1+ hour, 55+ min ago (700+ words) ISTANBUL (CNS) " As he had done throughout his visit to Turkey, Pope Leo XIV spent his last morning in the country reaffirming the Catholic Church's commitment to the search for Christian unity. The key symbol of that was the pope's presence at the Divine Liturgy celebrated by Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople Nov. 30, the feast of St. Andrew, patron of the patriarchate. For decades the popes and patriarchs have sent delegations to each other's patronal feast celebrations " the Vatican's celebration of the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul June 29 and the patriarchate's celebration of St. Andrew's feast Nov. 30. St. Peter and St. Andrew were brothers and were the first of the 12 Apostles to be called by Jesus. After the liturgy, the pope and patriarch went to a balcony where they jointly blessed the people gathered below. Patriarch Bartholomew had…...

22+ hour, 17+ min ago (504+ words) ISTANBUL (CNS) " With their different rites, cultures, languages and races, Catholics find a unity around the altar that "is a gift from God. As such, it is strong and invincible, because it is the work of his grace," Pope Leo XIV said. Celebrating Mass Nov. 29 in Istanbul's Volkswagen Arena, Pope Leo was joined by laypeople, priests and bishops from the Latin, Chaldean, Armenian and Syriac Catholic churches. The readings and prayers at the Mass were recited in Latin, Turkish, English, Armenian, Arabic and Italian. Celebrating the vigil Mass for the first Sunday of Advent, Pope Leo gave the Catholics what he described as "resolutions" to work on this Advent: building bridges with other Catholics, other Christians and other believers in God. The unity in diversity on display in the arena, like three Istanbul bridges over the Bosphorus Strait linking Europe…...

1+ day, 6+ hour ago (361+ words) ISTANBUL (CNS) " Pope Leo XIV, like his two immediate predecessors, visited the so-called Blue Mosque in Turkey's capital; he spent about 20 minutes inside but did not appear to pause for prayer as Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis had done. Instead, he listened to Askin Musa Tunca, the mosque's muezzin who calls people to prayer five times a day, explain the building, its construction and how Muslims pray. And the pope asked questions. Tunca told reporters afterward that the mosque is "the house of Allah " it's not my house; it's not your house," and so he told Pope Leo he could pray if he wanted. "That's OK,' he said, he wanted to see the mosque." Reporters pressed Tunca, asking again if the pope prayed. "Maybe to himself, I don't know," he responded. The Vatican press office said afterward that Pope…...

1+ day, 23+ hour ago (856+ words) ZNIK, Turkey (CNS) " Although the ancient city of Nicaea lies in ruins and the geographic center of Christianity has shifted West, Pope Leo XIV and Christian leaders gathered at an archaeological site in Turkey to celebrate the enduring faith set out in the Nicene Creed. Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople hosted the ecumenical prayer service and the common recitation of the Creed Nov. 28 at Iznik, site of the ancient Nicaea, about 80 miles southeast of Istanbul. With the Greek Orthodox patriarchs of Antioch, Alexandria and Jerusalem or their representatives and with representatives of other Orthodox, Anglican and Protestant churches, Pope Leo marked the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea " the primary motive for his first foreign trip as pope. The joint recitation of the Creed did not include the phrase known as the "filioque" " the statement that the Holy Spirit…...

2+ day, 25+ min ago (271+ words) We pray for one another, for we are one family with our brothers and sisters," the diocese said Nov. 26. The diocese encouraged people to pray for those who are suffering from the fire." We earnestly ask for Your mercy and compassion on all the deceased, granting them rest," the diocese asked God in a prayer proposed to all parishes. We ask You to heal all the injured, so that they may find comfort in their suffering" and to comfort all the victims, so that they may recover from their grief and rise again." The diocese said: We are so weak and powerless in the face of disaster," asking the Lord to personally soothe our wounded hearts, wipe away our tears, and stay with us in the darkness as we await your rescue." The fire broke at around 3 p.m. local time on…...

2+ day, 4+ hour ago (614+ words) Since ancient times, Romans 13 has been read by Christians at Advent. To wake up spiritually to the reality of Christ's presence is the message: "You know the time; it is the hour for you to awake from sleep." Such is the simple exhortation, given in the church's scriptural voice, heard at the beginning of Advent: Wake up! Now St. Paul here in Romans is talking about the Christian life as such. However, the metaphor, the call to "awake from sleep," calls to mind at once both Easter and Advent, two of the three "comings of Christ," to use St. Bernard of Clairvaux's famous way of putting it. In the letter to the Ephesians, for example, the writer quotes what is likely an ancient baptismal hymn: "Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give you light" (Eph…...

2+ day, 4+ hour ago (704+ words) ISTANBUL (CNS) " Meeting leaders of Turkey's small and varied Catholic communities, Pope Leo XIV asked them to embrace their "littleness" as they strive to be a leaven of God's love in Turkish society. Meeting the country's Catholic bishops, priests, religious, deacons and pastoral workers at the Latin-rite Cathedral of the Holy Spirit and then visiting the Little Sisters of the Poor and the residents of their home for the elderly Nov. 28, the pope assured them that numbers matter much less than a clear witness does. According to Vatican statistics distributed for the pope's trip, Turkey has about 33,000 Catholics " less than 1% of the population. They belong to the Latin, Chaldean, Armenian and Syriac Catholic churches. At his meeting in the cathedral, the pope noted the central place of Turkey in the early Christian community, hosting the apostles St. John, St. Philipp…...

3+ day, 1+ hour ago (668+ words) ANKARA, Turkey (CNS) " Pope Leo XIV began his first papal trip speaking of dialogue, peace and thanksgiving " referring to both the holiday and his own gratitude. On the plane to Turkey Nov. 27, he wished a Happy Thanksgiving to the Americans among the 80 journalists traveling with him and told them, "It's a wonderful day to celebrate." He also received from reporters two pumpkin pies and a pecan pie; he said he would share "some." Pope Leo also was given a baseball bat that had belonged to 1950s White Sox player Nellie Fox. After expressing his appreciation, the pope asked, "How did you get that through security?" Landing in Ankara after the flight of almost three hours, Pope Leo fulfilled the dictates of protocol as a visiting head of state, meeting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Safi Arpagus, the head of the…...

3+ day, 18+ hour ago (1184+ words) KRAKOW, Poland (OSV News) " Taking the most prestigious archbishop's seat in the country, the Archbishops' Palace of Krakow, Cardinal Grzegorz Ry" " one of the most globally recognized Polish owners of the red hat " makes history by becoming the successor of Krakow's archbishops who reshaped the church in Poland. The Franciszka'ska Street palace " once home for Cardinal Karol Wojty'a, the future Pope John Paul II, and Cardinal Adam Sapieha " a steadfast prince who preserved the church in Krak'w amid Nazi German terror, was covered in snow as the Vatican announced Pope Leo XIV's decision Nov. 26 to appoint Cardinal Ry" to Krakow, having him move from L'd, where he has been archbishop since September 2017. The outgoing Archbishop Marek J'draszewski, 76, whose resignation was accepted Nov. 26, said it "was a great grace to be the archbishop of Krakow. I am grateful to God for…...

3+ day, 19+ hour ago (216+ words) (OSV News) " This is the text from Pope Leo XIV's Nov. 26, 2025, general audience given in St. Peter's Square. Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome! One could say that the question about life is one of the most profound concerns of the human heart. We entered life without having done anything to decide to do so. The questions of all ages gush forth from this fact, like an overflowing river: Who are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going? What is the ultimate meaning of this journey? In the Gospel, Jesus constantly confirms his concern for healing the sick, restoring wounded bodies and spirits, and giving life back to the dead. By doing so, the incarnate Son reveals the Father: he restores dignity to sinners, grants the forgiveness of sins, and includes everyone, especially the desperate,…...