Speaking to journalists on his return flight from Beirut to Rome, Pope Leo XIV spoke about the Holy See’s global peacemaking efforts in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as dialogue with the German church and the support of Christians in the Middle East.
He also spoke about what it has been like for him to be pope, future travel plans, as well as trepidation among Western Christians over the growth of Islam worldwide.
Questioned about a growing trepidation among western Christians about the growth of Islam outside of the Middle East, especially in predominantly Christian nations in the West, the pope said this was something touched on in his discussions with interfaith leaders in Turkey and Lebanon.
Many of these conversations “concentrated on the topic of peace and respect for people of different religions,” Leo said, noting that this has not always been the situation between the two religions, and that in Europe the fears are real.
However, he cautioned that oftentimes these fears are “generated by people who are against immigration and trying to keep out people who may be from another country, another religion, another race.”
“In that sense, I would say that we all need to work together. One of the values of this trip [is] precisely to raise the world’s attention to the possibility that dialogue and friendship between Muslims and Christians is possible,” he said.
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