Papal Critique

Pope Benedict XVI recently said this to a group of American bishops: “Any tendency to treat religion as a private matter must be resisted . . . To the extent that religion becomes a purely private affair, it loses its very soul.”

This strikes me as a critique of the American church for failing to speak up within the arena of American politics, particularly as US foreign policy is increasingly perceived as overly militaristic and arrogant. What do you think? Is “private” Christianity a soulless exercise? If so, what does “public” Christianity look like?