Prince Charles has called for the UK to rediscover a "sense of the sacred" on BBC Radio 4's first Thought for the Day of the new millennium.

He said he hoped that "in the midst of all the celebration and the hype" the turn of the century would provide "a sacred moment of reflection".

The Prince of Wales, who spent millennium eve quietly at Highgrove with his companion Camilla Parker-Bowles, revealed the strength of his personal faith in his 10-minute broadcast, calling for a renewal of hope and wonder in an age of secularism.

"The millennium allows us to abandon poles of blind optimism on one hand and total despair on the other, and to rediscover a much older emotion - hope," he said.

"In an era in which we are tempted to believe science knows nearly all the answers, it is instructive to recall Einstein understood the connection between wonder and the sacred."

'Harmony of opposites'

The Prince said it was important to create harmony out of opposites, and reminded his listeners that human rationality had limits.

"In an age of secularism I hope with all my heart in a new millennium we will rediscover a sense of the sacred in all that surrounds us," he said.

He said he hoped this would hold true whether in growing crops, raising livestock, building homes in the countryside, treating disease or educating the young.

The Prince is publicly opposed to genetically modified food, and has given his support to the British beef industry as it recovers from the BSE crisis.