A sign of “strengthening and encouragement” towards the German Church, which is experiencing a “difficult time”.
This is the hope expressed by the Chairman of the German Episcopal Conference and Archbishop of Freiburg, Robert Zollitsch, on occasion of Benedict XVI’s first official visit in his native country, which will take place from September 22 to 25.
This visit is “timely to boost the morale of our brothers and sisters in Germany,” says Zollitsch during a press conference in Berlin.
The Chairman of the German Bishops rejected criticism surrounding the costs associated with the Papal visit, which the German Church estimates to be between 25 and 30 million Euros, as announced by the Trip Coordinator, father Hans Langendörfer.
3.5 million Euros will be spent in Berlin alone and 400,000 Euros were invested in the altar from which Benedict XVI will celebrate Mass at the Olympic Stadium.
Security costs should be added to these figures, but they will be handled by the Federal Republic of Germany since the Pope will be in Germany on an official visit under the invitation of the German President, Christian Wulff.
The costs for the Catholic Church are justifiable since “a celebration of faith that involves approximately 250,000 attendees over five different events in four days does cost money,” Zollitsch said.
“We will not cut off funds to Third World countries because of the Pope's visit to Germany,” he added as he announced the creation of a special “Benedict-fund” to help people affected by famine in the Horn of Africa. On the size of the fund, which will not be based solely on donations, Zollitsch would not comment, “We do not have a specific figure, yet.”
The Chairman of the German Episcopal Conference then spoke about the planned protests that will take place both inside and outside the Bundestag on occasion of the Pope's speech before German members of Parliament, which is scheduled for Sept. 22.
“I am sorry about the protests, but the Pope will not be swayed,” he said. In Berlin, Pope Benedict XVI’s participation at the Bundestag is seen as “problematic” by some, but we face the protests “with serenity since we live in a country where free speech is paramount,” Rainer Maria Woelk, Archbishop of the German capital, said.
“However, it would be better to listen to what the Pope has to say before criticizing him”, he added. “What we deem important is that demonstrations remain peaceful and that no clashes occur, as it occurred in Spain,” said Langendörfer, meeting with the foreign press in Berlin.
Concerning the content of the speech at the Bundestag, Zollitsch offered a few probable topics: the concept of Europe and Germany’s role as an engine for European integration and the relationship between State and religion.
However, it is unlikely that the visit will address one of the most sensitive topics in Germany: the exclusion of divorcees from Communion.
“We still need to discuss it. We do not want to postpone it indefinitely, but we need time to resolve it effectively,” Zollitsch said during an interview on September 7 to the newspaper Die Welt.
It is still unclear whether the Pope will meet with some of the victims of sexual abuse by priests and clergy, an issue that over the past year polarized the attention of the Catholic world and not just in Germany.
“On occasion of past visits, very discreet meetings with victims took place; thus it is likely that this will occur also in Germany, but no official notification is available at this time,” Langendörfer said.
He also revealed a behind the scene that raised interest in Germany: the meeting between the Pope and former Christian Democrat Chancellor Helmut Kohl.
“It was the Pope who, right at the beginning of the preparations for the visit, expressed the wish to meet with Kohl,” Langendörfer said.
There is a total of five public events planned in Berlin, Thuringia (East Germany) and Freiburg, to which approximately 245,000 people will attend. More than 70,000 will attend the events at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin, which is expected to be full.
Approximately 6,000 people will arrive from abroad, with French being the most numerous, about 2,500 faithful who will travel mostly to Freiburg, followed by Poles (1,800 who will attend mostly the events in Berlin) and Italian (1,200 the majority travelling to Freiburg, some to Berlin and only a few to Thuringia).
The visit will see 620 km of cables rolled out and 7,500 light bulbs mounted.
There are also 2,500 hosts ready for the Mass.