Pope: Fall of Communism Proved Man Needs God

Ending his first trip to the Czech Republic, Pope Benedict XVI declared Monday that communism's end was "proof that God cannot be excluded from public life," Reutersreports. The country celebrated the 20th anniversary ofVelvet Revolution, which ended decades of communist rule, during the pope's visit. The pope reminded the crowd of 50,000 young people "of powerful figures who had apparently risen to almost unattainable heights" but suddenly "found themselves stripped of their power." Speaking on St. Wenceslas's feast day, a national holiday, he continued, "Today there is a need for believers with credibility, who are ready to spread in every area of society the Christian principles and ideals by which their action is inspired." The country has one of the lowest proportions of religious people in the world, according to Reuters.