Pope Leo joins Eastern and Western patriarchs in Turkey to pray for Christian unity

Pope Leo XIV joined Eastern and Western patriarchs and priests Friday successful commemorating an important day successful Christian history, gathering astatine the tract successful Turkey of an unprecedented A.D. 325 meeting of bishops to commune that Christians mightiness erstwhile again beryllium united.

Leo, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I and different Christian leaders met connected the shores of Lake Iznik, the tract of the Council of Nicaea that produced a creed, oregon connection of faith, that is inactive recited by millions of Christians today.

Standing implicit the ruins of the site, the men recited the creed, which Leo said was "of cardinal value successful the travel that Christians are making toward afloat communion."

"In this way, we are each invited to flooded the ungraded of the divisions that unluckily inactive beryllium and to nurture the tendency for unity for which the Lord Jesus prayed and gave his life," helium said.

The supplication marked the item of Leo’s sojourn to Turkey and the main crushed for his trip, the archetypal of his pontificate.

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Religious leaders pb an Ecumenical supplication work adjacent the archaeological excavations of the past Basilica of Saint Neophytos successful Iznik, Turkey, connected Nov. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis)

A important infinitesimal successful Christianity

The Nicaea gathering took spot astatine a clip erstwhile the Eastern and Western churches were inactive united. They divided successful the Great Schism of 1054, a disagreement precipitated mostly by disagreements implicit the primacy of the pope. But adjacent today, Catholic, Orthodox and astir historical Protestant groups judge the Nicaean Creed, making it a constituent of statement and the astir wide accepted creed successful Christendom.

As a result, celebrating its origins astatine the tract of its instauration with the spiritual leaders of the Catholic and Orthodox churches and different Christian representatives marked a historical infinitesimal successful the centuries-old quest to reunite each Christians. 

"The Nicene Creed acts similar a effect for the full of our Christian existence. It is simply a awesome not of a bare minimum; it is simply a awesome of the whole," said Bartholomew, spiritual person of the world’s Orthodox Christians.

At the commencement of the supplication service, helium told the men they were gathering not conscionable to retrieve the past. 

"We are present to carnivore surviving witnesser to the aforesaid religion expressed by the fathers of Nicaea. We instrumentality to this wellspring of the Christian religion successful bid to determination forward," helium said.

A supplication for unity

Roman Emperor Constantine had convened the gathering of bishops from astir the Roman Empire aft helium had consolidated power pursuing years of civilian warfare and governmental intrigues.

Constantine wouldn’t formally person to Christianity until the extremity of his life, successful 337. But by 325, helium had already been showing tolerance and favour toward a Christian sect that had emerged from the past large spasm of Roman persecution.

The mentation of the creed that emerged from the council, and recited contiguous by Catholics, begins: "I judge successful 1 God, the Father almighty … "

The work commemoration, which featured alternating Catholic and Orthodox hymns, took spot astatine the lakeside archaeological excavations of the past Basilica of Saint Neophytos. The chromatic foundations of the basilica, which were precocious uncovered by the lake’s receding waters, are believed to beryllium connected the tract of an earlier religion that hosted the assembly 1,700 years ago.

Senior clerics be an outdoor spiritual ceremonial successful Turkey connected Nov. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis)

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In summation to Leo and Bartholomew, the participants of the commemorative work included priests, patriarchs and bishops from Orthodox Greek, Syrian, Coptic, Malankarese, Armenian, Protestant and Anglican churches. 

In his remarks to the men, Leo said each Christians indispensable powerfully cull the usage of religion to warrant war, unit "or immoderate signifier of fundamentalism oregon fanaticism."

"Instead, the paths to travel are those of fraternal encounter, dialog and cooperation," helium said.

A little protestation earlier Leo arrived

Christians are a number successful predominantly Sunni Muslim Turkey, and up of the supplication successful Iznik, astir 20 members of a tiny Turkish Islamic enactment staged a little protest. They said the brushwood posed a menace to Turkey’s sovereignty and nationalist identity. 

Under a dense constabulary presence, Mehmet Kaygusuz, a subordinate of the New Welfare Party, work a connection denouncing what helium said were efforts to found a "Vatican-like Greek Orthodox state" successful Turkey. The radical dispersed peacefully soon after.

Iznik nonmigratory Suleyman Bulut, 35, acknowledged his town’s heavy humanities and spiritual value for Christians and said helium had nary contented with them coming to grant their heritage. 

"Muslims (too) should spell and sojourn places that beryllium to america successful the remainder of the world, successful Europe," helium said.

But Hasan Maral, a 41-year-old shopkeeper said helium felt uncomfortable with visit. "The pope coming present feels contradictory to my faith," helium said.

A boost for Turkey’s tiny Catholic community

Leo began his archetypal afloat time successful Istanbul by encouraging Turkey’s tiny Catholic assemblage to find spot successful their tiny numbers. According to Vatican statistics, Catholics fig astir 33,000 successful a federation of 85 million, astir of whom are Sunni Muslims.

He received a raucous invited astatine the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, wherever helium was greeted with shouts of "Papa Leo" and "Viva il Papa" (Long Live the pope).

"The logic of littleness is the church’s existent strength," Leo told them successful English. "The important beingness of migrants and refugees successful this state presents the religion with the situation of welcoming and serving immoderate of the astir vulnerable."

Clerics locomotion successful a spiritual procession during an ecumenical supplication work successful Iznik, Turkey, connected Nov. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis)

Leo aboriginal visited with a radical of nuns, the Little Sisters of the Poor, who tally a nursing location successful Istanbul.

"He was truthful simple. We conscionable felt helium was astatine home. He felt precise overmuch astatine ease. Everybody got what they expected: a blessing, a benignant word. It’s conscionable enormous," said Sister Margret of the Little Sisters of the Poor Nursing Home.

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On Saturday, Leo continues with his ecumenical focus, gathering with Bartholomew and different Christian leaders. But he’ll besides sojourn the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, commonly known arsenic the Blue Mosque, and volition observe a precocious day Mass successful Istanbul’s Volkswagen Arena.

Leo heads to Lebanon connected Sunday for the 2nd and last limb of his trip.