c. 2006 Religion News Service

ISTANBUL, Turkey _ Pope Benedict XVI ended a momentous four-day trip to Turkey on a high note Friday (Dec. 1), celebrating Mass for this country’s small Roman Catholic community and basking in widespread media praise of his landmark visit to a mosque.

The conciliatory mood provided a fitting, if somewhat unexpected, end to a papal trip that many initially feared would stoke tensions between the Muslim world and the West.

For months, Turks and Muslims around the world have criticized the pope for comments he made about Islam during a speech in Germany in September. Last Sunday (Nov. 26), thousands of Turks marched through Istanbul to protest the pontiff’s visit before he arrived. By the time Benedict boarded his flight to Rome on Friday, however, the anger had become amity.

“We are brothers in religion,” read a front page headline in Turkey’s Vatan newspaper, an Islamic daily.

Across Turkey, other newspapers splashed photos of the pontiff clasping his hands in prayer within the iconic tiled walls of Istanbul’s Blue Mosque.

Zaman, another Islamic daily, approvingly noted that the pontiff had avoided praying during an earlier stop at the Haghia Sophia, a former Christian church that is now a state museum.

Benedict began the day by celebrating Mass before packed pews in Istanbul’s Church of the Holy Spirit. The Mass was attended by top Eastern Orthodox leaders, including Armenian Patriarch Mesrob II and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, who had held talks with Benedict earlier in the week.

“Your communities walk the humble path of daily companionship with those who do not share our faith,” Benedict said in a sermon.

While Benedict displayed a powerful command of the diplomatic stagecraft commonly associated with his predecessor, John Paul II, his visit to Turkey left many questions about Vatican-Islam relations unanswered. Although the Vatican says the trip aimed to establish “mutual respect” between the religions and set the stage for “sincere and frank” dialogue with the Muslim world, those objectives were largely overshadowed by Benedict’s peacemaking overtures.

Ali Ince, who operates a shoeshine stand in downtown Istanbul, called Benedict’s visit “beautiful.”

“Before he came, everyone thought there would be huge protests to his visit, but there was no opposition. Benedict showed that he was open to dialogue,” he said.

The pope also faces questions regarding his evolving position on Turkey’s ambitions to join the European Union. Benedict scored high marks with the public after Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Erdogan quoted him as backing the EU candidacy. The Vatican, however, has stated it has “neither the power nor the specific political task” of seeking Turkey’s admission into the bloc.

Despite the climate of rapprochement, some Turks were glad to see Benedict go.

Erdan Turkugu, a taxi driver, complained that the overwhelming security measures surrounding Benedict had been bad for business.

“It was a wonderful meeting of cultures and, other than the bad traffic, a big success for Turkey,” he concluded.

(Scott Rank reported from Istanbul; Stacy Meichtry reported from Rome)

KRE/PH END RANK