ISTANBUL, Turkey – In a dramatic gesture of reconciliation with the Muslim faith he had recently offended, Pope Benedict XVI prayed inside Istanbul’s Blue Mosque on Thursday.
Benedict, who observed Islamic tradition by going shoeless in the mosque, stood with his head bowed next to the grand mufti of Istanbul, Mustafa Cagrici, after the Muslim cleric told him: “Now I’m going to pray.”
The pope appeared to be in intense prayer and seemed to pray for longer even than his Muslim host.
With only half a day left of his four-day visit to Turkey, Benedict appeared to have, at the least, avoided further offending his Turkish and Muslim hosts. In September, he quoted a 14th century Christian emperor of what is now Turkey as saying the prophet Muhammad had brought only “evil and inhuman” things to the world.
With his actions, words and body language on this trip, the pope may have even achieved his goal of improving relations between Muslims and Christians at a time of enormous tension between the two religions.
“Ever since he set foot in Turkey he has been making great gestures,” said Fehmi Koru, a columnist with the Islamist newspaper Yeni Safak. “I’m really happy with this visit. I was really terrified when I first heard the pope is coming to Turkey after that terrible speech he gave in Germany. Now after seeing him make these gestures and trying to make peace with the Muslims in Turkey, I have become convinced that this visit is going to be a good one.”
Benedict has surprised many with his gentle body language and conciliatory actions since his arrival. Within minutes of landing at Ankara airport, he had told Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan he supported Turkey’s bid to join the European Union. He stopped at the mausoleum of Turkey’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, and throughout the day visited with Turkish and Muslim leaders, smiling his way through meetings and speeches about brotherhood.
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