My responses would generally just be reiterations of what Tim has already very eloquently said, so I won’t detract from his post by paraphrasing most of it.
I don’t know, but I’m guessing you spent some time in Italy and Germany?
Not in Italy. That’ll be a year from now, and I’ll spend two semesters there with greatest delight in that paradiso sulla terra.
But I did have a few weeks in Germany. Still, as I’ve lately told Episcopus, you can get good at any language simply by employing common phrases in your daily speech, or even lyrics from songs and the like. That’s one of the reasons I attempted to translate those first verses of well known Christmas songs into Latin, a means of connecting deeply rooted emotional experiences like singing Christmas songs with the Latin language. (I understand your stygma with the Catholic Church, of course, which is one of the many reasons that no composition based on the Catholic mass would ever do.)
Where does one go, to speak Latin? To the Vatican? Should I sneak into the papal cafeteria and hang out with the Bishops while they > eat their pasta> ?
Ooh! that was a low blow. It’s a good thing we Italians have such a good sense of humor about ourselves, otherwise I might have been offended by that remark. 
Don’t forget that a great majority of those Bishops, much like the Pope himself, are not Italian, but from other nations. And yes, they will use Latin as a common tongue, I’m certain. They have to pass rigorous tests in order to reach such a high station, so there is no reason why they would not like to excercise those skills.
We have to face the facts: aside from the Vatican, there is no community of Latin speakers which learners can join.
looks around amongst his fellow Textkitians
I disagree.
The Vatican doesn’t really count, because it’s not an ordinary community, it’s a very specific subculture which is not open to outsiders.
So was China for a good thirty years. Does that mean no one but the Taiwanese counted as true Chinese speakers for all that time?
I am not opposed to learning to speak Latin.
No offense, but it sure sounds like it:
Some people who study Latin have no intention of attempting to master it.
Well that’s a pretty defeatest attitude. Why start doing something only to be mediocre at it? Why learn a lingua if you’re never going to use your lingua for it? Why study a loquella if you can’t be locutus of it?
I would encourage anyone who is learning to passively read Latin to continue to do so, and not be discouraged by anyone who is poo-pooing you just because you haven’t attempted to speak it.
Heh, I feel pretty certain I’m one of barely the few dozen people in modern times who has actually consistantly harrangued others for not speaking Latin.
Don’t give up! You are certainly not wasting your time.
But you are depriving yourself.
It’s clear you have very strong feelings about this.
Vere.
Are you a Latin teacher?
Not yet, but I’ve certainly considered it. I’m a sophomore in college.
I’m curious to know if you have a plan of action. What books do you use, when guiding students to speak Latin? Can you suggest a Latin phrasebook?
In addition to others above supplied, here is one which Tim has also made note of:
http://linguaeterna.com/la/conv.php
Would you be willing to write a book like this? I mean, a Latin instruction book aimed at speaking Latin, rather than passive reading?
I’m asking this partly for selfish reasons, because I wanna learn to speak Latin someday, and I’m wondering how to go about it.
If you ever decide to teach a course in spoken Latin, let me know, I will sign up as an eager student.
You flatter me, friend! Well, certainly, if wherever that will be is near, you’re welcome to join such a class of mine. In any case, the materials cited above by the others I think are quite effective. But when it comes to speaking Latin, great challenge as it certainly might be, allow me to quote the very apt words of a well-known friend of ours: “Don’t give up! You are certainly not wasting your time.” I quote you not to be ironic, but in fact to agree with you: learning any Latin at all is beneficial. I guess beggers can’t be choosers. 