SHOTLIST 1. Pope Benedict XVI on board plane on his way to France, priest speaking into microphone, journalists seated 2. SOUNDBITE: (French) Pope Benedict XVI (answering question about France being a secular state) "It seems obvious to me that today secularism in itself is not necessarily in contradiction with faith. I would even say it is a result of the faith because Christian faith has been since the beginning a universal religion, so not identifiable with a state, and present in every state and different from the states. So for the Christians it was always clear that religion and faith are not part of politics but in another sphere of human life. And as far as politics is concerned, the state is not a religion but a secular reality with a specific mission." 3. Cutaway wide shot Pope as priest speaks 4. SOUNDBITE: (French) Pope Benedict XVI: "I wouldn't dare to say I know France well. I know it a bit. But I love France, the great French culture, especially of course the big cathedrals and also the great French art." 5. Pan from journalists on board to Pope 6. SOUNDBITE: (French) Pope Benedict XVI (answering question about his forthcoming visit to Lourdes) "The day of the feast of Saint Bernadette is also the day of my birth so because of that I feel very close to this little saint, to this little girl, young, pure, humble, with whom our Virgin Mary has spoken. So for me experiencing this reality, this presence of the Virgin Mary, to see the traces of this little girl who was a friend of the Virgin, and to see the Virgin, the mother, is a very important event. Of course we will not find miracles. I want to find the love of the mother which is the real cure for all disease, all the pains and I want to stick together with all the people who are suffering, in the love of the mother. That seems to me very important for our epoch." 7. Pope hands back microphone to priest, turns and walks away down aisle of plane STORYLINE: Pope Benedict XVI spoke to journalists who were travelling with him on the plane from Rome to Paris on Friday morning, where he was heading for a four-day trip - his first to France as pontiff - that will take him from the presidential Elysee Palace in Paris to the Roman Catholic shrine in Lourdes. On the plane, Benedict was asked about France's long tradition of separating church and state, and said that secularism "in itself is not necessarily in contradiction with faith." "I would even say it is a result of the faith," he went on, "because Christian faith has been since the beginning a universal religion so not identifiable with a state, and present in every state and different from the states. So for the Christians it was always clear that religion and faith are not part of politics but in an other sphere of human life." But politics and religion must be open to each other he added. Benedict said he was very excited about his forthcoming visit to the Lourdes, because Saint Bernadette, which the shrine honours, shares her feast day with the Pontiff's birthday. "Because of that I feel very close to this little saint, to this little girl, young, pure, humble, with whom our Virgin Mary has spoken. So for me experiencing this reality, this presence of the Virgin Mary, to see the traces of this little girl who was a friend of the Virgin, and to see the Virgin, the mother (Mary), is a very important event." Benedict was greeted by President Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, at a Paris airport, and later in Paris, the pope was due to address a gathering including Muslim leaders. Traditionally Roman Catholic France is wrestling with its changing religious landscape, and how to reconcile it with the secularism that underpins the modern French Republic. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/467471b6f18da540e0ae4f4f089225a3 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork

• published: 21 Jul 2015
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