6+ min ago (1127+ words) November 30, 2025, 12:19 AM Beyond its ecumenical symbolism, the visit also may signal quiet support of ongoing efforts to heal century-old wounds between Turkey and Armenia, long scarred by mass killings and decades of mistrust, observers note. An estimated 1.5 million Armenians died in massacres, deportations and forced marches that began in 1915 in Ottoman Turkey. Historians widely view the event as genocide. Turkey denies the deaths constituted genocide, saying the toll has been inflated and those killed were victims of civil war and unrest. It has lobbied to prevent countries from officially recognizing the massacres as genocide. Pope Francis did not visit any Armenian sites during his visit to Turkey in 2014, but on his way to the airport before departing he made an unscripted stop at a hospital where the ailing Armenian Patriach Mesrob II was being treated. A year later, Francis drew…...

9+ min ago (1161+ words) Archbishop Sahak II Mashalian, Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople, leads Sunday Mass at the Surp Asdvadzadzin Patriarchal Church in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025, ahead of the visit of Pope Leo XIV to Turkey. Credit: AP/Khalil Hamra ANKARA, Turkey " Pope Leo XIV is set to pray at the Armenian Apostolic Cathedral in Istanbul on Sunday in a gesture of support for Christian unity and Christian minorities in Turkey. Beyond its ecumenical symbolism, the visit also may signal quiet support of ongoing efforts to heal century-old wounds between Turkey and Armenia, long scarred by mass killings and decades of mistrust, observers note. An estimated 1.5 million Armenians died in massacres, deportations and forced marches that began in 1915 in Ottoman Turkey. Historians widely view the event as genocide. Turkey denies the deaths constituted genocide, saying the toll has been inflated and those killed were…...

13+ min ago (1121+ words) Beyond its ecumenical symbolism, the visit also may signal quiet support of ongoing efforts to heal century-old wounds between Turkey and Armenia, long scarred by mass killings and decades of mistrust, observers note. An estimated 1.5 million Armenians died in massacres, deportations and forced marches that began in 1915 in Ottoman Turkey. Historians widely view the event as genocide. Turkey denies the deaths constituted genocide, saying the toll has been inflated and those killed were victims of civil war and unrest. It has lobbied to prevent countries from officially recognizing the massacres as genocide. Pope Francis did not visit any Armenian sites during his visit to Turkey in 2014, but on his way to the airport before departing he made an unscripted stop at a hospital where the ailing Armenian Patriach Mesrob II was being treated. A year later, Francis drew Ankara's ire…...

13+ min ago (1168+ words) Pope Leo XIV is set to pray at the Armenian Apostolic Cathedral in Istanbul on Sunday in a gesture of support for Christian unity and Christian minorities in Turkey. Beyond its ecumenical symbolism, the visit also may signal quiet support of ongoing efforts to heal century-old wounds between Turkey and Armenia, long scarred by mass killings and decades of mistrust, observers note. An estimated 1.5 million Armenians died in massacres, deportations and forced marches that began in 1915 in Ottoman Turkey. Historians widely view the event as genocide. Turkey denies the deaths constituted genocide, saying the toll has been inflated and those killed were victims of civil war and unrest. It has lobbied to prevent countries from officially recognizing the massacres as genocide. Influence of Pope Francis lingers Pope Francis did not visit any Armenian sites during his visit to Turkey in…...

14+ min ago (773+ words) BEIRUT " The Rev. Issam Ibrahim remembers when citrus orchards surrounded Mar Youssef Maronite church in the southern suburbs of this city, where generations of Catholic families celebrated baptisms, first communions, confession and confirmations. Then, the transformation came. Beginning with the Lebanese civil war, and the decades of conflict and economic strife that followed, the area south of Lebanon's capital underwent sweeping demographic change. Amid violence perpetrated by all sides, the pews of Mar Youssef emptied as Christians left and Lebanese Shiites, a core base of support for Hezbollah, the sprawling political and military group, moved in. Christians remain the largest religious minority in the Middle East and North Africa, according to Pew Research, representing 2.9 percent of its population in 2020, but their share is down from 3.3 percent in 2010. Over the years, they have fled conflicts in Gaza, Iraq and Syria, where…...

1+ hour, 21+ min ago (964+ words) 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 Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, whose invitation to commemorate an important Christian anniversary was the impetus for Leo's visit. On the second leg of his maiden papal trip, Leo was visiting Lebanon at a precarious moment for the small Mediterranean country after years of successive crises. He is fulfilling a promise of Pope Francis, who had wanted to visit for years but was unable to as his health worsened. Francis often quoted St. John…...

2+ hour, 25+ min ago (752+ words) Inside Pope Leo's tour of Lebanon's important Christian sites Gaza death toll tops 70,000 as Israel continues bombing Ayoub Khan urges fellow independents to rejoin UK's 'Your Party' As MAGA turns on Zionism, Israel First right stokes Islamophobia How Yalla! Let's Talk became the Arab diaspora's leading podcast Inside Amir: A quiet portrait of leaving Iran Lebanese are preparing to welcome Pope Leo XIV on Sunday for what many are calling a historic moment for the country. After years of overlapping crises, many hope the visit will offer a measure of comfort to a nation still recovering from the 2020 Beirut blast and living under the threat'of renewed war as Israeli attacks continue along the border. The three-day trip is expected to be one of the most significant papal visits to Lebanon in decades, with stops at some of the country's most…...

2+ hour, 43+ min ago (754+ words) The black-clad priest yanked on the white rope. At once the bells began to clang. The evening mass was beginning at the Monastery of Mar Maroun, or Saint Maroun, in the town of Annaya, high in the Lebanese mountains. This monastery overlooking the Mediterranean will be one of the stops on Pope Leo XIV's three-day visit to Lebanon, beginning Sunday. The congregation on this cool late November evening was modest in number but their voices rang out as they sang hymns " including one in Syriac, a dialect of Aramaic, the language Jesus is believed to have spoken. Christianity in Lebanon is almost as old as Christianity itself. Yet the community, with roots so deep in this land, increasingly feels its grip slipping. In recent decades many Christians have left, for the United States, Canada, Europe, South America, Australia and elsewhere....

5+ hour, 9+ min ago (1265+ words) Beyond its ecumenical symbolism, the visit signals quiet support of ongoing efforts to heal century-old wounds between Turkey and Armenia, long scarred by mass killings and decades of mistrust, observers note. An estimated 1.5 million Armenians died in massacres, deportations and forced marches that began in 1915 in Ottoman Turkey. Historians widely view the event as genocide. Turkey denies the deaths constituted genocide, saying the toll has been inflated and those killed were victims of civil war and unrest. It has lobbied to prevent countries from officially recognizing the massacres as genocide. Influence of Pope Francis lingers Pope Francis did not visit any Armenian sites during his visit to Turkey in 2014, but on his way to the airport before departing, he made an unscripted stop at a hospital where the ailing Armenian Patriarch Mesrob II was being treated. A year later, Francis…...

5+ hour, 24+ min ago (551+ words) Would Christianity still dominate the United States if it were reimagined as a small town of 100 people? That's the premise of a new report from Pew Research Center, which offered fresh analysis of America's religious landscape through the lens of Pew's sweeping 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study (RLS). The study, conducted from July 17, 2023, to March 4, 2024, surveyed nearly 37,000 U.S. adults and paints a portrait of a community where belief " or the lack thereof " shapes neighborhoods, generations and daily life. Noting that the U.S. has a population of roughly 262 million adults, with Christianity claiming about 162 million adherents and 76 million people reporting no religious affiliation, Pew researchers acknowledge that grasping the full scope of faith in America can feel overwhelming. "These are big numbers that can make it difficult to fully understand the American religious landscape," the report states. "But what if we imagined the U.S. as a…...