From Deseret News archives:

Pope offers a prayer in mosque

Published: Friday, Dec. 1, 2006 12:49 a.m. MST
 |  E-MAIL | PRINT | FONT + - 
ISTANBUL, Turkey — Pope Benedict XVI joined an Islamic cleric in prayers under the towering dome of Istanbul's most famous mosque Thursday in a powerful gesture seeking to transform his image among Muslims from adversary to peacemaker.

The pope's minute of prayer was done in silence, but the message of reconciliation was designed to resonate loudly nearly three months after he provoked worldwide fury for remarks on violence and the Prophet Muhammad.

"This visit will help us find together the way of peace for the good of all humanity," the pope said inside the 17th-century Blue Mosque — in only the second papal visit in history to a Muslim place of worship. Benedict's predecessor, John Paul II, made a brief stop in a mosque in Syria in 2001.

Benedict's steps through a stone archway and into the mosque's carpeted expanse capped a day of deep symbolism and lofty goals. Hours earlier, he stood beside the spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians and passionately encouraged steps to end the nearly 1,000-year divide between their churches.

The pope walked to the mosque after touring another majestic tribute to faith: the 1,500-year-old Haghia Sofia and its remarkable mix of Quranic calligraphy and Christian mosaics from its legacy as a marvel of early Christianity and then a coveted prize of Islam's expansion.

Story continues below
At the mosque, the pope removed his shoes and put on white slippers. Then he walked beside Mustafa Cagrici, the head cleric of Istanbul. Facing the holy city of Mecca — in the tradition of Islamic worship — Cagrici said: "Now I'm going to pray." Benedict, too, bowed his head and his lips moved as if reciting words.

Before the pope left, he thanked Cagrici "for this moment of prayer."

"A single swallow can't bring spring," Cagrici told the pope, who ends his first papal trip to a Muslim nation Friday. "But many swallows will follow and we will enjoy a spring in this world."

The pope received a painting showing the Sea of Marmara and a glazed tile decorated with a dove. The mosque is officially known as the Sultan Ahmet Mosque after the Ottoman sultan Ahmet I, who ordered its construction. But it's widely called the Blue Mosque after its elaborate blue tiles.

The pope presented the imam with a mosaic showing four doves.

"Let us pray for brotherhood and for all humanity," Benedict said in Italian.

The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said the mosque visit was added as a "sign of respect" to Muslims. "A (Christian) believer can pray in any place, even a mosque," Lombardi said, calling it an "intimate, personal prayer."

Comments

You can be the first to comment on this story.

Image
Kerim Okten, Associated Press

Pope Benedict XVI, left, and Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I wave from a balcony in Istanbul, Turkey, on Thursday. The pope also visited an Islamic mosque in an effort at reconciliation.

previousnext

Latest comments

So are you saying that women's soccor should evolve into this type of...

The Church has never been about hating gays, or any other group. It has only...

Hatch empathizes with Muslims

To which I add Amen, and Amen! [Thank you!]

RSL in win-Windy City situation

this is going to so much fun? Gee who do i cheer for if REAL plays Galaxy? ...

Hall would rather take a hit

The great QBs make defenses pay for bringing pressure. Hall offers up...

I completely concur, this exhibition game was supposed to be easy and a blow...

Maybe we should just back up 50 years and do away with all laws etc. passed...

So does Hall enjoy absorbing the contact as Call says, or in Hall's own...

Well put, let it die. A lot people who want the health care bill haven't...

D-Will, Price sit out Jazz practice

If Jerry studies "game tape" he will see how to beat the Celtics, see Phoenix...

Advertisements
Advertisement