Pope Returns Bones of Saints to Istanbul
Pope John Paul II returned to the Orthodox Church bones of two early saints -- John Chrysostom and Gregory Nazianzen -- that were taken to Rome from Constantinople, now Istanbul, centuries ago.
The Vatican said the return of the relics to Turkey was part of the pope’s efforts to promote Christian unity.
The pope sat beside Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians, in St. Peter’s Basilica as the bones were brought to the altar. They arrived later at the Cathedral of St. George in Istanbul.
The Vatican is keeping a small part of them.
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