ISTANBUL – Among the hundreds of foreign Catholics and expatriates living in Turkey – Spaniards serving in NATO, Mexicans, Filipinos, Peruvians and Italians – who on Saturday attended the only public Mass celebrated by Pope Leo in Turkey, There were also Argentines. among them, Ariana Fortefrom Rosario, has been living in Istanbul for six years, married to a Turkish Muslim husband, like 99% of the population.
“I bought him a rug ten years ago when I came as a tourist! Then he traveled and met my father, and I finally came here.” We were the first mixed marriage between a Catholic and a Muslim in Argentina“It has been possible since 1962, when Pope Paul VI said: Before that, mixed marriage was a sin,” said Ariana, a freelance journalist who worked for thirty years as a flight attendant for Aerolíneas Argentinas, and who was present at the celebration in Volkswagen Arena, a 4,000-capacity event venue, where euphoria reigned.
Ariana, full of excitement about Pope Leo coming to Türkiye, was present at almost all of the American Pope’s appointments. “I went to Ataturk Airport on the day he arrived, I was in the Catholic Cathedral, and this morning I went to the Syriac Orthodox Church in Türkiye. Mor Avram“He met with leaders of Christian denominations, and it is the first church built in Türkiye since the founding of the Republic, which was opened in 2023.”
“Before I got married, six years ago, I used to read the entire Qur’an… When I came here I didn’t know anything, I thought there were no Catholics, One has this misconception that everything is closed here, That women must veil themselves and that they should not be tolerated, and this is not true! She said: “There is great openness and diverse Christian sects.” Her Turkish husband, whose name is Erdal Kaya, has two businesses: a carpet business in which Cupid worked and another in handbags.
When I lived in Vicente Lopez, in Buenos Aires, I volunteered with the Sisters of Charity of Mother Teresa. In the town of CavaIn San Isidro. She now continues to volunteer, but for Caritas, in a soup kitchen Who feeds people on the streets twice a week And also providing assistance to refugees. “We Catholics are very few, but we are active,” he emphasized.
How did you experience Leo XIV’s visit now? “The person here experiences it much more. It is unbelievable, because, I repeat, One would think that one is arriving in a Muslim country where we will not be able to practice our religion, Here you live fully. “It is amazing how we feel it, especially the visit of the Pope: in Argentina, sometimes there are so many people that it is impossible to get close to them, and here it is as if we have him as friends, that is, very close.”
He also highlighted “all the charisma he brought on this first visit, well, no one still knows him, and yet he’s excited. It’s incredible to see that.” A new father, But it seems he has been with us his whole life.
What message does Leon leave for Turkey? “I think it’s a great mission. Because here the door has been opened to a dialogue that existed 1,700 years ago with Nicea, when we had this very corrected doctrine, and now it is the actual modern construction, for this modern age. I think that’s it, a lot of enthusiasm, Because there are many foreign communities that practice Catholicism, We are Catholics, as well as all local communities. So I believe there is a great message of unity itself, and always with that foundation, clearly one God, one man, one Spirit, and clearly the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are with us here.”
Adrian Loza, The Franciscan friar, who was born in Rio Cuarto, but has lived and worked in Izmir for ten years, was very excited to visit Lyon.
“that it Great opportunity Not just for Turkey, for those of us who live in Türkiye, but for the entire Church. He is not the first Pope to come to visit us, but of course every time he comes it is a great joy. “I think it is a great motivation for us Catholics that even though we are a minority in Türkiye, we are a minority within a Christian minority,” he noted.
He told a revealing story: “When Pope Francis died, on April 21, The mayor of the city I live in called me to offer his condolences… When Pope Francis came to Türkiye 11 years ago, in November 2014, no one knew who the Pope was… Let’s say that for those of us who live in countries with an Islamic faith, The personality of the Pope has gained great importance. Precisely because of the mission undertaken by the Argentine Pope. So we are very happy. For us, this is a great joy, I repeat, and it is also a great boost for the Church, especially the Latin Catholic Church.