In the aisles of the Volkswagen Arena, converted for a day into a modern cathedral, the mosaic of faces is impressive. Visiting Turkey's small Catholic community, estimated at 33,000 souls, did the Pope expect to find here in Istanbul the same diversity of faithful that his city of Rome welcomes every day? Turks, Congolese, Cameroonians, Nigerians, Lebanese, Filipinos … this historic gathering for the Church in Turkey showed to the head of the Catholic Church the richness of this community, which represents only 0.04% of the largely Muslim Turkish population.
Zepour traveled three hours by car with her son and husband to attend this papal Mass. This Lebanese Armenian married a Turkish Armenian 13 years ago. “It's very emotional to be here,” says the mother, standing next to her son in altar boy's robes, who waits patiently, tapping away on his phone. The message she expects from the Pope: “Peace and love. Nothing else!”
A few rows away from her is Patrick. At 37, he too has been living on the banks of the Bosphorus for about 15 years. “I'm excited to see the Pope for the first time: it was my biggest dream,” confesses the smiling Catholic. Every Sunday, this logistics worker drives an hour to St. Anthony's Church to attend Mass. This time, so as not to miss the Pope, he arrived five hours early. Like Zepour, he is waiting for Leo XIV to give a blessing and a message of peace especially because in his native Nigeria, countless Christians have been victims of serious violence.
Standing near the podium topped with a huge illuminated cross, Father Mikael is busy greeting people. This Armenian Catholic priest from the parish of Leo the Great in Chalcedon, on the Asian shore, is very moved by the Pope's presence in his country. He emphasizes the importance of strengthening the bond between East and West, and finds it “very significant” that Leo XIV is making his first apostolic trip abroad here. He sees this visit as an encouragement for the small Christian community in Turkey. In Istanbul, there are about 3,000 Armenian Catholics who attend 13 parishes. While he assures that the condition of Christians is good, he explains that the communities are tending to shrink. “The young people are leaving!” he worries.
Is it really free?
In the assembly gathered for Mass, some also mention, albeit in veiled terms, the difficulties encountered by Christians. Although the Turkish constitution prohibits discrimination on religious grounds, Catholics suffer from a lack of recognition and are sometimes stigmatized. In its 2025 report on religious freedom, Aid to the Church in Need highlights that discrimination has increased in Turkey. For example, the foundation reports an increase in hate speech against Christians during the Christmas and New Year holidays.
Only one Christian church has been built in Turkey since the modern nation was established.
“I sometimes hide my cross so as not to be identified,” whispers an Armenian Catholic, happy and proud to be able to “show that we Christians are here” today.
Alongside Bartholomew I, the Patriarch of Constantinople, Leo XIV blessed the congregation during the long procession that led to the altar, set on a vast platform and surmounted by an immense illuminated cross. The Mass marked the beginning of Advent, the period of preparation for Christmas for Catholics.
In his homily, Pope Leo XIV praised the richness of the various Catholic liturgical traditions present in Turkey — Latin, Armenian, Chaldean, and Syriac — calling for “strengthening the bonds” between them. Using the metaphor of bridges spanning the Bosphorus to unite Asia and Europe, he entrusted the small community with a demanding mission: to seek unity within their own community, in ecumenical relations with members of other Christian denominations, and in encounters with brothers and sisters belonging to other religions.
Read more about the Eastern Churches with this pdf from the Knights of Columbus.
Tomorrow, Sunday, at 9:30 a.m., he will participate in a prayer service at the Armenian Apostolic Cathedral – an Eastern Rite Catholic church – and then join Patriarch Bartholomew I for the Divine Liturgy – Orthodox Mass – at the Patriarchal Church of St. George in the Phanar. The Pope and the Patriarch will have lunch together at the Patriarchate. Leo XIV will then leave the country for Lebanon, the second leg of his trip.
