Pope Leo Visits Istanbul’s Historic Blue Mosque

Istanbul, Türkiye, November, 29, 2025– On the third day of his Apostolic Journey to Türkiye, Pope Leo XIV visited the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, widely known as the Blue Mosque and considered one of Istanbul’s most significant places of worship.

According to the Holy See Press Office, the Pope entered the mosque in silence, adopting a spirit of recollection and attentive listening. He expressed deep respect for the site and for the faith of those who gather there in prayer.

The mosque, distinguished by more than 21,000 ceramic tiles from Iznik in shades of blue and turquoise, earned its popular name from these striking interior features. Completed in 1617 by Sultan Ahmed I on part of the former grounds of the Great Palace of Constantinople, the Blue Mosque stands as one of Istanbul’s most important Ottoman-era monuments. Eight volumes documenting its construction are preserved in the Topkapi Library.

Pope Leo arrived at the mosque on Saturday morning accompanied by Türkiye’s Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy; the provincial mufti of Istanbul, Emrullah Tuncel; and the imam of the mosque, Kurra Hafiz Fatih Kaya. The imam, together with muezzin Musa Asgin Tunca, guided the Pope through a brief tour of the site.

The day’s schedule includes several further engagements. After his mosque visit, the Pope is due to meet privately with leaders of local Churches and Christian communities at the Syriac Orthodox Church of Mor Ephrem.

Pope Leo is now the third pontiff to visit the Blue Mosque, following Francis in 2014 and Benedict XVI in 2006. Benedict’s visit marked only the second time in history that a Pope had entered a mosque, after John Paul II’s notable visit to the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus during his Apostolic Journey to Syria in 2001.

Later in the day, at the Patriarchal Church of Saint George, the Holy Father will take part in the Doxology alongside Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople.

Courtesy: Vatican News

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