Pope Benedict XVI is due to arrive on 16 September for a four-day visit Almost 70% of British Catholics expect the Pope’s visit to help the Catholic Church in the UK, a BBC poll suggests.
But the survey suggests they are less keen about some of his teaching.
Half of those questioned felt priests should no longer have to be celibate, and almost two-thirds thought women should have more authority and status.
And 52% of the 500 Catholics surveyed ahead of the Pope’s visit on Thursday said the sex abuse scandal had shaken their faith in the Church’s leadership.
The poll conducted by ComRes – a member of the British Polling Council – surveyed a random sample of 500 Roman Catholics across the UK between 6 and 9 September 2010.
Commenting on the results, Andrew Hawkins, ComRes chairman, said: “Overall there is a sense of strong support for the Pope’s visit but disquiet both about some aspects of Papal teaching and the perception of the Catholic Church in wider society having been harmed.”
In response to the question, “Do you feel your Catholic faith is generally valued by British society today, or not?” 57% answered that it was “not valued” compared with 30% who said it was, and 13% who said they did not know.
The poll results also suggest that a large number of Catholics think that the Pope should drop his insistence on clerical celibacy. Just under a half of those polled, 49%, said the celibacy rule should be relaxed, compared to 35%. A further 17% were uncommitted.
And 62% of those questioned say women should have more authority and status in the Catholic Church.
“Interestingly, the scores for men and women are exactly identical although older generations are least inclined to agree,” Mr Hawkins said.
The BBC’s religious affairs correspondent Robert Pigott said the findings seemed to reveal some of the tensions between a Church anxious to preserve ancient traditions, and a secular society that finds them increasingly hard to understand.
Pope Benedict XVI is due to arrive on 16 September for a four-day visit, which has already sparked controversy over its cost and relevance.
On this first visit by a pope to the UK since John Paul II in 1982, the pontiff will go to Edinburgh, Glasgow, London and Birmingham.
A series of sex abuse scandals have rocked the Catholic Church around the world in recent years, with the Church further accused of maintaining a culture of secrecy.
Pope Benedict’s supporters say he has been the most proactive Pope yet in confronting abuse.
Earlier this year he apologised to victims of child sex abuse by Catholic priests in Ireland, and later went on to promise “action” over child abuse by priests.
But some survivors say they still carry the psychological scars and that the Church should do more to fulfil its duty to them.
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