Pope Leo XIV will travel to Asia Minor at the end of November with His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to commemorate the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea.
The visit, announced by the Vatican, will be held under the theme “One Lord, one faith, one baptism.”
The Pontiff will begin his journey on November 27, departing from Rome for Ankara to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and foreign diplomats.
The following day, he and the Ecumenical Patriarch will attend an Ecumenical Prayer Gathering at the archaeological site of the Basilica of Saint Neophytos in Nicaea, before continuing to Constantinople that evening.
On November 29, Pope Leo will visit the Blue Mosque and the Phanar, where he will join a Doxology and hold a private meeting with Patriarch Bartholomew.
The two will sign a joint declaration before the Pope celebrates Mass at the Volkswagen Arena later that day.
The visit will conclude on November 30 with the Throne Feast of Saint Andrew the Apostle at the Ecumenical Patriarchate, followed by a Divine Liturgy and an Ecumenical Blessing.
After a luncheon with Patriarch Bartholomew, Pope Leo will depart for Lebanon to continue his pastoral visit until December 2.
