{"id":2515731,"date":"2025-11-29T16:05:02","date_gmt":"2025-11-29T21:05:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pope-visits-istanbuls-blue-mosque-without-praying-as-he-focuses-on-unifying-christians\/"},"modified":"2025-11-29T16:08:36","modified_gmt":"2025-11-29T21:08:36","slug":"pope-visits-istanbuls-blue-mosque-without-praying-as-he-focuses-on-unifying-christians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pope-visits-istanbuls-blue-mosque-without-praying-as-he-focuses-on-unifying-christians\/","title":{"rendered":"Pope visits Istanbul\u2019s Blue Mosque without praying as he focuses on unifying Christians"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fpope-visits-istanbuls-blue-mosque-without-praying-as-he-focuses-on-unifying-christians%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2515731&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Pope Leo XIV visited Istanbul&#8217;s Blue Mosque but did not pray during the visit, focusing instead on strengthening ties between Christians, notably with Orthodox leaders, and promoting unity among Eastern and Western churches. The pope toured the mosque respectfully, wearing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/opinion-gwen-berrys-history-of-racist-tweets-and-rape-jokes-wont-change-her-hero-status\/\" title=\"OPINION: Gwen Berry\u2019s History Of Racist Tweets And Rape Jokes Won\u2019t Change Her Hero Status\">white socks<\/a> after removing his shoes, and observed the mosque&#8217;s architecture and inscriptions. while the Vatican initially planned for a brief moment of silent prayer, Pope Leo chose not too pray inside the mosque, a decision that surprised even the Vatican.Later in the day, he prayed alongside Patriarch bartholomew of the Orthodox Church and signed a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/brexit-trade-deal-published-as-uk-calls-for-end-to-ugly-divisions\/\" title=\"Brexit trade deal published as UK calls for end to \u2018ugly\u2019 divisions\">joint declaration<\/a> aiming to promote unity, including efforts to celebrate Easter on a common date. Pope Leo&#8217;s visit follows a tradition of papal visits to the mosque, with his predecessors having paused for prayer. The visit also included a Mass for Istanbul&#8217;s Catholic community.Additionally, the pope&#8217;s flight faced technical challenges due to a software update ordered for his chartered plane. The visit is part of his broader efforts to foster inter-religious dialogue and Christian unity.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Pope visits Istanbul&rsquo;s Blue Mosque without praying as he focuses on unifying Christians<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2415494\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) &mdash;<\/strong>&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/pope-leo-xiv\">Pope Leo XIV<\/a>&nbsp;visited Istanbul&rsquo;s iconic Blue Mosque on Saturday but didn&rsquo;t stop to pray, as he focused more on bolstering ties with Orthodox patriarchs and promoting courageous steps for Eastern and Western churches to be united.<\/p>\n<p>Leo took his shoes off and, in his white socks, toured the 17th-century mosque, looking up at its soaring tiled domes and the Arabic inscriptions on its columns as an imam pointed them out to him.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/3901844\/death-toll-from-floods-and-mudslides-in-sri-lanka-rises\/\">Death toll from floods and mudslides in Sri Lanka rises to 132, with 176 people still missing<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/3901838\/thai-prime-minister-acknowledges-flood-response-failures\/\">Thai prime minister acknowledges flood response failures as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/death-toll-rises-in-condo-collapse-number-of-missing-persons-grows-to-159\/\" title=\"Death Toll Rises In Condo Collapse; Number Of Missing Persons Grows To 159\">death toll rises<\/a> to 162<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/3901804\/top-ukrainian-officials-head-to-us-to-discuss-ending-war\/\">Top Ukrainian officials head to US to discuss ending war ahead of Witkoff meeting in Moscow<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>The Vatican had said Leo would observe a &ldquo;brief moment of silent prayer&rdquo; in the mosque, but he didn&rsquo;t. An imam of the mosque, Asgin Tunca, said he had invited Leo to pray, since the mosque was &ldquo;Allah&rsquo;s house,&rdquo; but the pope declined.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/crime\/3444699\/timeline-increasing-incidents-political-violence-in-the-us\/\">POLITICAL VIOLENCE ON THE RISE IN THE US: A TIMELINE OF KEY INCIDENTS<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Later, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said: &ldquo;The pope experienced his visit to the mosque in silence, in a spirit of contemplation and listening, with deep respect for the place and the faith of those who gather there in prayer.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Leo, history&rsquo;s first American pope, was following in the footsteps of his&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/2444bfb0a63143d19605055b29ceba6d\">recent predecessors,<\/a>&nbsp;who all <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >made high-profile visits<\/a> to the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, as it is officially known, in a gesture of respect to Turkey&rsquo;s Muslim majority.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-papal-visits-to-blue-mosque-often-raise-questions\">Papal visits to Blue Mosque often raise questions<\/h2>\n<p>But the visits have always raised questions about whether the pope would pray in the Muslim house of worship, or at the very least pause to gather thoughts in a meditative silence.<\/p>\n<p>When Pope Benedict XVI visited Turkey in 2006, tensions were high because Benedict had offended many in the Muslim world a few months earlier with a speech in Regensburg, Germany that was widely interpreted as linking Islam and violence.<\/p>\n<p>The Vatican added a visit to the Blue Mosque at the last minute in a bid to reach out to Muslims. He observed a moment of silent prayer, head bowed, as the imam prayed next to him, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-unveils-plans-for-independence-arch-at-dc-donor-dinner\/\" title=\"Trump unveils plans for &#039;Independence Arch&#039; at DC donor dinner\">facing east<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Benedict later thanked him &ldquo;for this moment of prayer&rdquo; for what was only the second time a pope had visited a mosque, after St. John Paul II visited one briefly in Syria in 2001.<\/p>\n<p>There were no doubts in 2014 when Pope Francis visited the Blue Mosque: He stood for two minutes of silent prayer facing east, his head bowed, eyes closed and hands clasped in front of him. The Grand Mufti of Istanbul, Rahmi Yaran, told the pope afterwards, &ldquo;May God accept it.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/in_focus\/3897087\/how-alaska-became-central-trump-international-trade-policy\/\">HOW ALASKA BECAME CENTRAL TO TRUMP&rsquo;S INTERNATIONAL TRADE POLICY<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>With Leo, though, even the Vatican seemed caught off guard by his decision not to pray. The Holy See had to correct the official record of the visit after it originally kept the planned reference to him pausing for prayer.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking to reporters after the visit, the imam Tunca said he had told the pope: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s not my house, not your house, (it&rsquo;s the) house of Allah.&rdquo; He said he invited Leo to worship &ldquo;But he said, &lsquo;That&rsquo;s OK.&rsquo;&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He wanted to see the mosque, wanted to feel (the) atmosphere of the mosque, I think. And was very pleased,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-a-joint-declaration-on-easter-talks\">A joint declaration on Easter talks<\/h2>\n<p>In the afternoon, Leo prayed with the spiritual leader of the world&rsquo;s Orthodox Christians, Patriarch Bartholomew, at the patriarchal church of Saint George.<\/p>\n<p>There, they prayed the doxology, a hymn of praise and glory to God, and signed a joint declaration vowing to take courageous steps on the path to unity including to find a common date for Easter.<\/p>\n<p>Eastern and Western churches split in the Great Schism of 1054, a divide precipitated largely by disagreements over the primacy of the pope. While ties have warmed, they remain divided and other schisms have formed.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It is our shared desire to continue the process of exploring a possible solution for celebrating together the Feast of Feasts every year,&rdquo; the joint statement said, referring to Easter.<\/p>\n<p>The Vatican said in his remarks to the patriarchs gathered, Leo pointed to the next Holy Year to be celebrated by Christians, in 2033 on the anniversary of Christ&rsquo;s crucifixion, and invited them to go to Jerusalem on &ldquo;a journey that leads to full unity.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Leo&rsquo;s final event was a Catholic Mass in Istanbul&rsquo;s Volkswagen Arena for the country&rsquo;s Catholic community, who number 33,000 in a country of more than 85 million people, most of whom are Sunni Muslim.<\/p>\n<p>Renato Marai was among a group of 26 visitors from Florence, Italy, who traveled to Istanbul to see the pope. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s wonderful to see him on his first foreign trip, a really important moment for our group,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<p>Tarcin Unlu, meanwhile, was among many Turkish attendees, a recent convert to Christianity from Islam. &ldquo;I became Christian because I thought it was the best religion for me but my family is definitely not happy,&rdquo; Unlu said.<\/p>\n<p>Her friend, Rodrick Nuel, originally from Nigeria&rsquo;s Biafra region but now living in northern Cyprus, said the papal visit sent a &ldquo;a powerful message for the global Christian community.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Also, as Turkey is 99.9% Muslim and just 0.1% Christian, it shows the pope is reaching out to other religions as well,&rdquo; he added.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-airbus-software-update-doesn-t-spare-pope\">The Airbus software update doesn&rsquo;t spare pope<\/h2>\n<p>While Leo was focusing on bolstering relations with Catholics, Orthodox Christians and Muslims, trip organizers were dealing with more mundane issues.<\/p>\n<p>Leo&rsquo;s ITA Airways Airbus A320neo charter was among those caught up in the worldwide Airbus software update, ordered by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency. The order came after an analysis found the computer code may have contributed to a sudden drop in the&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/jetblue-flight-emergency-landing-florida-4b5d0809c2a11a197634a4b0cdf343f1\">altitude of a JetBlue plane<\/a>&nbsp;last month.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3837322\/trump-advises-that-anyone-burning-american-flag-will-be-imprisoned-for-a-year\/\">TRUMP ADVISES THAT ANYONE BURNING AMERICAN FLAG WILL BE IMPRISONED FOR A YEAR<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The Vatican spokesman, Bruni, said the necessary monitor to update the aircraft was on its way to Istanbul from Rome along with the technician who would install it.<\/p>\n<p>Leo is scheduled to fly from Istanbul to Beirut, Lebanon, on Sunday afternoon for the second leg of his inaugural trip as pope.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pope visits Istanbul&#8217;s Blue Mosque, skips prayer to unite Christians<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":2515732,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Pope-Leo.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[67927,52027,67926],"class_list":["post-2515731","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-blue-mosque","tag-istanbul","tag-pope-visit"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Pope-Leo.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2515731","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/136"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2515731"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2515731\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2515735,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2515731\/revisions\/2515735"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2515732"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2515731"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2515731"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2515731"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}