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VATICAN CITY - Jewish and Muslim clerics joined Pope John Paul II on Saturday for a concert aimed at encouraging reconciliation among faiths in a world torn by religious violence.
Gilbert Levine, an American Jew who has been guest conductor at the Vatican before, led the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere of American composer John Harbison's choral work Abraham. The title refers to the Biblical patriarch considered the father of the three faiths.
Also performing was the Ankara State Polyphonic Choir from Turkey, a predominantly Muslim nation. The audience of hundreds included Catholic, Jewish and Muslim religious figures and representatives of Protestant and Orthodox churches.
"The history of relations among Jews, Christians and Muslims is marked by light and darkness and unfortunately has known painful moments," the pope said. "Today one feels the pressing need for a sincere reconciliation among the believers in the one God.
"We are here together this evening to give concrete expression to this commitment to reconciliation, trusting in the universal message of music."
No pope has reached out to Jews and Muslims as much as the 83-year-old pontiff, who grew up in a heavily Jewish town in Poland. John Paul has visited a synagogue in Rome and a mosque in Damascus, Syria, making him the first pope to visit Jewish and Muslim houses of worship.