The spiritual leader of the Catholics and President of the Vatican, Pope Leo
Preparations are continuing at the basilica (cathedral) where the First Council was held in 325 with the participation of all the bishops associated with the Catholic church and where important religious issues were discussed and decided. With the permission of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, on behalf of Bursa Uludağ University, Faculty of Sciences and Letters, Faculty of Archeology, Professor Dr. Underwater archaeological excavations and research, begun in 2015 under the chairmanship of Mustafa Şahin and with the support of the Bursa Municipality, continue. Pope Leo XIV, spiritual leader of Catholics and President of the Vatican, is expected to visit the basilica, located 11 years ago, 20 meters from the shore of the lake in Iznik, at a depth of 1.5-2 meters, on the occasion of the 1700th anniversary of the First Council, from November 28 to 30. Landscape works and exhibitions continue in the basilica. Why did Pope Leo the 14th want to go to Iznik?Excavation Director, Bursa Uludağ University, Faculty of Science and Letters, Department of Archeology, Professor Dr. Mustafa Şahin said that the team of 60 people they worked with during this year's excavation season included anthropologists, restorers, archaeologists and art historians. Indicating that they intend to continue excavation work until the end of November, Şahin said, “Because the end of November is a very important date, the Pope, the spiritual leader of Catholics and the Vatican Head of State, is expected to visit the site from November 28 to 30. Our work on the area, landscape and exhibition will continue until this visit. Our preparations purely for the exhibition.” he said.Pointing out that this church is the largest known church in Iznik, Şahin emphasized that by assembling and evaluating the data, findings, ruins and cultural assets obtained in the excavations carried out so far, they declared that this is the Church of the Holy Fathers, whose existence has been known for centuries but never discovered, and this hypothesis is accepted in the Christian world.Professor Dr. Şahin announced that the Pope, the spiritual leader of Catholics, will make his first foreign visit from the Vatican to Iznik next month and continued: “By visiting the area where we are, in a sense, this church can turn into a pilgrimage center for Christians. If this church can become an important stop after the Pope's visit, our country will have a destination very important in terms of faith tourism.”Emphasizing that it is important for the Pope to worship in the area, Şahin said, “Sacred places, sites and sacred objects are very important for Christians. This is a place that fulfills all three of those things. Even if it is just a stone, it is a very important reason to visit. So we do not need to display such magnificent buildings and exhibitions. The existence of this structure is a very important factor.” important.” gave his assessment.
