Vatican City, May 16, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, has not ruled out the possibility of Pope Leo XIV traveling to Nicaea, located in the present-day Turkish town of Iznik, where the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council will be celebrated later this month.
“It’s an important moment for the Catholic Church and for ecumenism,” the Italian cardinal stated after noting that it could be the new pontiff’s first international destination.
“It was definitely planned that Pope Francis would go. I imagine Pope Leo will follow the same path,” he added, speaking with Vatican media on the sidelines of the event “Toward a Theology of Hope for and from Ukraine,” held at the Gregorian University on May 14–15, organized under the patronage of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.
The death of Pope Francis on April 21 had dashed the hopes of the Eastern Orthodox ecumenical patriarch, Bartholomew, of being able to celebrate the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea with the bishop of Rome around May 24.
The pivotal ecclesial meeting, which took place in A.D. 325 at the initiative of Emperor Constantine, marked a milestone in the history of Christianity as the first ecumenical council of the Church, during which the Nicene Creed, the first official summary of Christian belief, was formulated.
Nonetheless, Patriarch Bartholomew did not rule out the possibility of a visit by Leo XIV. On May 8, during a tribute he received at the Basil and Elise Goulandris Foundation in Athens, Greece, he proposed an alternative plan to travel to Turkey at the end of November in observance of the feast of the patron saint of the ecuemenical patriarchate, St. Andrew, on Nov. 30.
He also indicated that he would be present at the Mass to inaugurate Leo XIV’s pontificate, scheduled for Sunday, May 18, at St. Peter’s.
Istanbul, a path to peace in Ukraine
On another note, Parolin also encouraged peace negotiations between the presidents of Ukraine and Russia during the meeting to be held in Turkey with the mediation of the United States.
He expressed his hope that the meeting planned for Istanbul could be “a serious starting point for ending the war.”
“We always hope there are openings for peace,” Parolin said. “We are pleased that there is finally the possibility of a direct meeting. We hope that the existing issues can be resolved there and that a genuine peace process can begin.”
No immediate plans for a papal trip to Ukraine
Regarding a possible visit by Pope Leo XIV to Kyiv, Ukraine, following President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s telephone invitation Monday, the Vatican secretary of state indicated that it is still “premature” to consider such a possibility.
Pope Leo XIV “will continue, as he has done numerous times since the start of his pontificate, to call for an end to the war,” Parolin affirmed.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
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I hope Pope Leo does go to Nicaea, if only to clarify the fact that to state that Jesus The Christ Is Consubstantial ( Homoousios) , with The Father , in essence , is to affirm The Filioque, and thus the fact that Jesus, Who Exists In A Communion Of Perfect Divine Eternal Love With The Father, In The Unity Of The Holy Ghost, Returns To The Father , in Essence, The Perfect Divine Eternal Love He Receives From His Father, And Thus, He Is The Way, The Truth, And The Life Of Perfect Divine Eternal Love Incarnate. The Filioque affirms The Divinity Of The Most Holy Blessed Trinity, Father, Son, And Holy Ghost, The Ordered Communion Of Perfect Divine Eternal Love Between The Father And His Only Begotten Son, Who Proceeds From Both The Father And His Only Begotten Son, In The Ordered Communion Of Perfect Complementary Divine Eternal Love, The Most Holy Blessed Trinity.
At the end of the day, it is still a Great Mystery, but it is no Mystery that we exist because Perfect Divine Eternal Love Exists. Only Perfect Divine Eternal Love Has The Ability And Desire To Give Us Life, And Raise Us From Death To Life Everlasting, Eternal Joy And Happiness With The BlessedTrinity, In Heaven.
Please Pray for Most Rev. Rene Gracida, although we never met, he inspired me to remain in The Truth Of Our Savior, Jesus The Christ.
I was in Turkey when I was in the Navy in the 60s and one day I was wih some people and we passed through a town called Iznik. I took no particular notice of it until – 5 miles past – the girl next to me said “do you know where we just were?” “No.” “Nicaea”.
I also went to Ephesus and one day we went to on of the ampitheaters and I stood at the top of the hill and friend spoke in a normal tone of voice and I could hear him quite clearly.
Thank you Mr Terence. That was very interesting.
A little off topic. Last year PBS ran an episode of “Secrets of the Dead: The Sunken Basilica” that investigated the possible specific location where the council was held in 325. I was rather surprised that, according to the documentary, the specific location of the council isn’t known. The scientific research is quite interesting, and here a preview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRCBko3mADk
I would have preferred to have read, “Cardinal Parolin replied, ‘You’ll have to ask him. I don’t know, as he doesn’t talk to me anymore.’ “