Pope Leo’s second day in Türkiye included a prayer meeting, a visit to a nursing home for the elderly, and an ecumenical prayer service commemorating the Council of Nicaea.
Prayer meeting
At the prayer meeting, which took place at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Istanbul, the Pontiff delivered a homily to those gathered there, including bishops, priests, deacons, consecrated men and women, and pastoral workers, according to a bulletin from the Holy See Press Office.
Pope Leo remarked on the history of Türkiye, “a place where the story of the people of Israel meets the birth of Christianity, where the Old and New Testaments embrace, and where the pages of numerous councils were written.”
The Holy Father pointed out that not only was modern-day Türkiye once witness to part of Abraham’s journey to the Promised Land, but Jesus’ disciples also came to Anatolia, and Saint Paul ventured out from Antioch (now Antakya) on journeys during which he founded some of the first Christian communities. Pope Leo also recalled that Christ’s Beloved Apostle John may have lived and died in Ephesus, some sources suggest. In addition to being part and parcel of Byzantine history, Türkiye continues to be home to many communities of Christians.
The Pope said those gathered must nurture the faith that has been passed down in the region rather than merely memorialize it.
“The history that precedes you is not something merely to be remembered and then venerated as a glorious past while we look with resignation at how small the Catholic Church has become numerically,” the Pontiff said. “On the contrary, we are invited to adopt an evangelical vision, enlightened by the Holy Spirit.”
God Himself embraced “the way of littleness,” the Pope continued, and the Church flourishes by it.
“This logic of littleness is the Church’s true strength. It does not lie in her resources or structures, nor do the fruits of her mission depend on numbers, economic power, or social influence,” the Pontiff said. “The Church instead lives by the light of the Lamb; gathered around him, she is sent out into the world by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Pope Leo encouraged the Church in Türkiye to recognize and support signs of hope, such as the questions and concerns of young people. He also asked Catholic leaders to engage in ecumenical and interreligious dialogue, share the faith locally, and serve refugees and migrants.
“The significant presence of migrants and refugees in this country presents the Church with the challenge of welcoming and serving some of the most vulnerable,” the Pontiff remarked. “At the same time, this Church itself is made up largely of foreigners, and many of you — priests, sisters, and pastoral workers — come from other lands. This calls for a special commitment to inculturation so that the language, customs, and culture of Türkiye become more and more your own.”
He said the Gospel is always shared through that inculturation too.
Care for the elderly
The Pontiff’s next stop was the nursing home for the elderly of the Little Sisters of the Poor, where he met with the sisters, workers, residents, and benefactors. In his greeting to them, he praised hospitality as a gift from God that all of them share with each other.
He also shared that he believes the congregation’s name is thought-provoking – not only has God asked them to help the poor, but to be “sisters” to the poor.
“You are to be like Jesus, Whom the Father sent to us not only to help and serve us, but also to be our Brother,” the Pontiff remarked. “The secret of Christian charity is that before being for others, we must first be with others in a communion based on fraternity.”
Pope Leo said the sense of respect for the elderly is often lost to efficiency and materialism, contrary to the teachings of the Church.
“Sacred Scripture and good traditions teach us that – as Pope Francis loved to repeat – the elderly are the wisdom of a people, a treasure for their grandchildren, families, and society as a whole,” he noted.
Ecumenical prayer service
In Iznik, the ancient site of Nicaea, near the ancient Basilica of Saint Neophytos, the Pope prayed with 27 other leaders of Christian churches, Vatican News reported.
The Pope said the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea is an opportunity for people to ask themselves who Jesus is – both to them and to mankind today, as these times involve so many threats to human dignity.
“This question is especially important for Christians, who risk reducing Jesus Christ to a kind of charismatic leader or superman, a misrepresentation that ultimately leads to sadness and confusion,” he noted, according to a Press Office bulletin.
By contending that Jesus was not divine, the heretic Arius implied that the divine and the human remained separate, the Pope said.
“But if God did not become man, how can mortal creatures participate in His immortal life?” the Pontiff said. “What was at stake at Nicaea, and is at stake today, is our faith in the God Who, in Jesus Christ, became like us to make us ‘partakers of the divine nature.’”
The belief that Jesus is consubstantial with the Father unites all Christians, and with that bond, Christians can continue to love and dialogue with each other as they seek to follow God – and through that unity, bear witness to all of humanity, the Pontiff stressed.
“Today, the whole of humanity afflicted by violence and conflict is crying out for reconciliation,” he said, adding that religious leaders must reject any use of religion to justify fundamentalism or violence.
“In the Nicene Creed, we profess our faith ‘in one God, the Father,’ he said. “Yet, it would not be possible to invoke God as Father if we refused to recognize as brothers and sisters all other men and women, who are created in the image of God.”
He prayed that the anniversary would lead to reconciliation, unity, and peace.