ANKARA The Civilization Choir of Antakya consists of adherents to three monotheistic faiths representing various professionals including priests, imams, nuns is willing to give a concert in Gaza.
Speaking to AA reporter, the chief of the choir Yilmaz Ozfirat said, "My initial target is to give a concert in Gaza while Palestinians and Israelis are together." He stated that they had already applied to the authorities for this concert. However, they could not get the approval.
"We wanted to contribute to peace but the politicians over there are not ready for this yet," Ozfirat said.
"We performed at UN Security Council, EU parliament and also US Congress. We chanted in different languages. As a nominee of Nobel peace prize in 2012, we were really hopeful to have it. However, it went to European Union. It was weird that a union with an army got the peace prize," he said.
Ozfirat reiterated that Antakya was a capital of tolerance and added, "We are proud of our mutual respect and tolerance which are the products of centuries old coexistence of diverse cultures and hold that up as an example to the whole world. Antakya is one of the few cities in the world that adopted the culture of tolerance as a lifestyle and sustained it for centuries. This is why it is not surprising to see a Muslim imam in a Christian funeral and vice versa, because they are friends from childhood."
Civilization Choir of Antakya is one of the unique and astonishing examples of fraternity. By sharing some extant values, the choir aims to open new horizons and draw humanity closer to beauty and truth and by using music's universal language it strives to act as a bridge between civilizations.
