a first trip to Lebanon and Turkey with multiple challenges
The announcement was expected, it was revealed by the Press Room of the Holy See on October 7. Leo XIV will travel to Türkiye for three days, then two to Lebanon, between November 27 and December 2.
It is first to the town of Iznik (Nicaea), in the north-west of Turkey, that the sovereign pontiff will go, responding to the invitation of Patriarch Bartholomew (Primate of the Orthodox Church of Constantinople) whom he met last May at the Vatican. He will make a pilgrimage there as part of the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, the only Council common to all Christian denominations, where the Creed was established for the first time. “For all Christians, it is a moment of authentic unity in the faith, we must not miss this historic moment, not to look at the past but at the future,” commented Leo
Turkey, strategic country for Eastern Christians
According to the Holy See press release, the pope is also expected to meet President Erdogan. The country of nearly 80 million inhabitants, with a large Muslim majority, has only 80,000 Christians, including 10,000 Armenian, Syrian and Chaldean Catholics. In its latest report on religious freedom in the world for 2024, Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) expressed concern about a deterioration in the situation of Christians in the country, whose legal identity is not recognized.
“The Christian community is very small, the Armenians and Assyro-Chaldeans suffered a genocide there which is still not recognized by the Turkish state,” explains Vincent Gelot, responsible for the Orient work in Lebanon. “The country plays an important role, particularly in Syria, where the new government leaves few places for ethnic and religious minorities, notably Christians. The situation is serious.”
In Lebanon, in the footsteps of his predecessors
Leo XIV will then fly to Lebanon, in response to the invitation of the head of state and the ecclesiastical authorities. Before him, John Paul II and Benedict XVI had already visited the land of the Cedar, in 1997 and 2012 respectively. Benedict XVI had designed the apostolic exhortation Ecclesia in Medio Oriente, released just before the Arab Spring. The German pope noted the “mosaic” formed by the numerous Churches in this region of the world and underlined the multiple challenges of interreligious dialogue. François had also planned a trip in 2022, which was ultimately canceled.
On August 4, five years after the explosion at the port of Beirut, Leo XIV assured the Lebanese of “his spiritual closeness and his communion of prayer” in a message sent by the Secretary of State. “The pope’s visit allows us to show his closeness to the Christians of the East,” explains Vincent Gelot. “However, it is expected on actions, not just declarations. In Lebanon, many Christian associations provide a public service such as education or hospitals, and are today in mortal danger because of unpaid bills from the State: Leo XIV must sound the alarm.”
In 1989, in an apostolic letter addressed to the country’s bishops, John Paul II declared: “Lebanon is more than a country: it is a message of freedom and an example of pluralism for both the East and the West.” Here is Leo XIV warned.
