Pope Leon XIV Expected in Turkey and Lebanon for His First Trip

Pope Leon XIV is set to visit Turkey and Lebanon for his first official journey. The trip starts with a significant religious celebration in Turkey, followed by a visit to Lebanon, which is currently facing a crisis. The six-day visit (from November 27 to December 2) serves as the first major international test for the Pope, whose understated style contrasts with that of his charismatic predecessor, Pope Francis, six months after his election as the head of the Catholic Church.

During his inaugural journey outside Italy, the American Pope will emphasize interreligious dialogue and calls for peace in a Middle East fractured by conflict and increasingly abandoned by Christians.

Robert Francis Prevost will travel to Turkey to commemorate the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, where the Nicene Creed – a cornerstone of Christian faith – was formulated. This symbolic commemoration aims to reinforce the possibility of Christian unity.

Although Leon XIV’s visit has garnered little attention in the predominantly Sunni country where Christians make up only 0.1% of the 86 million population, it is eagerly anticipated in Lebanon, a unique multi-confessional country in the region.

Once celebrated as a model of coexistence, Lebanon has been mired in a devastating crisis since 2019, affecting all levels of society: monetary collapse, widespread impoverishment, failing public services, the 2020 Beirut port explosion, and conflict with Israel.

"Today, the Lebanese are tired," summarizes Vincent Gelot from L'Oeuvre d'Orient, a Catholic organization helping Middle Eastern Christians. "They await a truthful message to the Lebanese elite along with strong and concrete actions."

This "exceptional" visit will highlight the difficulties facing Lebanon, which hopes for a political and economic breakthrough, according to the Lebanese ambassador to the Holy See, Fadi Assaf.

Preparations are underway at the sites the Pope will visit, including the restoration of roads adorned with his likeness. "Lebanon wants peace," reads some of the signage.

However, achieving peace is far from guaranteed: despite a ceasefire, Israel continues its deadly strikes, claiming to target Hezbollah, while the Lebanese army faces pressure to disarm the Shiite movement.

Amid an "endless cycle of wars and suffering," "disappointed hopes," and "uncertainties about the future," the Lebanese "know well that (this visit) will not solve all their problems," acknowledges Vincent Gelot. Nevertheless, the visit could underscore the role of private organizations – often religious – in ensuring access to healthcare and education, he believes.

A report published last week by L'Oeuvre d'Orient estimated that the Lebanese state owes over $150 million to more than 250 charities and organizations.

Among the highlights of the visit will be a meeting with young people, an outdoor mass with 100,000 attendees, and a silent prayer at the site of the port explosion that killed more than 220 people and devastated much of the Lebanese capital.

According to Mgr Abdo Abou Kassem, the media coordinator for the visit, the Pope also aims to "reaffirm Lebanon's role as a message of coexistence, serving as a model for both the East and the West" through an inter-religious gathering in downtown Beirut.

The Turkish leg of the trip, a strategic crossroads between East and West, will also allow Leon XIV to assert his vision for dialogue with Islam: he will meet President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara and visit the Blue Mosque in Istanbul.

However, the focus will be on Christian unity, marked by the anniversary of the Council of Nicaea at the invitation of Patriarch Bartholomew I, the primate of the Orthodox Church of Constantinople, amid ongoing tensions with Moscow.

In 325 A.D., this first ecumenical council, considered a foundational moment for Christianity, gathered around 300 bishops from the Roman Empire and established doctrinal foundations, including the Nicene Creed, a declaration of faith still in use today.

On the shores of Lake Iznik, the current name of Nicaea in the Turkish province of Bursa, Leon XIV will join dignitaries from various Orthodox Churches on Friday for an ecumenical prayer, initially set to include Pope Francis, who passed away in April.

Internally, "Leon XIV is trying to mend the rifts within the Catholic space, while externally, he expresses concern for Christian unity," explains François Mabille, director of the Geopolitical Observatory of Religion.

Beyond doctrinal differences, Catholics recognize the universal authority of the Pope as the Church's leader, while Orthodox Christians are organized into autocephalous churches. The Orthodox world appears more fragmented than ever: the war in Ukraine has accelerated the rift between the patriarchates of Moscow and Constantinople. Patriarch Kirill, a close ally of Vladimir Putin, has not been invited to Iznik.

For Leon XIV, the diplomatic exercise is delicate: he must avoid irritating Moscow, which fears that the Vatican will bolster Constantinople's role as a preferred interlocutor and weaken its influence.

The last Pope to visit Lebanon was Benedict XVI in 2012, while the last papal visit to Turkey was in 2014 with Pope Francis.