Charles Fox (b. 1940) Lament and Prayer
(Based on the words of Pope John Paul II)
I. Prelude
II. Lament
III. Prayer
IV. Benediction
Cantor Raphael Frieder, Baritone
National Opera Orchestra and Alla Polacca Children’s Choir
Charles Fox, Conductor

CHARLES FOX (B. 1940)—LAMENT AND PRAYER (Based on the words of Pope John Paul II)

God of our Fathers,
You chose Abraham and his descendants
to bring Your name to the nations:
we are deeply saddened
by the behavior of those
who in the course of history
have caused these children of Yours to suffer
and asking Your forgiveness
we wish to commit ourselves
to genuine brotherhood
with the people of the Covenant.
Johannes Paulus II
Jerusalem, 26 March 2000

Boże Ojcze nasz
Wybrałeś Abrahama i jego potomków
by zanieść Twoje imię narodom:
jesteśmy głęboko zasmuceni
zachowaniem tych,
którzy w przeszłości
spowodowali cierpienia Twoich dzieci.
Prosząc o Twoje przebaczenie
chcemy przyłączyć się
do prawdziwego braterstwa
z ludźmi Twego Przymierza.
Jan Paweł II
Jerozolima, 26 marca 2000

Music for the Lament and Prayer is based on the words that Pope John Paul II wrote on a slip of paper and left in a crack in the Western Wall in Jerusalem. The words are softly written but they are monumental in meaning. The work is scored for baritone soloist, chorus, children’s chorus, and orchestra. I used the original English text as well as a translation into Polish, because it was the language of Pope John Paul II, and Hebrew, because the words are directed to the children of Abraham and his descendants. I hope that I was able to convey those words meaningfully in my language of music. To the very last line in this work, “God chose Abraham and his descendants,” I added the words, “to live in peace” because I feel that at the heart of it, that’s what Pope John Paul II’s words mean. Charles Fox, May 2009