Pope visits “Blue Mosque”, symbol of Islam’s arrival in Ottoman Empire
Pope Leo XIV in the Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Istanbul. November 29, 2025. Photo: Video screenshot, Vatican Media
On the morning of November 29, 2025, Pope Leo XIV visited the Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Istanbul, known as the Blue Mosque, built in the seventeenth century in an attempt to surpass the grandeur of the nearby Christian cathedral of Hagia Sophia. According to the Vatican press office, the construction of the mosque aimed to make it the most significant place of worship in the Ottoman Empire.
The Blue Mosque was built as Islam’s response and as an effort to surpass the grandeur of the Christian Hagia Sophia located nearby. It became one of the most expressive symbols of Islam’s presence in the former Constantinople. Constructed in 1617 by Sultan Ahmed I on the grounds of the Byzantine Great Palace, it was conceived as the principal prayer center of the Ottoman Empire. Historically, many Christians have viewed this place as a sign of the definitive establishment of Islam in the former capital of Byzantium.
“The Pope experienced the visit to the Mosque in silence, in a spirit of recollection and attentive listening, with deep respect for the place and for the faith of those who gather there in prayer,” the Holy See Press Office wrote.
Pope Leo was accompanied by the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy; the provincial mufti of Istanbul, Emrullah Tuncel; and the imam of the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, Kurra Hafiz Fatih Kaya. Inside, muezzin Musa Aşgın Tunca led the Pope on a brief tour of the mosque.
Leo XIV became the third Pope to visit the Blue Mosque. Before him, Pope Francis (2014) and Benedict XVI (2006) stood there in silence. The first-ever visit of a Roman Catholic pontiff to a mosque took place in 2001, when John Paul II entered the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus.
After visiting the mosque, the pontiff plans to meet with the heads of the Local Churches and Christian communities at the Mor Ephrem Syrian Orthodox Church, after which he will join a joint doxology at the Ecumenical Patriarchate together with Patriarch Bartholomew.
As the UOJ reported, in Nicaea, Pope Leo and Patriarch Bartholomew recited the Creed without the filioque.
Read also
Budanov lights first candle of Jewish Hanukkah
The head of the Defence Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate took part in a Jewish religious ceremony.
ROCOR hierarch speaks about persecution of UOC at rally near Congress
Bishop Theodosy called on American lawmakers to pay attention to violations of religious freedom in Ukraine.
Volyn RC deputy demand inspection of UOC churches at state institutions
Andrii Bokoch is calling for an inspection of the affiliation of all churches and chapels in Volyn located on the premises of state and medical institutions.
In Bari, UOC hierarchs celebrate a service at St. Nicholas' relics
On the eve of the feast day of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, hierarchs of the UOC celebrated a service in the basilica at his relics.
In Kyiv university, UOC hierarchs discuss church–state relations
Representatives of the episcopate of the UOC took part in an academic round table devoted to the issue of relations between the Church and the state.
In Amman, King of Jordan discusses problems of Christians with Pat Theophilos
On the eve of the Christmas holidays, Jordan’s capital hosted a meeting between King Abdullah II and representatives of Christian denominations and Muslim religious leaders.