Pope Leo XIV’s first foreign trip, to Turkey and Lebanon, will be packed with opportunities to advance relations with two of the Catholic Church’s top priorities: Orthodox Christians and Muslims.

It will also give history’s first American pope the spotlight to speak in broader terms about peace in the Middle East in languages much of the world can understand: He’ll speak exclusively in English while in Turkey, and a combination of English and French in Lebanon, in a departure from the Vatican’s traditional lingua franca of Italian.

Security will be tight, especially after Israel fired a strike in Beirut to target Hezbollah, just days before Leo arrives.

Here’s a look at some of the expected highlights of the Nov. 27-Dec. 2 visit to two countries that the late Pope Francis had intended t

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