Pope Leo XIV opens first foreign trip in Turkey with a visit to Christianity’s early heartlands

Pope Leo XIV is utilizing his precise archetypal overseas travel to marque a connection that blends symbolism with geopolitical consequences. By landing successful Turkey this greeting for the 1,700th day of the Council of Nicaea and past into Lebanon’s ongoing economical and governmental freefall, the pope is stepping straight into places wherever Christianity erstwhile flourished.

His beingness signals 2 messages astatine once: a bid to revive unity among Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant communities, and a informing to determination governments that persecution and instability volition not spell unnoticed. It’s an aboriginal trial of however helium intends to wield the brushed powerfulness of the papacy.

Matthew R. Petrusek, Ph.D., elder manager of the Word connected Fire Institute, told Fox News Digital that the travel sends a wide awesome astir the priorities of the caller pontiff. "Pope Leo has signaled aboriginal successful his papacy that 1 of his superior objectives is to springiness anticipation to Christians who unrecorded successful regions wherever they look persecution oregon different difficulties surviving retired their faith. By traveling to Turkey and Lebanon, I deliberation Leo is telling Christians some successful those countries and crossed the globe, ‘You are not forgotten; the Church stands with you.’"

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Pope Leo XIV waves to the faithful up of his inauguration Mass successful St. Peter’s Square, Vatican City, connected May 18, 2025. (David Ramos/Getty Images)

Turkey: Marking 1,700 Years Since the Council of Nicaea

In Turkey, helium volition commemorate the 1700th day of the First Council of Nicaea. The landmark assembly convened successful 325 AD successful the past metropolis of Nicaea, present Iznik, and produced the Nicene Creed, a cardinal connection of Christian content shared by Catholics, Orthodox, and Protestants.

On Thursday, the pope volition alert by chopper to Iznik for a supplication astatine the archaeological remains of the basilica wherever the assembly met.

Petrusek emphasized the symbolic value of this moment. "Christianity is simply a creedal religion — it is based connected shared, escaped assent to unchanging doctrines astir Jesus Christ and the Church that springiness consistency and coherence to Christianity astir the world. The Nicene Creed forms the backbone of Christian identity."

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Archaeologists uncovered a Roman-era infirmary successful Turkey's past metropolis of Kaunos that aboriginal became a Christian sanctuary. (Durmus Genc/Anadolu via Getty Images)

To underline the anniversary, Leo issued an apostolic missive connected Nov. 23 titled "In the Unity of Faith," highlighting the Creed’s enduring relation successful unifying Christian communities. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops said the papers stresses the relevance of Nicaea’s teachings for Catholics, Orthodox, and Protestants today.

Petrusek said the pope’s attack makes a broader connection astir unity. "The Creed includes the words, ‘I judge successful one, holy, christianity and apostolic Church.’ I judge Pope Leo is besides signaling that helium wants to bash everything wrong his power, successful practice with the Holy Spirit, to heal the rifts that, sadly, inactive forestall Christ’s Church from being ‘one.’"

In Turkey, the pope volition besides conscionable Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, sojourn Christian communities successful Istanbul, and observe liturgies.

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Archbishop Sahak II Mashalian, Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople, blesses a worshipper during Sunday Mass astatine the Surp Asdvadzadzin Patriarchal Church successful Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025, up of the sojourn of Pope Leo XIV to Turkey. (Khalil Hamra/AP Photo)

Lebanon: A Rare Papal Stop successful a Country successful Crisis

The 2nd fractional of the travel volition instrumentality the pope to Lebanon, a state that past hosted a papal sojourn much than a decennary ago. The precocious Pope Francis had hoped to question determination but was incapable to bash truthful owed to his declining health.

Lebanon remains location to the largest proportionality of Christians successful the Middle East, but the colonisation has plummeted owed to economical collapse, emigration, and governmental paralysis. The Associated Press reported that the pope volition conscionable governmental leaders, Christian and Muslim clerics and families affected by overlapping crises. One of the astir anticipated moments volition travel connected Dec. 2, erstwhile Leo visits the Port of Beirut, the tract of the 2020 detonation that killed much than 200 radical and wounded much than 6,000.

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Rubble and debris stay astir towering atom silos gutted successful the monolithic August detonation astatine the Beirut larboard that claimed the lives of much than 200 people, successful Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2020. One of the astir anticipated moments volition travel connected Dec. 2, erstwhile Leo visits the Port of Beirut. Hussein Malla/AP

Petrusek said papal visits person a profound affectional impact. "It is hard to overestimate the affirmative effect having the pope sojourn your state has for Catholics, particularly those who are suffering due to the fact that of their faith. It is simply a reminder that the ‘Church’ is not an abstraction but, rather, a humanities world that goes backmost to Jesus Christ himself."

He added that the pope’s beingness carries a connection for governments successful the region. "In summation to his connection of anticipation to the faithful, his beingness successful these countries communicates to those liable for persecuting Christians, ‘Your crimes are not taking spot successful the dark; the satellite is watching.’"

In Lebanon, the pope volition talk successful some English and French. The Vatican has released the authoritative missal for the liturgies, and Lebanese media are preparing for ample crowds contempt infrastructure shortages.

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Pope Leo XIV is cheered by faithful during his play wide assemblage successful St. Peter's Square, astatine the Vatican, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (Alessandra Tarantino/AP Photo)

What to Watch For

The Vatican is expected to stress Christian unity, interfaith dialogue, and enactment for susceptible communities. Pope Leo’s words successful Turkey and Lebanon volition beryllium intimately watched by determination governments and spiritual communities navigating conflict, insecurity, and demographic decline.

Petrusek said the travel reflects the bosom of Leo’s aboriginal papacy: "A papal sojourn brings immense anticipation and a renewed patience to persevere… suffering and death, particularly arsenic a effect of persecution, not lone doesn’t person the last say; erstwhile freely agreed to Christ connected the Cross, it leads to thing little than eternal life."