US EditionPope Leo XIV to pray at Armenian cathedral in Istanbul during Turkish-Armenian reconciliation
Pope Leo XIV prayed before 500 worshipers to support Christian minorities and encourage Turkey-Armenia normalization without addressing genocide recognition, analysts said.
- On Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025, Pope Leo XIV will pray at the Surp Asdvadzadzin Patriarchal Church in Istanbul to support Christian unity and minorities, following Sunday Mass led by Archbishop Sahak II Mashalian.
- On Thursday, Pope Leo XIV arrived in Turkey to mark the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea; earlier this year, the Vatican signed an interfaith agreement with Azerbaijan that upset some Armenians.
- The service opens with prayers and speeches from Pope Leo XIV and Patriarch Sahak II Mashalian, followed by gift exchanges and a marble stone unveiling; the Vatican pursues behind-the-scenes diplomacy for Armenian prisoners and detainees held in Azerbaijan.
- Richard Giragosian says the visit both brings symbolic weight and will avoid emphasizing sensitive political language, as Pope Leo XIV likely supports Turkey and Armenia normalization efforts while avoiding direct genocide references.
- An estimated 1.5 million Armenians died in 1915, widely viewed as genocide, though Turkey denies this and popes Paul VI, John Paul II, and Benedict XVI previously visited the Surp Asdvadzadzin Patriarchal Church.
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This Sunday, the pope went to the Armenian Apostolic Cathedral in Istanbul for a prayer. He is due to return to Lebanon this afternoon for a two-day visit.
Associated Press News
Pope Leo XIV to pray at Armenian cathedral in Istanbul during Turkish-Armenian reconciliation
Pope Leo XIV plans to pray at an Armenian Apostolic cathedral in Istanbul in a gesture supporting Christian unity and Christian minorities in Turkey.
Prior to this Patriarch Sahag II had emphasized that "unification is essential." The common belief in Christ transcended "nation, ethnicity and time." The Patriarch thanked the popes who had been with the Armenian Christians since Benedict XV (1914-1922). After the massacres of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, the Pope had worked there for the persecuted Christians.The Patriarch stressed that, in view of the sufferings of Christians througho…
On the last day of his visit to Turkey, Leo XIV visited the cathedral of the Armenian Apostolic Church. He thanked the Armenian people for their courageous Christian witness over the centuries, often in tragic circumstances, according to Vatican News. >>> Fr. Sebastian Kosecki: Wherever I Am, I Am Among My Own [INTERVIEW] Armenian Christians constitute a tiny minority in Turkey today. However, they are the heirs of Leo XIV's article on the Armen…
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