Previous papal trips to Turkey set the stage for Pope Leo XIV

The first pope to visit Turkey was Paul VI, who visited on July 25 and 26, 1967. This fifth apostolic journey of the Italian pontiff (after the Holy Land, India, New York, and Fatima) allowed him to set new ecumenical milestones, in line with the Second Vatican Council. The main focus was his visit to the Phanar, the seat of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, to meet with Athenagoras (1886-1972). With this patriarch, he had made spectacular progress in restoring trust between Catholics and Orthodox Christians.

Three years earlier, he had held a historic meeting with Athenagoras in Jerusalem. This encounter had paved the way for the lifting, the following year, of the reciprocal excommunications between Rome and Constantinople formulated 910 years earlier, during the Great Schism of 1054.

His visit in July 1967, which preceded Athenagoras' visit to Rome a few months later, was an opportunity for Paul VI to express himself clearly in favor of restoring communion with the Orthodox Church.

“Charity allows us to become more aware of the very depth of our unity, while at the same time making the current impossibility of seeing this unity blossom in concelebration all the more painful, and urging us to do everything possible to hasten the coming of this day of the Lord,” said Paul VI.

This underlines his belief that it is incumbent upon the leaders of the Churches to guide their faithful “on the path that leads to full communion.”

In addition to this stop in Istanbul, Paul VI also traveled to Ephesus to visit the house of the Virgin Mary. This shrine, visited by both Christians and Muslims, is the result of an Assyrian tradition — probably symbolic — according to which Mary was taken to this place by the evangelist John after the crucifixion of Christ in order to flee persecution in Jerusalem.

This trip also gave the Pope the opportunity to greet the authorities and express his support for the people of Turkey, who had been affected by a violent earthquake shortly before the trip.

Paul VI benefited from Turkey's proximity to the Holy See, linked to the career of his predecessor John XXIII. Monsignor Angelo Roncalli (the future Pope John) had served as apostolic delegate to Turkey between 1935 and 1944, a role in which he had displayed unexpected charisma. He shocked his own superiors in Rome by choosing to remain in civilian dress, in accordance with the rules of secularism in force in Turkey, and by incorporating the Turkish language into certain liturgical sequences.

After the very brief pontificate of John Paul I, who naturally did not have time to travel despite his keen interest in ecumenical issues, John Paul II chose Turkey as the destination for his fourth apostolic journey, from November 28 to 30, 1979.

The date of November 30 corresponds to the feast of St. Andrew, patron saint of the Church of Constantinople (and the occasion for Leo's trip). John Paul II's successors would also focus on these dates when visiting Turkey at the beginning of their pontificate.

Following in the footsteps of Paul VI, the Polish pontiff was received by Athenagoras' successor, Patriarch Dimitrios I (1914-1991). He confirmed his desire to “walk together towards that full unity which sad historical circumstances have wounded, especially during the second millennium.”

In a joint statement, John Paul II and Dimitrios I called for a “purification of the collective memory of our Churches” and established the Joint Catholic-Orthodox Commission for Theological Dialogue. John Paul II also traveled to Ephesus to celebrate Mass and greeted the Turkish authorities in Izmir.

Naturally, ecumenical issues were also prominent during Benedict XVI's visit from November 28 to December 1, 2006. However, media attention shifted to the burning issue of dialogue with Islam, a few weeks after his speech in Regensburg, Germany, in which he quoted a Byzantine emperor likening Islam to violence. Violent demonstrations broke out in some Muslim-majority countries, even leading to the assassination in Somalia of Italian nun Leonella Sgorbati, who was beatified in 2018.

Despite hostile demonstrations against his visit, Benedict XVI managed to defuse tensions during his meeting with Muslim authorities, and by taking the initiative to visit the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, even though this stop was not included in the initial program. The images of the Pope removing his shoes and taking time to meditate with the Mufti of Istanbul, Mustafa Cagrici, were a sign of respect that was greatly appreciated by the Turkish Muslim population.

The German pope also visited Hagia Sophia. Built as a cathedral and later converted into a mosque, the structure eventually became a museum; that was its status when Benedict XVI visited. In 2020 it was made a mosque once more.

Another original aspect of this trip was Benedict XVI's unexpected praise for the Turkish model of secularism. “It is undoubtedly useful to recall that the father of modern Turkey, Kemal Atatürk, had the French Constitution before him as a model for the reconstruction of Turkey,” Benedict XVI said on the plane taking him to Ankara, the first stop on his trip.

“At the origin of modern Turkey lies dialogue with European reason and with its way of thinking and living, to be realized in a new way in a different historical and religious context,” said the German pontiff with a delicacy that was perceived with surprise in Turkey.

The Pope also visited Ephesus and Istanbul, where ecumenical issues were naturally a central focus of the trip. Patriarch Bartholomew I welcomed Benedict XVI to the Phanar in a fraternal atmosphere, but again with international tensions looming in the background. “We encourage the establishment of closer relationships between Christians, and of an authentic and honest interreligious dialogue, with a view to combating every form of violence and discrimination,” the two church leaders said in a joint statement.

They promised to persevere in their “commitment to move towards full communion” while confirming the mandate entrusted to the Joint Catholic-Orthodox Commission, after several years of suspension, to address “the principal questions that are still unresolved.”

Eight years later, with his gaze turned toward a Middle East ravaged by war, Francis flew to Turkey. This trip took place from November 28 to 30, 2014. It highlighted the Holy See's choice to rely on Turkey as a key partner in addressing the geopolitical challenges of the region, including the reception of migrants fleeing Syria and Iraq, a few months after ISIS's offensive on Mosul and the Nineveh Plains.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received the pontiff in Ankara at the presidential complex. This made Francis the first foreign head of state to visit the newly built residence. He traveled to Istanbul the next day and visited Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, before celebrating Mass in the Catholic Cathedral of the Holy Spirit and twice meeting Patriarch Bartholomew I.

The two church leaders signed a joint declaration. “We express our sincere and firm resolution, in obedience to the will of our Lord Jesus Christ, to intensify our efforts to promote the full unity of all Christians, and above all between Catholics and Orthodox,” wrote Francis and Bartholomew, who had met in Jerusalem six months earlier.

The two men developed a strong friendship over the course of the decade.

“We cannot resign ourselves to a Middle East without Christians, who have professed the name of Jesus there for two thousand years,” warn the Pope and the Patriarch in this text marked by the dramatic situation of Christians in Iraq and Syria. “The Church will remain at your side and will continue to hold up your cause before the world,” Francis promised in his final words on Turkish soil, addressing refugees cared for by the Salesians.

Had his health permitted, Francis would probably have returned to Turkey a second time last spring to participate in the commemoration of the Council of Nicaea, originally scheduled for the end of May. With a six-month delay, Pope Leo XIV's first trip will therefore be an opportunity to “close the loop” by fulfilling Pope Francis' last international commitment.