The ancient city of Ephesus, which includes the House of the Virgin Mary and St. John’s tomb, is also located in the archdiocese. It is the land where St. Paul and St. John first preached the Gospel.  But despite this rich heritage, there are only “150,000 Christians among the approximately 85 million people living in Turkey,” says the archbishop."

"On the one hand, I am anxious, but on the other, I feel a deep trust in God. The strength to be a bishop does not come from myself, but from the Lord. I did not seek this ministry. Jesus said, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you” (John 15:16).

His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuck said, “I express gratitude to Catholics in the US and worldwide, to His Eminence Cardinal Dolan, and to Aid to the Church in Need and for the support we experience every day.  Many of our bishops and most of our priests were supported by scholarships from your donors. Among those lucky students I was one!”

According to Akroush, 30 Christians have died since the conflict began. Among them are the 17 victims of an attack on a Greek Orthodox parish compound in October of 2023, as well as the two women killed by snipers in the Catholic parish of the Holy Family. Another 11 people died from chronic illness that could not be adequately treated.

We ask ourselves: how did this happen? Who is supporting them? Who is funding them? Some of them are Burkinabe, our brothers, and they don’t even cover their faces. But the question is why. Why are they kidnapping and killing people? Why are they coming to take our goods and animals, and burning villages?”

Millions of Christians live in countries where religious freedom is not respected and where they may be subject to discrimination and persecution. In the Pope’s video message, these Christian communities are remembered, and examples of courage are cited, like the first Servant of God from Pakistan, Akash Bashir, who died at the age of 20 in 2015 while trying to prevent a terrorist attack on a church in Lahore.