The logo for Pope Leo XIV’s visit to Turkey and Lebanon featured the Dardanelles Bridge (Çanakkale Bridge), which represents the meeting of Asia and Europe, and symbolizes Christ as the bridge between God and humanity. The logo included mottos “One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism” taken from St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians (4:5) and “Blessed are the Peacemakers” taken from the Gospel of Matthew (5:9). This imagery and these words symbolize the goals and achievements of the Pope’s first foreign visit.
As the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea is celebrated, it is both appropriate and essential for the successor of Peter to arrive in the city that hosted that council. Pope Leo realized this journey, which had been planned by Pope Francis. It became Pope Leo’s first foreign tour. As the Council of Nicaea—which formed the fundamental creed of Christians—passes seventeen centuries, Christian unity naturally becomes a subject for reflection.
The descendants of those who participated in the council as believers of a single church now stand divided among many churches. There is no dispute that divisions between and within churches weaken the Christian mission. Is complete Christian unity, ending all divisions, possible? Despite many practical obstacles, Pope Leo delivered a message in Turkey that the search for unity and the journey toward it must continue unceasingly. Representatives from many churches supported this through their presence and their words.
The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I—the host of the celebration—clarified in his welcome message that they gathered in Nicaea not merely to remember past events or analyse history. The priority is to bear witness today to the same faith expressed by the Fathers of Nicaea. Looking back is not for moving backward, but for moving forward by absorbing lessons. Christian brotherhood will bear fruit when the intensity of the Nicene Creed, the core of global Christianity, glows within.
The essence of Pope Leo’s words at various venues in Turkey and Lebanon was Church unity and world peace. The Pope also alluded to unity within the Catholic Church. He clarified that by recognizing the diversity of liturgical traditions, the Catholic Church is promoting unity. The Church deserves the title “Catholic” precisely because it recognizes and embraces diversity. This is the inherent nature of the Church.
It is natural for the Pope to deliver a message regarding unity between Christian churches and encounters with non-Christian religions while standing on Middle Eastern soil. History witnesses the contradiction where religion becomes a cause for war, violence, and fundamentalism. We must firmly reject such misuses of religion. What must exist between Western and Eastern cultures, as well as between religions, are bridges of mutual encounter, not walls that keep us apart. Humans and religious leaders who build bridges using the stones pulled from dismantled walls will make the future of humanity hopeful.
Those who desire unity should seek similarities rather than provoking differences. This search for areas of agreement must happen between churches and between religions. If it does not lead to becoming one, it will lead to being together in unity. There are numerous obstacles we must face together and many goals we must achieve. Issues ranging from the care of creation to the resolution of wars lie before the world. The Pope warned that the wars and conflicts currently happening in Ukraine, Gaza, African countries, and elsewhere have become a third world war—if not in name, then in result.
With the closing of the Holy Door of St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome, the Vatican began on December 25 the gradual conclusion of the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope convened by the Church. On January 6, the solemnity of the Epiphany, Pope Leo XIV will close the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica, officially concluding the jubilee. This same year, the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea was also celebrated.
Next, the year 2033 will be of exceptional significance for the Christian community and the entire world. This extraordinary year will mark the 2000th anniversary of the Redemption, an event that highlights the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the foundation of Christian faith. It will be a unique Jubilee, characterized by profound spiritual celebrations and a renewed commitment to the values of peace, reconciliation, and solidarity. The Pope mentioned in Turkey that ecumenical dialogues regarding this are taking place. There is an ongoing deliberation that in 2033, all those who are Christians should gather in Jerusalem, regardless of their church denomination, if possible. May Christians make sincere efforts in the coming years to reach the Holy Land in 2033 as pilgrims with peace, a sense of unity, and mutual love.
