Hundreds of people of various faiths gathered Wednesday night in Lexington for an event described as a “concert, born of Orlando to remember all victims of hatred and violence.” Participants included Muslims, Jews and Christians of various denominations.
In response to last month’s massacre that killed 49 people at a gay bar in Orlando, the concert at Historic St. Paul’s Church downtown featured performances by about a dozen musicians with remarks and prayers led by local religious leaders.
The organizer of the event, in collaboration with numerous community partners, was St. Paul’s Director of Stewardship and Music, J.R. Zerkowski. He says it was an effort to create, in the words of Pope Francis, a “culture of encounter and friendship, “We were hoping to have maybe a hundred people that would band together for the purpose of unity and tolerance and preserving the dignity of everyone’s life."
Zerkowski estimated the crowd for the event at nearly 450 people.
Among the religious leaders in attendance and showing support for the effort was the head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lexington, Bishop John Stowe.
