A Polish pilgrimage to Berlin - 100 zlotys to see the pope

By Eva Krafczyk Sep 21, 2011, 4:06 GMT

Warsaw - Catholic pilgrims from parts of Poland are getting ready for trips to neighbouring Germany this week to see Pope Benedict XVI and hear him celebrate mass in Berlin's historic Olympic Stadium.

The tours are most popular in western dioceses such as Wroclaw and Opole, which are only a few hours from Berlin by road.

An express bus pilgrimage to the papal mass in Berlin with immediate return the same night to Poland costs 100 zlotys (35 dollars) on average. Other communities are planning overnight trips, with sightseeing in the city, for 300 zlotys.

Exact numbers of how many Polish pilgrims are going are not yet available.

For decades, news that the pope was coming has always stirred up a lot of emotion in Poland. But there is less euphoria this time.

Some people have not even heard about the visit.

'The pope is coming to Germany? When?' asks Warsaw resident Joanna Chmielewska, her voice more surprised than curious.

'I haven't heard anything about this in my church community, and as far as I know, no pilgrimage has been organized to see the pope.'

The travellers will include the head of the Catholic Church of Poland, Archbishop of Gniezno Jozef Kowalczyk, and other bishops.

Some Catholic broadcasters and web forums are also advertising the papal visit.

Antoni Szczepanski from the spa town Sopot will make his way to Berlin.

'The pope needs us,' the 65-year-old says. 'Germans are not so involved with the church, and should that big sports stadium have empty rows everywhere - oh no, there really should be some reinforcements from Poland. Otherwise, how would that look!'

Marta Titaniec from Warsaw is organizing a student pilgrimage to Berlin in conjunction with a centre for religious dialogue in Oswiecim.

'Up to now, the number of participants has been significantly smaller than we expected,' she admits with a certain embarrassment, seeking an explanation.

'Many students are still on vacation. And, well, Polish people still have to get used to the fact that the pope is no longer Polish. He isn't quite our pope, not like John Paul II,' she says.

However, Benedict was welcomed with open arms during his visit to Poland in the footsteps of his late predecessor in the summer of 2006. Polish believers also appreciated his quick decision to beatify Karol Wojtyla.

But times have changed since the Polish pope, on his first visit home, called for 'the renewal of the Earth - this Earth!'

It was the middle of the Cold War.

Poland has now been both a European Union and NATO member for a long time, and the number of regular churchgoers is decreasing, especially in urban areas.

The numerous monuments and large portraits of John Paul II in many Polish cities cannot hide the fact that the country's Catholic church is facing new challenges.

It is no longer fighting against a communist state, but against ever-growing indifference in a more open and secular society.

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