Pope Leo XIV wrapped up his visit to Turkey on Sunday before heading to Lebanon, where he hoped to bring a message of hope to its long-suffering people and bolster a crucial Christian community in the Middle East. Leo had two key appointments in Istanbul before flying to Beirut: a prayer at the Armenian Apostolic Cathedral and a divine liturgy with
Pope Leo XIV visited Istanbul's famed Blue Mosque early on Saturday on the third day of his trip to Turkey. It was the first time the American pope, elected in May as leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics, visited a Muslim place of worship since taking over from his late predecessor Pope Francis. The Blue Mosque is one of Istanbul's main tourist
Pope Leo XIV visited Istanbul's Blue Mosque on Saturday but didn't stop to pray, as he opened an intense day of meetings and liturgies with Turkey's religious leaders and a Mass for the country's tiny Catholic community. The head of Turkey's Diyanet religious affairs directorate showed Leo the soaring tiled domes of the 17th-century mosque and the
Pope Leo XIV encouraged Turkey's tiny Catholic community to find strength in its small size as he embarked on the key day of his first trip that is meant to bolster Christians and pursue their centuries-old quest for unity. Shouts of "Papa Leo" and "Viva il Papa" (Long Live the pope) erupted along with cheering and clapping inside and outside Istanbul's
Pope Leo XIV encouraged Turkey to be a source of stability and dialogue in a world riven by conflict, as he opened his first foreign trip as pope on Thursday with a plea for peace amid efforts to end wars in Ukraine and Gaza. The American pope emphasized a message of peace as he arrived in Ankara, welcomed on the tarmac by a military guard of honor
Pope Leo XIV is heading to Turkey on Thursday on his first foreign trip, fulfilling the late Pope Francis' plans to mark an important Orthodox anniversary and bring a message of peace to the region at a crucial time for efforts to end the war in Ukraine and ease Mideast tensions. Leo is arriving first in Ankara, where he has a meeting planned with