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According to Holy See Press Office (Vatican), the visit will start in Ankara, Türkiye’s capital, where the Pope will meet President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and address government officials, civil society representatives and the diplomatic corps. He will also visit the Anitkabir. These events form the formal opening of a state and pastoral trip that will then move to Istanbul the same day.
In Istanbul, the Pope’s schedule includes a meeting with bishops, priests, deacons, consecrated persons and pastoral workers at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit. He will also greet residents at the Nursing Home of the Little Sisters of the Poor.
The Pope will transfer by helicopter to Iznik—historically known as Nicaea—to take part in an ecumenical prayer service near the archaeological remains of the Basilica of Saint Neophytos (a late antique church site). He will return to Istanbul for a private meeting with bishops at the Apostolic Delegation (the papal mission office).
The following day in Istanbul, he will visit the Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmed Mosque) and hold a private meeting at the Syriac Orthodox Church of Mor Ephrem with leaders of local churches and Christian communities.
Later at the Patriarchal Church of Saint George, he will attend a doxology (a short hymn or prayer of praise) before meeting Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I to sign a joint declaration. The day will conclude with a public Mass at Istanbul’s Volkswagen Arena.
On Nov. 30 in Istanbul, the Pope will make a prayer visit to the Armenian Apostolic Cathedral and then attend the Divine Liturgy (the Eucharistic service in Eastern Christian traditions) at the Patriarchal Church of Saint George, followed by an ecumenical blessing and lunch with Patriarch Bartholomew I.
The Istanbul leg will end with a farewell ceremony at Ataturk Airport.
Arriving in Beirut the same day, the Pope will meet the country’s political leadership and speak to authorities, civil society and the diplomatic corps. The Beirut program adds a private meeting with Catholic patriarchs at the Apostolic Nunciature (the Holy See’s embassy), an ecumenical and interreligious gathering at Martyrs’ Square, and an event with young people in front of the Maronite Patriarchate in Bkerke.
In the final two days, he will pray at the tomb of Saint Charbel Makluf in Annaya, meet clergy and pastoral workers at the Shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon in Harissa, visit staff and patients at De La Croix Hospital in Jal Ed Dib, hold a moment of silent prayer at the Beirut port explosion site, and celebrate Mass at the Beirut Waterfront before the farewell ceremony and return to Rome.
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