comes 20 years after the fall of the Soviet-backed regime in Prague.
Poepe Benedict has said, “The Czech Republic is geographically and historically in the heart of Europe, and after having endured the dramatic events of the previous century, it needs, as does the entire continent, to rediscover the reasons for faith and hope.”
Religious leaders have warned the Pope he faces a huge challenge in a nation of skeptics. There are few banners heralding the Pope's visit. The Pope wants to starts a religious revival in Europe, but the Czech Republic is one of the worst places to start.
The Pope's German heritage and social conservatism are not a big pluses either in the Central European nation.
Most Czechs view the Pope as being out-of-touch with the contemporary world. Less than one in three Czechs identify themselves as Roman Catholic. Before World War 2, four out of five Czechs were Catholic.
One of the Czech Roman Catholic leaders,Tomas Halik said, "The reanimation of the Catholic Church is a long term goal. And even the Pope can't work miracles.."
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