A couple of weeks prior to the Pope's visit to Slovakia, Archbishop Ján Sokol has said that there is a conspiracy against the Catholic Church. Sokol perceives antagonism towards Pope John Paul II within Slovak society, the daily SME writes.
According to Sokol, the conspiracy will only deepen and cause more damage than the elimination of religion that was evidenced during the communist regime.
The state will contribute Sk80 million (€1.9 million) to the papal visit. However, media comments about this being an exorbitant cost for the visit have triggered Sokol's alarm.
The Christian Democratic Movement's (KDH) Pavol Minárik has confirmed that no other official visit by a leader has been surrounded by such intense debate about its costs.
Compiled by Beata Balogová from press reports
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