The questions will be read by the Most Reverend James Van Johnston, Bishop of Springfield-Cape Girardeau, the most recently consecrated bishop in the United States; and the Most Reverend Daniel Pilarczyk [Pope Benedict nods, smiles, and gestures with his left hand, and Pilarczyk smiles back], Archbishop of Cincinnati, the longest-serving active bishop in the United States, and a former president of our conference; and the Most Reverend Basil Schott, O.F.M., Metropolitan Archbishop of the Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh, chair of the Eastern Catholic bishops of the United States.

James Van Johnston: Holy Father, one of the great challenges in our industrialized and materialistic society is to help people of all ages and walks of life to meet and respond to the person of Jesus Christ, a concern that has been central to your pontificate. In a particular way, many people, especially the young, are demonstrating a desire for values and a way of living that is less focused on material things and more centered on values of community and the human person. Still, there are great challenges to this lived encounter with Jesus. Our increasingly secularized society in some ways manifests a form of popular atheism, in which prestige and respect are often accorded to those who acquire power and material goods, whereas encouragement and support in society are often witheld from those who embrace authentic Christian values. Could you give us your assessment of the challenges of increasing secularism in public life and relativism in intellectual life, and your advice on how to confront these challenges pastorally and evangelize more effectively.

Pope Benedict: Thank you, Excellency. [Speaking extemporaneously] Really, in the visit of the bishops in other parts of the world, I always find that secularism is one of the greatest challenges of our time. Secularism is present also in other parts of the world, in Africa, in Asia, in Europe, in America, in Australia, even present in different forms. It’s different, the secularism in America, from the secularism in Europe. You have another history, and in America, secularism was born in a peaceful way with religion, for the favor of religious life. In the American Revolution, this was a different way of secularism as in the French Revolution. And this makes understand why, perhaps, why the American people is a religious people, because always the secularism, the secularism of the state was in the favor of the religious life of the people. So America can count to a deeply religious life of the people, but, from the other hand, there are new problems also, and [begins reading the prepared text] this is not enough to count on this traditional religiosity. A serious commitment to evangelization cannot prescind from a profound diagnosis of the real challenges the Gospel in this moment of your history, a moment of the contemporary American culture.

So, what is essential, I think, is a correct understanding of the just autonomy of the secular order, as speaks the Vatican Council in Gaudium et Spes, an autonomy which cannot be divorced from God the Creator and his saving plan. Perhaps, I think, America’s brand of secularism poses a particular, special problem: it allows for professing belief in God, as I said, and respects the public role of religion and the Churches, but at the same time it can subtly reduce religious belief to a lowest common denominator. Faith can become a passive acceptance that certain things “out there” are true, but without a practical relevance for everyday life. The result woud be a growing separation of faith from life, as I said in my discourse: living “as if God did not exist” after the Sunday Mass. This is aggravated by an individualistic and eclectic approach to faith and religion: far from a Catholic approach to “thinking with the Church”, many persons believes he or she has a right to pick and choose, maintaining external social bonds but without an integral, interior conversion to the law of Christ and the life in the community of the Church. Consequently, rather than being transformed and renewed in mind, Christians are in all the parts of the world easily tempted to conform themselves to the spirit of this age. We have seen this emerge in an acute way in the scandal given by Catholics who promote an alleged right to abortion.

On a deeper level, secularism challenges the Church to reaffirm and to pursue more actively her mission in and to the world. As the Council made clear, the lay faithful have a particular responsibility in this regard. What is needed, I am convinced, is a greater sense of the intrinsic relationship between the Gospel and the natural law on the one hand, and, on the other, the pursuit of authentic human good, as embodied in civil law and in personal moral decisions. In a society that rightly values personal liberty, the Church needs to promote, at every level of her teaching, an apologetics aimed at affirming the truth of Christian revelation, the harmony of faith and reason, and a sound understanding of what is freedom, seen in positive terms as a liberation both from the limitations of sin and for an authentic fulfilling of life. In a word, the Gospel must be preached and taught as an integral way of life, offering an attractive and true answer, intellectually and practically, to real human problems. The “dictatorship of relativism”, in the end, is nothing less than a threat to genuine human freedom, which only matures in generosity and fidelity to truth.

Let me conclude, by saying that I believe that the Church in America, at this point in her history, is faced with the challenge of recapturing the Catholic vision of reality and presenting it, in an engaging and imaginative way, to a society which markets any number of recipes for human fulfillment. I think in particular of our need to speak to the hearts of the young people, who, despite their constant exposure to messages contrary to the Gospel, continue to thirst for authenticity, goodness and truth, I am sure. Much remains to be done, particularly on the level of preaching and catechesis in parishes and schools, if the new evangelization is to bear fruit for the renewal of ecclesial life in America. [Speaking extemporaneously in the next sentence.] But I see much is also done and I thank you very much for what you do for catechesis and evangelization. Thank you.

Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk: Holy Father, a growing problem in the church in the United States and perhaps elsewhere is a certain quiet attrition that is increasing. Because of an excessive emphasis on individualism, even in religion, and because of scandals in the church, many of the faithful are abandoning the practice of the faith. Sometimes this is done with an explicit decision; oftentimes, however, it is brought about by a quiet and gradual cessation of attendance at Mass and of identification with the church. Could you comment on this phenomenon, Holy Father, and could you give us any advice about how to deal with this problem? Thank you.

Pope Benedict: Thank you, Excellency. I remember well our meetings in past times. We had interesting discussions [bishops laugh], and so I thank you especially [Benedict laughs] for this question.

It is clear, much of this has to do with the passing away of religious culture, sometimes disparagingly referred to as a “ghetto”, which reinforced participation and identification with the Church. As I just mentioned, one of the great challenges facing the Church in this country—not only this country—is that of cultivating a Catholic identity which is based not so much on externals as on a way of thinking and acting grounded in the Gospel and enriched by the Church’s living tradition.

The issue clearly involves factors such as religious individualism and scandal. Let us go to the heart of the matter: faith cannot survive unless it is nourished, unless it is “formed by charity”. Do people today find it difficult to encounter God in our Churches? Has our preaching lost its salt? Might it be that many people have forgotten, or never really learned, how to pray in and with the Church?

Here I am not speaking of people who leave the Church in search of subjective religious “experience”; this is a pastoral issue which must be addressed on its own terms. I think we are speaking about people who have fallen by the wayside without consciously having rejected their faith in Christ, but, for whatever reason, have not drawn life from the liturgy, the sacraments, preaching. Yet Christian faith, as we know, is essentially ecclesial, and without a living bond to the community, the individual’s faith will never grow to maturity. Indeed, to return to the question I just discussed, the result can be a quiet apostasy.

So I will make two brief observations on the question of “attrition”, which I hope can stimulate further reflection.

First, as you know, it is becoming more and more difficult, in our Western societies, to speak in a meaningful way of “salvation”. [Benedict departs from his prepared text in the next sentence.] All the classical concepts of Christianity—salvation, sin, freedom, new life in Christ—are not yet understood, really, and we need to redefine, to give a new signification to all these essential words of the Christian life, to rediscover this for our people, for ourselves. We need to discover, as I have suggested, new and engaging ways of proclaiming this message and awakening a thirst for the fulfillment which only Christ can bring. I think it is in the Church’s liturgy, and above all in the sacrament of the Eucharist, that these realities are most powerfully expressed and lived in the life of believers; perhaps we still have much to do in realizing the Council’s vision of the liturgy as the exercise of the common priesthood and the impetus for a fruitful apostolate in the world.

Second, we need to acknowledge with concern the almost complete eclipse of an eschatological sense in many of our traditionally Christian societies. As you know, I have pointed out to this problem in the Encyclical Spe Salvi. In the moment, suffice it to say that faith and hope are not limited to this world: as theological virtues, they unite us with the Lord and draw us toward the fulfillment not only of our personal destiny but also that of all creation. Faith and hope are the inspiration and basis of our efforts to prepare for the coming of the Kingdom of God. In Christianity, there can be no room for purely private religion: Christ is the Savior of the world, and, as members of his Body and sharers in his prophetic, priestly and royal munera, we cannot separate our love for him from our commitment to the building up of the Church, and with the Church, the extension of his Kingdom. To the extent that religion becomes a purely private affair, only for the Sunday, it loses its very soul.

Let me conclude by stating the observations [apparently a misreading of the word “obvious”]. The fields are still ripe for harvesting; God continues to give the growth. We can believe, even in our time, with the difficulties of our time, with the late Pope John [Paul] II, that God in all times and so also in our time can prepare and is preparing a new springtime for the faith, for the Church, for Christianity. What is needed above all, at this time in the history of the Church in America and in the world, is a renewal of that apostolic zeal which inspires her shepherds actively to seek out the lost, to bind up those who have been wounded, and to bring strength to those who are languishing. And this calls for new ways of thinking based on a sound diagnosis of today’s challenges and a commitment to unity in the service of the Church’s mission to the present generation. Thank you.

Archbishop Basil Schott: Holy Father, a source of great concern to us is the need for more vocations to the ordained priesthood in our dioceses and eparchies. As in so many Western countries, the number of young men entering the seminary is smaller than it was several decades ago. This is taking place even as the number of baptized Catholics is statistically expanding. There is a general perception, however, that the personal qualities and the desire for holiness, demonstrated by many of those who are coming forward today, give reason for hope. Could you comment on this phenomenon of fewer priestly vocations and give us the benefit of your experience and advice? Thank you.

Pope Benedict: Thank you, Excellency. Let us be quite frank: the ability to cultivate vocations to the priesthood and the religious life is a sure sign of the health of a local Church. There is no room for complacency in this regard. God continues to call young people; it is up to all of us to encourage a generous and free response to that call. On the other hand, none of us can take this grace for granted. [Departing from the prepared text in the next two sentences.] For me it is always alarming that Jesus tells us to pray, all the times to pray that the lord of the harvest will send workers. Only the Lord can give the workers, and always have to pray that he give us the workers. He even admits that the workers are few in comparison with the abundance of the harvest—not only in our time. Strange to say, I often think that prayer—the unum necessarium—is the one aspect of vocations work which we tend to forget sometimes or to undervalue!

Nor am I speaking only of prayer for vocations. Prayer itself, born in Catholic families, nurtured by programs of Christian formation, strengthened by the grace of the sacraments, prayer is the first means by which we come to know the Lord’s will for our lives. To the extent that we teach young people to pray, and to pray well, we will be cooperating with God’s call. So I think, learning prayer, be prayerful people, is an essential point for the living Church. Programs, plans, projects have their place; but the discernment of a vocation above all is the fruit of an intimate dialogue between the Lord and his disciples. Young people, if they know how to pray, can be trusted to know what to do with God’s call.

I think there is a growing thirst for holiness in many young people, and that those who come forward show great idealism, much promise. It is important to listen to them, to understand their experiences, and to encourage them to help their peers to see the need for committed priests and religious, as well as the beauty of a life of sacrificial service to the Lord and his Church. To said—it is beautiful to have sacrificial service, to do it for the Lord and His Church. To my mind, much is demanded of vocation directors and formators: candidates today, as much as ever, need to be given a sound—not only supernatural, but—intellectual and human formation which will enable them not only to respond to the real questions and needs of their contemporaries, but also to mature in their own conversion and to persevere in life-long commitment to their vocation. As Bishops, you are conscious of the sacrifice demanded when you are asked to release one of your finest priests for seminary work. But I urge you to respond with generosity, for the good of the whole Church.

And finally, you know from experience that most of your brother priests are happy in their vocation. What I said in my address about the importance of unity and cooperation within the presbyterate applies here too. There is a need for all of us to move beyond sterile divisions, disagreements and preconceptions, and to listen together to the voice of the Spirit who is guiding the Church into a future of hope. Each of us knows how important priestly fraternity has been in our lives. That fraternity is not only a precious possession, but also an immense resource for the renewal of the priesthood and the raising up of new vocations. I would close by encouraging you to foster opportunities for ever greater dialogue and fraternal encounter among your priests, and especially the younger priests. I am convinced that this will bear great fruit for their own enrichment, for the increase of their love for the priesthood and the Church, and for the effectiveness of their apostolate. Thank you very much.

Cardinal George: Thank you, Holy Father. We’re all very aware that today is your eighty-first birthday. You learned this morning that even the school children in the Archdiocese of Washington under the coaching of Archbishop Wuerl, sing in German.

Pope Benedict: [Laughing] And Latin!

Cardinal George: And Latin as well, yes. [Bishops laugh.] And at the White House this morning, on the lawn, before the choir could sing, the people sang Happy Birthday to you. And along the route, many people had signs in German and Italian and Spanish and in English, wishing you a happy birthday. And we ourselves had a chance, when we had lunch with you this afternoon, to wish you a Happy Birthday. Those of us here and those who may be watching at this moment are privileged to be sharing a part of this day with you. And honoring the gift of your life, we, the bishops and the faithful of the United States, would also like to honor your ministry. Your first encyclical reminded us that God is love, and we express that love most especially in our concern for those who are in need, knowing that Jesus said, “Whatever you do for one of these least brothers of mine, you do for me.” We know that one of the great tasks of your ministry is caring for these least brothers and sisters around the entire world. Therefore I’d like to present to you in celebration of your birthday this gift of $870,000. It represents the offerings of the faithful, gathered in the last several weeks from dioceses throughout the United States to assist the charitable works that you undertake. Holy Father, from the faithful and from the bishops of the United States, Happy Birthday. [Benedict stands up and embraces Cardinal George. The bishops applaud.]

Pope Benedict: I have received so many gifts from you, I have sensed the generosity of the American Catholics, of the American Church. Now I have a small gift for the Shrine, it’s a golden rose for our Mother Mary [gesturing toward the gift].

Pope Benedict: And a second and special gift, before leaving, I would like to acknowledge the immense suffering of the people of God in the Archdiocese of New Orleans as a result of Hurricane Katrina, as well as their courage in the challenging work of rebuilding. I would like to present Archbishop Alfred Hughes with a chalice which I hope will be accepted as a sign of my prayer solidarity with the faithful of the Archdiocese, and my personal gratitude for the tireless devotion which he, and Archbishops Philip Hannan and Francis Schulte showed towards the flock entrusted to their care. This will be my gift for them. [Pope Benedict gives the chalice to Archbishop Hughes.]

[Pope Benedict chants the papal blessing in Latin and the bishops chant in response.]