Pope John Paul II Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! === Islam === [[File:StJohnInUmmayad.jpg|thumb|John Paul II was the first Pope to enter and pray in a mosque, visiting the tomb of John the Baptist at [[Umayyad Mosque]], Damascus.]] John Paul II made considerable efforts to improve relations between Catholicism and Islam.<ref name="Crossing the Threshold of Hope" /> He officially supported the project of the [[Mosque of Rome|Great Mosque in Rome]] and participated in the inauguration in 1995. On 6 May 2001, he became the first Catholic pope to enter and pray in a mosque, namely the [[Umayyad Mosque]] in [[Damascus]], Syria. Respectfully removing his shoes, he entered the former [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine-era]] Christian church dedicated to [[John the Baptist]], who is also revered as a [[Prophets and messengers in Islam|prophet of Islam]]. He gave a speech including the statement: "For all the times that Muslims and Christians have offended one another, we need to seek forgiveness from the Almighty and to offer each other forgiveness."<ref name="Mosque" /> He also kissed the [[Qur'an]] while in [[Syria]], an act that made him popular among Muslims but disturbed many Catholics.<ref name="Akin" />{{citation needed|date=August 2022}}{{Unreliable source?|date=August 2022}} In 2004, John Paul II hosted the "[[Papal Concert of Reconciliation]]", which brought together leaders of Islam with leaders of the Jewish community and of the Catholic Church at the Vatican for a concert by the Kraków Philharmonic Choir from Poland, the [[London Philharmonic Choir]] from the United Kingdom, the [[Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra]] from the United States, and the Ankara State Polyphonic Choir of Turkey.<ref name="WQED" /><ref name="Concert" /><ref name="Philharmonic" /><ref name="Gazette" /> The event was conceived and conducted by Sir [[Gilbert Levine]], [[Order of St. Gregory the Great|KCSG]] and was broadcast throughout the world.<ref name="WQED" /><ref name="Concert" /><ref name="Philharmonic" /><ref name="Gazette" /> John Paul II oversaw the publication of the [[Catechism of the Catholic Church]], which makes a special provision for Muslims; therein, it is written, "together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day."<ref name="Catechism" /> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page