Pope Leo, Patriarch Bartholomew to Set Out on Pilgrimage Honoring First Nicaea Council

Pope Leo XIV and Bartholomew I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, will embark later this year on a historic pilgrimage to Nicaea to mark the 1,700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea.

With preparations currently underway, the leaders of the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Churchare set to retrace the path to the ancient city of Nicaea, located in present-day İznik, Turkey, this November.

The First Council of Nicaea, a gathering of Christian bishops, was convened by Roman Emperor Constantine I in 325 AD primarily to address Arianism, a Christological doctrine inspired by Arius, a Cyrenaic presbyter, which claimed that Christ was a created being, not of the same divine nature as the Father, and not eternal.

Constantine I, a recent convert to Christianity at the time, regarded Arianism as a threat to both Church unity and imperial stability.

The Council succeeded in condemning Arianism. It also produced the original version of the Nicene Creed, mandated a uniform date for Easter, and issued some of the earliest canon laws.

The Nicene Creed, which affirms essential Christian doctrines, particularly concerning the nature of God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit, is upheld by the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and many Protestant churches. It was later refined at the First Council of Constantinople in 381 AD.

The commemorative pilgrimage is scheduled for November 30, the Feast of St. Andrew, which is a significant observance for the Church of Constantinople. The event is seen as a renewed commitment to the cause of Christian unity.

During a recent liturgy in Constantinople, Patriarch Bartholomew I reflected on the enduring legacy of the Nicaean Council:

“We glorify the God of love who has deemed us worthy to solemnly celebrate the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council held in Nicaea,” he said. “We rejoice that, together with the successor of the late Pope Francis of Rome, Pope Leo XIV, we will travel to Nicaea to commemorate this historic anniversary. The new Pope will also visit the See of the Church of Constantinople on its patronal feast day. We pray and labor that the unity of our Churches may be continually renewed, for the glory of God and the increase of divine knowledge.”