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CNA Staff, Nov 28, 2025 / 00:12 am (CNA).

The second day of Pope Leo XIV's apostolic journey to Turkey is focused on praying with the Christian community. Watch LIVE the major events of this trip at youtube.com/@ewtnnews and follow our live updates of his historic visit:

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Istanbul, Turkey, Nov 28, 2025 / 01:55 am (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV encouraged Turkey's small Catholic community Friday to rediscover what he called the Gospel's "logic of littleness," urging them not to be discouraged by their tiny numbers but to recognize in them the strength of authentic Christian witness.

The pope addressed bishops, priests, religious, pastoral workers, and laypeople at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Istanbul on his second day in the country. Catholics in Turkey make up roughly 0.05% of the nation's 85 million people.

Calling Turkey a "holy land" where the Old and New Testaments meet, the pope recalled the deep Christian roots of the region: Abraham's journey through Harran, the early Christian communities in Antioch and Ephesus, and the long and influential history of Byzantine Christianity. He noted in particular that the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, currently led by Patriarch Bartholomew I, remains "a point of reference" both for its Greek faithful and for other Orthodox Churches.

The pope warned Christians not to treat this heritage merely as a memory of past greatness. Instead, he urged them to adopt "an evangelical vision" that sees their present reality through the Holy Spirit's light.

"When we look with God's eyes, we discover that he has chosen the way of littleness," he said, pointing to the mustard seed, the little ones praised by Jesus, and the quiet growth of the kingdom of God. The Church's true strength, he explained, "does not lie in her resources or structures," nor in numbers or influence, but in remaining gathered around Christ and sent by the Holy Spirit.

Quoting Jesus' words, "Do not be afraid, little flock," the pope encouraged Christians in Turkey to cultivate hope. He pointed to the growing number of young people approaching the Catholic Church as a sign of promise and asked communities to continue welcoming and accompanying them.

He urged particular dedication to ecumenical and interreligious dialogue, the transmission of the faith to local communities, and pastoral service to refugees and migrants—many of whom are among the most vulnerable people in the country. The pope also noted that many Catholics in Turkey come from abroad, a reality that calls for a deeper process of inculturation so that the language and culture of the country become "more and more your own."

The pope highlighted Turkey's unique role in the history of the Church, recalling that the first eight ecumenical councils were held on its soil. Marking the 1700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea, he said the council continues to pose three questions to Christians today: What is the essence of the faith? Who is Jesus for us? And how should doctrine be expressed in ways that speak to contemporary culture?

He warned against what he described as a "new Arianism," a version of the heresy that divided Christianity in its early centuries, that reduces Jesus to a moral teacher or heroic figure while denying his divinity and lordship over history.

Before concluding, the pope invoked the memory of St. John XXIII, who served in Turkey and wrote affectionately of its people. Reflecting on the saint's image of Bosporus fishermen laboring through the night, he encouraged Turkish Catholics to persevere in the same spirit: working faithfully, joyfully, and courageously "in the Lord's boat."

The Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, where the meeting took place, was built in 1846 and houses relics of early popes, including St. Linus. A statue of Pope Benedict XV stands in its courtyard, erected in gratitude for his efforts to help victims of the 1915–1918 war. The inscription honors him as a "benefactor of peoples, without distinction of nationality or religion."

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Istanbul, Turkey, Nov 28, 2025 / 03:00 am (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV visited the Nursing Home of the Little Sisters of the Poor in Istanbul on Friday, telling the community that Christian charity begins not with doing, but with being, i.e., living a real communion with those one serves.

"The secret of Christian charity is that before being for others, we must first be with others in a communion based on fraternity," he said during the encounter on Nov. 28, the second day of his apostolic trip to Turkey, where he is marking the 1700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea.

A papal stop at a charitable institution has become customary during international journeys, and Pope Leo chose to spend time with the elderly as a sign of closeness to those often marginalized in modern societies.

Founded in France in 1839 by St. Jeanne Jugan, the Little Sisters of the Poor serve elderly people in need around the world, including in Turkey, where they welcome residents of different religious backgrounds. The pope was greeted at the residence by the mother superior, former superior, and provincial leader before proceeding to the chapel to meet residents, staff, and benefactors.

Reflecting on the congregation's name, the pope told the Sisters that their mission mirrors the life of Christ himself. "The Lord has called you not only to assist or help the poor, but has also called you to be their 'sisters.' You are to be like Jesus, whom the Father sent to us not only to help and serve us, but also to be our brother."

Turning to the residents, he warned that the word "elderly" risks losing its meaning in cultures driven by efficiency and materialism. Such attitudes, he said, lead societies to forget the dignity and value of older persons. Scripture and tradition, by contrast, present the elderly as bearers of memory and wisdom.

"As Pope Francis loved to repeat – the elderly are the wisdom of a people, a treasure for their grandchildren, families and society as a whole," he said.

Pope Leo concluded by thanking the community for its patient, prayerful witness and prayed that the Lord would strengthen all who live and serve in the home.

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St. Louis, Missouri, Nov 27, 2025 / 11:00 am (CNA).

In 1621, lacking both the skills and the resources necessary to survive in the harsh territory of New England, European pilgrims encountered a miracle: a Native American who not only spoke English but who also used his skills and knowledge to help them adapt to their environment and survive the brutal winter.

This was Squanto, a man who occupies a special place in the hearts of many people who celebrate Thanksgiving because of his willingness and ability to help the newcomers to his land.

Squanto's full name was Tisquantum, and he was a member of the Patuxet tribe, which lived in and around modern-day Plymouth, Massachusetts. He was probably born around 1585 in the area that is now Boston.

Little is known about Tisquantum's early life, but what is known is that he was abducted from his homeland as a slave by an Englishman, Thomas Hunt, in 1614. He ended up in Malaga, Spain, where a group of Franciscans bought him in order to free him. It is apparently from these Franciscans that he received baptism and became Catholic, though it is not clear to what extent he was catechized and practiced his new faith.

Damien Costello, a Catholic historian and theologian, told CNA that the historical record portrays "a very skillful agent" in Tisquantum who was able to change his situation and engage with European culture. He was able to find employment as a translator in England and later convinced a wealthy financier to fund an expedition back to his homeland.

When Tisquantum finally made it back to where his tribe lived in present-day Massachusetts, his life took a tragic turn. He discovered that his entire tribe, while he was in Europe, had been wiped out by disease — he was the sole survivor.

The Pilgrims arrived in New England in 1620. They were far from the first Europeans to set foot on those shores — this was many years after Jesuit missionaries had started missionary activity in the area but hadn't settled. When the Pilgrims arrived in what had once been Patuxet territory, the empty land made a good place to settle. Tisquantum, no doubt mourning the loss of his people, was nevertheless able to deftly reinvent himself as an intermediary between the Pilgrims and Native leaders.

In March 1621, the chief of the Wampanoag confederation, Massasoit, went to meet with the Pilgrims and brought Tisquantum along to translate. After negotiations fell apart, Tisquantum stayed with the Pilgrims and helped to facilitate what we now know as the first Thanksgiving — a meal between the Pilgrims and the Natives of the area. Tisquantum died the next year, in 1622.

So, was Tisquantum a Catholic? Costello says it is likely he was baptized and thus, theologically, he was indeed a Catholic. Native American culture was very spiritual, and Costello said he doesn't think it unlikely that Tisquantum saw his baptism as a positive spiritual experience.

"Catholicism was a crucial ingredient in Squanto's resiliency, the regenerative principle that gave spiritual power to sustain the disjunction of being a global citizen in a world forever turned upside down," Costello later wrote in an article for U.S. Catholic.

As to whether Tisquantum continued to practice his Catholic faith for the rest of his life, there's little evidence to say for sure. In a very real sense, God only knows.

This story was adapted from an episode of Catholic News Agency's award-winning storytelling podcast, CNA Newsroom, and first published on Nov. 24, 2022. You can listen to that episode here.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 27, 2025 / 13:35 pm (CNA).

Here is a roundup of recent pro-life- and abortion-related news.

U.S. legislators introduce bill to protect medical residents from coercive abortion training 

U.S. legislators have introduced a bill to protect the conscience rights of medical students and residents who often feel pressured or even coerced into participating in abortions during their training. 

U.S. Senator John Cornyn, R-Texas, Senator James Lankford, R-Oklahoma, and others introduced the Conscience Protections for Medical Residents Act, designed to "ensure medical students and residents are never pressured or coerced into abortion training that violates their moral or religious beliefs," according to a press release.  

The bill would establish federal protections for students, making abortion training an "opt-in" rather than "opt-out" system as "residents often fear that opting out could affect evaluations, recommendations, or future career opportunities," according to the press release. 

"The first rule of medicine is to do no harm, yet for many aspiring doctors, coerced abortion training not only contradicts that oath but also violates their moral and religious beliefs," Cornyn said in a statement. 

"By allowing medical residents to opt-in rather than opt-out of abortion training, this legislation would protect health care professionals' convictions and give them the freedom to practice medicine without fear of retaliation." 

Investigative videos find late term abortions performed in Canada without serious medical reason 

After a pregnant pro-life woman went undercover in abortion clinics across Canada, she discovered that late-term abortionists are easily accessible, even in cases where the woman isn't having medical issues, according to recently released videos. 

Alissa Golob, co-founder of RightNow, went undercover when she was five months pregnant in 2023, obtaining videos in Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver and elsewhere that have been released to the public over the past two weeks.   

The videos show abortionists saying that women don't need to prove that they are having serious medical issues in order to have a late-term abortion. 

"Canadians are often told that late-term abortions never happen in Canada and if they do, they are for extreme medical reasons, such as the life of the mother," Golob said in a Nov. 19 statement. 

"Yet, as you will see in these videos, I was told numerous times that attaining a late-term abortion in Canada is relatively easy, it is legal, and that I did not need a reason, medical or otherwise, regarding myself or my pregnancy," Golob continued. 

RightNow is calling on the Canadian government in a petition to protect unborn children by restricting late-term abortions after five months of pregnancy. 

North Dakota reinstates law protecting unborn babies 

North Dakota's Supreme Court reinstated a state law protecting unborn children in nearly all cases.  

In 2023, North Dakota made it a felony for abortionists to take the lives of unborn children except in cases of rape or incest and medical emergencies. After a lower court ruled that the law was unconstitutional, the law was put on pause. 

On Nov. 21, the state's supreme court reversed the lower court's ruling. A 3-2 majority of justices voted to uphold the lower court's ruling, but the state's constitution requires a minimum of four justices to declare a state law unconstitutional. 

U.S. senator calls on government to prevent taxpayer-funded abortions in 2026 funding  

U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) this week urged his Republican colleagues on the Senate Appropriations Committee to ensure that the funding for the fiscal year 2026 does not fund abortions. 

In a Nov. 24 letter, Cornyn asked the senators "to hold the line against any Democratic efforts to subvert the Hyde amendment," an amendment that prevents federal taxpayer dollars from directly funding abortions. 

Cornyn noted that the recent One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) defunded organizations that fund abortion, which he said "showed that even in the wake of the historic Dobbs decision, our fight is not over." 

"Democrats shut down the government for 43 days in an unsuccessful attempt to undue the work Republicans accomplished in OBBBA, including the progress we made to stop forced taxpayer funding of abortion," Cornyn said. "Now is not the time to give an inch on our pro-life values."

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Vatican City, Nov 27, 2025 / 14:30 pm (CNA).

A towering Christmas tree now stands in the center of St. Peter's Square, after the spruce arrived at the Vatican on Thursday morning. 

The 88-foot-tall spruce tree from Italy's Bolzano province was erected next to the ancient Egyptian obelisk which stands in the middle of the 17th century Baroque square designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini.

This year, the northern Italian municipalities of Lagundo and Ultimo gifted the Christmas tree to the Vatican. The tree was harvested in the alpine valley of Ultimo.

In an Oct. 20 interview published on the Vatican State website, Bishop Ivo Muser of the Diocese of Bolzano-Bressanone said the tree reaffirms the local church's "spiritual and emotional bond" with the pope. 

"It is a way of saying: 'We are with you, Pope Leo; we wish to pray with you and share the joy of Christmas with you," he said.

"The tree thus becomes an 'ambassador' of our territory, our culture, and our faith — a way of bringing a small piece of our local Church into the heart of the universal Church," he added.

The Vatican's large-scale nativity display — donated by the Italian Diocese of Nocera Inferiore-Sarno — is currently under construction behind covered fencing in St. Peter's Square.

The highly-awaited 2025 nativity scene will honor St. Alphonus Maria de Liguori, whose remains lay in the southern Italian diocese. In Italy, St. Alponsus is famous for composing the famous Italian Christmas carol "Tu scendi dalle stelle" ("From starry skies descending").

Bishop Giuseppe Giudice of the Diocese of Nocera Inferiore-Sarno said the nativity project for the Vatican, which involved a "long period of preparation," will also showcase local Neapolitan Christmas traditions.  

"I am happy to say that everyone working on the project is from our wonderful region, and the Nativity scene will be rich in elements typical of our local Agro nocerino-sarnese area," he said in an Oct. 24 interview published by Vatican City State.  

The Vatican will hold a special ceremony on Dec. 7 at 6:30 pm local time to present  the Christmas tree and nativity scene to the public. The display will be open to the public until mid-January 2026.

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CNA Staff, Nov 27, 2025 / 18:12 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV ended Nov. 27 in Istanbul, concluding the initial day of his first papal trip abroad in Turkey. The Holy Father will spend Nov. 27 to Dec. 2 in the country. Watch LIVE the major events of this trip at youtube.com/@ewtnnews and follow our live updates of his historic trip:

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Rome Newsroom, Nov 26, 2025 / 19:30 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Cardinal Grzegorz Rys, until now the archbishop of Lódz, as the new archbishop of Krakow, the archdiocese in Poland that was formerly led by Pope St. John Paul II.

The cardinal succeeds Archbishop Marek Jedraszewski, 76, whose resignation has been accepted by the Holy Father, as reported by the Vatican Press Office on Nov. 26.

Rys was born on Feb. 9, 1964, in Krakow and is 61 years old. He will lead the archdiocese where Karol Wojtyla, who would later become Pope St. John Paul II, served as a priest, auxiliary bishop, and archbishop from 1946 to 1978, the year he was elected Successor of St. Peter.

Who is the new archbishop of Krakow in Poland?

Rys studied at the major seminary in Krakow and was ordained a priest on May 22, 1988. He worked on and received a doctorate in theology from the Pontifical Theological Academy of Krakow (1989-1994).

He has held, among others, the following positions: parochial vicar of Saints Margaret and Catherine in Kety (1988-1989); professor of Church history at the Pontifical Theological Academy in Krakow which would later become the John Paul II Pontifical University (1994-2011); rector of the major seminary (2007-2011); and president of the Conference of Rectors of Major Seminaries in Poland (2010-2011).

He was appointed auxiliary bishop of Krakow on July 16, 2011, and received episcopal consecration on Sept. 28 that year. On Sept. 14, 2017, he was appointed archbishop of Lódz.

Pope Francis created him a cardinal at the consistory of Sept. 30, 2023.

Within the Polish Bishops Conference, he presides over the Council for Religious Dialogue and the Committee for Dialogue with Judaism, according to a statement from the Polish episcopate. He is also a member of the Council for Ecumenism, the Council for Culture and the Protection of Cultural Heritage, and the Council for the Family.

At the Vatican, he is a member of the Dicastery for Bishops and the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

His episcopal motto is: Virtus in infirmitate (Strength in weakness).

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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CNA Staff, Nov 26, 2025 / 16:15 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV is embarking on the first apostolic journey of his papacy to Turkey and Lebanon from Nov. 27 to Dec. 2. Follow here for live updates of his historic trip:

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 26, 2025 / 16:15 pm (CNA).

A Christian advocacy group's report details "legal, institutional, and social hostility" toward Turkish Christians as Pope Leo XIV begins his six-day visit to Turkey and Lebanon Thursday.

The report from The European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ), titled "The Persecution of Christians in Turkey," explores government interference against clergy and Christian entities, restrictions on foreign Christians who visit the country, and widespread social animosity toward the faithful, which sometimes includes direct violence.

"Communities that were once integral to the cultural, religious, and historical fabric of Anatolia have been reduced to a fragile remnant," the authors state.

"Their disappearance is not the product of a single event but the cumulative result of restrictive legislation, administrative obstruction, property confiscations, denial of legal personality, and — more recently — arbitrary expulsions of clergy, missionaries, and converts," they add.

Modern-day Turkey, which was governed by Christians prior to the Ottoman Empire invasions in late Middle Ages, is still home to about 257,000 Christians. In 1915, Christians still accounted for about 20% of the Turkish population, but the number has dwindled over the past century and they now account for less than 0.3% of the population.

Persecution of Christians

The report says hostility toward Christians is kept alive through environmental factors, such as Turkey's refusal to recognize its past by continuing to deny the genocide of Armenians and other Christians during World War I. 

At that time, about 1.5 million Armenians and 500,000 other Christians were forcibly deported or massacred, and Turkey's criminalization of "insulting the Turkish nation" and "insulting Turkishness" is often enforced to quell speech about the historical events, according to the report.

It notes that politicians and state-run media frequently scapegoat Christians for societal issues and depict them as an external and internal threat, with one example being President Recep Tayyip Erdogan referring to survivors of the genocide as "terrorists escaped from the sword" and another being the state-run Yeni Akit allegedly editing Wikipedia to smear Christians, Jews, and other groups.

In some cases, this hostility yields violence, including a 2024 terrorist attack on a Catholic church that killed one person, and other acts of violence and vandalism.

The report notes that Turkey signed the Treaty of Lausanne after the Armenian genocide, which granted people who believe some non-majority faiths full legal recognition and property rights.

Yet, a narrow interpretation of the treaty ensures "a national narrative that presents Sunni Islam as the primary marker of Turkish identity," the report says. The treaty also fails to recognize all Christians, only giving a specific reference to Greek Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic Christians, and Jews, but not Catholics or Protestants, according to the report.

It states that Sunni Islam is often tied to Turkish identity in public education and the process to be exempt from compulsory Islamic education is burdensome for Christians not covered under the treaty.

No church holds legal personality as a religious institution, which means patriarchates, dioceses, and churches cannot "own property in their own name, initiate legal proceedings, employ staff, open bank accounts, or formally interact with public authorities," the report states.

The government also interferes with religious leadership, prohibiting non-Turkish citizens from being elected as Ecumenical Patriarch, sitting on the Holy Synod, or participating in patriarchal elections in the Greek Orthodox Church. The government also regulates elections for leadership in the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Turkey shut down the Greek Orthodox Halki Seminary in 1971 and — despite promises to let it reopen — keeps it shut down, according to the report.

The report also says Turkey imposes legal constraints and administrative obstruction on Christian "community foundations," which operate churches, schools, hospitals, and charitable institutions.

This includes blocking board elections and failing to enforce court orders. One of the more egregious violations is imposing "mazbut" trusteeship, which ends Christian institutions' legal recognition and grants control to the government, which essentially confiscates property, the report said.

"These practices reveal a structural system designed to undermine the autonomy, continuity, and survival of Christian communities in Turkey," the report states.

According to the report, foreign Protestant pastors are often expelled from seminaries. More broadly, it states that foreign missionaries and converts are often targeted as "national security" threats and frequently expelled from Turkey. 

The authors encouraged Turkey to grant full legal recognition to all churches, halt interference in Christian organizations, protect places of worship, end arbitrary expulsions, and return property that has been confiscated.

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