Benedict XVI. did not have too good an impression of the country "down under" shortly after his election as pope. The big churches are in danger of dying out, especially in Australia, he said during a speech to Italian priests in 2005. This trend can also be seen in Europe, but less so in the USA. Quite possibly, Australia's top Catholic, Cardinal George Pell, had the pope's support during the Catholic World Youth Day in Sydney on 12. to 21. July wants to convince of the opposite.
But so far, local enthusiasm has been limited – and not only among Sydney residents, who have been advised by World Youth Day organizers not to go outside because of the expected traffic chaos. In addition, there are new negative headlines and outraged letters to the editor in the media every day. "Waste of taxpayers' money" is the most common accusation.In fact, the government's support is generous.While around 15 percent of the total costs of the last World Youth Day in Cologne were covered by public funds, Australian taxpayers will have to pay a lot more: the contribution from the state of New South Wales alone amounts to well over 100 million dollars, and the Australian government is contributing another 55 million dollars.Government spokespersons calculate a revenue of 150 million dollars for the state of New South Wales, but there is no evidence for it. And money is far from the only point of contention: since 1.In July, tightened security regulations came into force, giving police officers the right to search and arrest passers-by if their behavior disturbs pilgrims.Initially, it was said that even wearing provocative T-shirts and handing out condoms fell into this category – civil rights activists ran amok.In the meantime, the state government has rowed back somewhat and ared that the planned protests by lesbian and gay organizations, atheists and victims of sexual abuse by priests will take place without restriction.Given this negative sentiment, Australia does indeed appear to be a stronghold of secularism. Population statistics from 2006 show that the percentage of non-believers in the country has risen sharply. It now stands at 19 percent, as high as the percentage of the Anglican Church.Catholics made up the largest group at 26 percent. 100 years ago, the religious map of Australia looked very different: The population was mainly of English origin and Protestant. In this legacy, Catholic historian Paul Collins also sees the reason for the often harsh attacks against Catholics. "This is where a vicious anti-Catholic streak in our national psyche is revealed. Many people think it's okay to trample on Catholics. And since Catholics are not an oppressed minority in Australia, they are putting up a good front."Since World War II and subsequent immigration policies, Australian society has become much more diverse. Christians now make up only 64 percent of the vote. Moreover, if you look at the research findings on the religious attitudes of Australia's youth, you might well agree with the pope.According to the study "The Spirit of Generation Y" (2003-2006), only just under half of those born between 1981 and 1995 still believe in God. The proportion of purely secular youth in Australia is 28 percent.Only just under one in ten is still convinced that there is a single, true religion. Cardinal Pell concluded that this trend was moving beyond tolerance and ecumenism and toward confusion. He hopes that the World Youth Day will not only lead to a general strengthening of faith, but also to a measurable increase in the number of seminarians. Because priest shortage is one of the most pressing problems of the Catholic Church in Australia.But World Youth Day is unlikely to do much about that, according to Paul Collins. Collins does not believe that religiosity no longer has a place in Australia. "Australians simply think they are not religious because they ame that to be so, you have to behave like Catholics in the U.S."What impression Pope Benedict will gain from Australian Catholics remains to be seen.