Italy professes to be a Catholic nation - but a majority of Italians do not know "even the most basic facts" about the Bible, according to a survey.

The international poll, conducted by Eurisko for the Catholic Biblical Federation, showed that in Italy only 14 per cent of those questioned were able to answer a series of questions about the Bible correctly. They included whether Moses or St Paul featured in the Old Testament, whether Jesus had written any of the Gospels, and whether the Gospels form part of the Bible. Another question which defeated most Italians was: which of the following - Luke, John, Peter and Paul - wrote the Gospels?

Among the respondents 88 per cent of Italians described themselves as Roman Catholics, three quarters said they kept a Bible in their home, and 79 per cent said they felt their lives were "protected by God". But only 32 per cent described themselves as "regular churchgoers", and only 28 per cent thought the Bible should be taught in schools.

Whereas in the US 75 per cent of Americans claim to have read a Bible passage recently, in Italy the figure is 27 per cent. Vatican officials said the survey, co-ordinated by Luca Diotallevi, a Rome University sociologist, offered "food for thought" for the Synod Bishops in Rome this autumn on the Word Of God, where its implications would be discussed.

"In the beginning was the Word - but the Italians don't read it" said La Stampa. Monsignor Vincenzo Paglia, Bishop of Terni and head of the Catholic Biblical Federation in Italy, said the findings "offer a challenge to which we must respond".

Professor Diotallevi said the results reflected the "growings secularisation" of Western society.

Monsignor Gianfranco Ravasi, head of the pontifical Council for Culture, said it was a pity the survey had not included the Vatican itself, where "it might well have produced some surprising results".

The XII Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, to be held from 5-26 October and presided over by Pope Benedict XVI, has as its the theme "The Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church".