France needs a "positive laïcité" that acknowledges the value of religion and encourages believers to be active in public life, President Nicolas Sarkozy said in a provocative speech during a visit to Rome late last month, writes Tom Heneghan. The modern French republic emphasises the importance of secularism in the political sphere. 

Mr Sarkozy, who was in Rome to meet Pope Benedict XVI and be invested as honorary canon of the Basilica of St John Lateran, broke a longstanding French political taboo by praising religion for giving meaning and hope to modern society. His speech garnered praise from Cardinal André Vingt-Trois, the Archbishop of Paris, and protests from opposition politicians, who accused him of "confusing religion and politics".

"We need the contribution of the Catholic Church as well as that of other great religious and spiritual movements to enlighten our choices and build our future," Mr Sarkozy said.