Pope John Paul said on Saturday he hoped that the war in Iraq would not set Christians and Muslims against each other.
"War must never be allowed to divide world religions," he told visiting Roman Catholic bishops from Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country.
The Pope said good inter-religious relations were important "at this moment of heightened tension in the entire world community."
The Pope is against the war in Iraq and led the Vatican in a diplomatic campaign to try to avert it.
The Iraq conflict has put the Vatican on a collision course with Washington because the Pope has refused to bless the conflict as a "just war."
The Vatican is very concerned that the war could lead to worsening situations for Christians living in predominantly Muslim countries, such as Iraq and Indonesia.