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Pope Benedict Prays In Istanbul´s Blue Mosque

Updated: November 30, 2006 05:00 PM GMT
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In a historic gesture of reconciliation and an unequivocal confirmation of his belief that Christians and Muslims worship "the One God," Pope Benedict XVI prayed for a minute in silence in the main mosque of Istanbul on the eve of his departure from Turkey.

With this unprecedented act in the Sultan Ahmet Mosque, the theologian-pope may have taken a giant step toward healing the wounds in the hearts of Muslims in Turkey and other countries. They had felt deeply offended by certain passages regarding Prophet Mohammad and Islam, attributed to a 14th-century emperor who had lived in this city, that the pope quoted in an academic lecture in Regensburg, Germany, on Sept. 12.

The pope prayed standing beside the imam (Muslim prayer leader) of the brightly lit mosque, in front of the mihrap, the niche or chamber that indicates the direction of Mecca, Islam´s holy city.

The extraordinary moment took place after the imam, having explained the history of the mosque to the pope, told him -- as journalists could hear from overhead TV microphones -- that there, in front of the mihrap, "everyone stops to pray for a short time to obtain serenity." He added, "And now I pray," then bowed his head and started praying.

The pope too began to pray in silence, his eyes cast down, with his lips visibly moving as he often has done in St Peter´s Basilica in Rome. His hands were crossed just under the gold pectoral cross that hung from his neck.

Wearing a white cassock and white slippers -- he had removed his shoes before entering -- the pope prayed for a minute or more, longer in fact than the imam who, finishing first, looked at him and waited for him to conclude.

Later, Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi confirmed that the pope had indeed prayed in the mosque. He told journalists, "The pope stopped in meditation in front of the mihrap, and certainly directed his thought to God."

German-born Pope Benedict, 79, became only the second pope in history to visit a mosque. However, there were no crowds to greet him as there had been in Damascus, Syria, when his predecessor, Pope John Paul II, made history by visiting the Ommayad Mosque on May 6, 2001.

Pope Benedict arrived at the magnificent 17th-century edifice with six minarets, popularly known as the "Blue Mosque" because it is decorated in that color, around 5:30 p.m., under unprecedented security measures. This included the presence of thousands of police who cordoned off the area, helicopters flying overhead and snipers stationed on the minarets.

Grand Mufti Mustafa Cagrici of Istanbul warmly welcomed the head of the Catholic Church at the mosque entrance. The grand mufti was one of 38 Muslim intellectuals who signed a letter to the pope after his Regensburg lecture, contesting his knowledge of Islam. After the two men removed their shoes, he led the pope into the hall, which has a 2,600-square-meter prayer space that can accommodate 8,000 worshippers and is topped by a cupola 44 meters tall. The Grand Mufti explained the layout of the building and how people prayed.

When they reached the front of the mosque, he told the pope, "We are happy you are here." He then presented Pope Benedict to the imam, who he said would provide historical information. The imam continued the tour, leading to the moment of prayer.

Afterward, the imam presented the pope with a Book of Prayer covered by a blue tile with the figure of a dove on it. Drawing the pope´s attention to the word "Allah" written on the tile, he explained that Muslim prayer begins with the words, "Allah is the name of God."

Pope Benedict expressed his thanks for the gift, placed his hand on the book and said, "Let us pray for the brotherhood of all humanity."

The pope then reciprocated by giving the imam a picture depicting four doves drinking from a water font. "This painting is a message of fraternity in memory of a visit which I will certainly not forget," he said. Then, with a smile, he commented on that fact that they had each chosen gifts bearing the symbol of a dove. "It is a coincidence!" he exclaimed.

Seeing that the time had come to say goodbye, the imam turned to the pope and said, "Remember us!"

As he bade goodbye to the imam and the grand mufti, the pope told them, "This visit will help us to find together the ways and the paths of peace for the good of humanity!" He then added, "Thanks for this moment of prayer!"

In the view of observers in Turkey, Church officials and the diplomatic corps, the image of the pope visiting the mosque will connect with Muslims across the world in a way that a thousand speeches would never have done. Before visiting the mosque, the pope paid a 20-minute visit to Hagia Sophia, once the most magnificent Christian basilica in the East. First built by Emperor Constantine in 360 A.D., it was twice destroyed by fire before Emperor Justinian completed the building of the present structure in 537.

Forces from the West ransacked it during the Fourth Crusade in 1204, in an act of vandalism that consolidated in the minds of ordinary people the full meaning of the schism between the Catholic and Orthodox Churches in 1054.

The basilica ceased to be a Christian church when, after the fall of Constantinople (present-day Istanbul) to the Ottomans in 1453, Sultan Mohammed II transformed it into a mosque. But in 1935, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the father of the Republic of Turkey, transformed it yet again, this time into a museum, which it remains today. The secular Turkish state strictly forbids people to pray in this former Christian church and mosque.

The pope was given a guided tour of the edifice and shown some mosaics, including one of the Virgin and Child, which stands high above the mihrap of the later mosque. He extended his hands to the mosaic, but was careful not to pray.

Instead, at the end of this tour, before going to the Blue Mosque, he wrote in Italian in the museum´s Golden Book, reserved for comments by distinguished visitors: "In our diversity, we find ourselves in faith before the one God. May God enlighten us and enable us to find the paths of love and peace."

END

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