Peace concert brings faiths together with prayer, song

Before the crowd even began its standing ovation at Buskirk-Chumley Theater on Tuesday night, applause was already escaping from the palms of the audience.

Omer Turkmenoglu’s Prayer for Peace concert was drawing to its conclusion, and the three performers, Turkmenoglu, Shareese Johnson and Arik Luck were belting out their final notes before the enthusiastic crowd leapt to its feet and showered the performers with praise.

It was a big moment for Turkmenoglu, who organized the inter-faith concert himself. His idea was to bring together the three Abrahamic religions of Christianity, Judaism and Islam in one performance as a means of promoting peace for all people.

“I think tonight was a great success,” Turkmenoglu said. “I could not have been more pleased.”

The concert was a celebration of peace. It was directly inspired by the peace that Turkmenoglu found once he left his birthplace of Iraq for Turkey in 1994. Having seen both the good and the bad that can come from the mixing of different religions, he sought to find performers from different faiths to promote his message.

“Arik was the hardest one to find since I had to find someone who fit musically as well as spiritually,” Turkmenoglu said.

Arik Luck, a baritone and Jewish cantor, came on board after Shareese Johnson, a Christian and soprano who hails from Sheffield, Ala.

Once Luck heard from Turkmenoglu, he said it wasn’t a question of if he would perform, but how he would fit the concert into
his schedule.

“The hardest part for me was just finding the time to do it with rehearsals and everything,” Luck said. “But I think it’s my duty, not just as a clergyman, but as a human to promote peace.”

Turkmenoglu said he hopes Bloomington is only the first stop on a longer journey to promote his peaceful message.

Eventually he wants this concert to reach the White House, a venue he believes would maximize the impact of his dream.

“Tonight was the world premiere,” he said with a laugh. “But I hope that this project can continue and go on after this performance.”

Luck also hopes that the project has the legs to make it out of Bloomington.

“I was really happy to be a part of it now and whatever life it might have in the future,” Luck said.

He added that he hoped it benefitted the crowd like it did him.

“This type of thing is important for my soul and important for artistic expression,” he said. “I started as an actor, so merging the theater and cantor is a wonderful thing for me.”

Some members of the audience confirmed his hopes.

“It’s a wonderful cause, and we need all the little steps for peace that we can get,” said Bloomington resident Margaret Squires, who knew Turkmenoglu from his performances at the Players Pub.

Many members of the audience were connected with Turkmenoglu and in some way, affected by his message. Turkmenoglu hopes those numbers continue to grow.

“It is my dream that this might make a difference,” Turkmenoglu said. “This is about peace between everybody, not just these religions or these people.”