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by Guendalina Dainelli
ABU DHABI, 5th November, 2022 (WAM) — By a Saturday morning in September, car parks were packed with cars. It’s almost impossible to find a parking space near St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Abu Dhabi. At the gate, the bishop’s secretary, Father Daric de Sousa, and another priest, Father Thomas Sebastian, were waiting for me with a smile.
The Cathedral compound is located in the Al Mushrif residential area in the heart of Abu Dhabi. “We call this place the compound of tolerance,” said Father Dariq, pointing to the mosque dedicated to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and the adjacent Coptic Orthodox Church of St. Anthony.
“Not far away are the Evangelical Church, St. George’s Orthodox Church and St. Andrew’s Anglican Church. The compound is home to the Vicariate of the South, in addition to the Bishop’s House, St. Joseph’s Catholic School and St. Teresa’s Cathedral,” he explained.
Many families with children pick up the pace across Palms Avenue before English Mass at 10:15am. “We host more than 25,000 faithful from more than 50 different countries every weekend,” said Fr Sebastian.
“We are always busy. We celebrate Mass in 16 different languages, from Italian, French to Korean, but also Arabic for believers in Palestine, Syria, Sudan, Lebanon and Egypt. Masses are based on Latin, Oriental, Ukrainian, Maronite, Greek-Catholic, Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara ceremonies.”
Masses in English are held at St. Teresa’s Church, which is larger than the cathedral and can hold up to 1,200 people. It is equipped with a large screen that plays songs and ceremonial words. Half an hour before the ceremony, which will be celebrated by Bishop Emeritus Paul Hinder, the place is already packed with faithful, mainly Indians and Filipinos.
While waiting, I chatted with Josephina. The 23-year-old woman from Manila attended the six o’clock Mass almost every day before taking up her job as a receptionist. In the back row, I met Julia and Pablo from Spain, parents of three lively children between the ages of 4 and 8. “It was difficult to get to the end of Mass, and when patience ran out, we were still close to the exit, ready to go,” they told me.
In fact, the parish also has small children in mind, and two glass nurseries welcome them in a protected place during the festivities. “Last year, 3,347 children were baptized in the Southern Diocese, and nearly 28,600 children participated in catechisms. Over 1,600 adults served as missionaries, and they were all volunteers,” Father Darrick said as he introduced Barbara to me. She is a German lady who has lived in Abu Dhabi for seven years.
She and her husband are both engineers, and she works full-time at an energy company. “We were very busy but managed to find space to teach catechism. Beautiful friendships with many families. At the end of catechism, before communion, we usually organize a spiritual retreat for a night in the desert, We pitched tents and camped together. We built fires, cooked and prayed. We did very simple things. We collected beautiful, unforgettable memories.”
Having experienced the warmth and joy of the multi-ethnic people united by their faith, I left. As I walked to my car, I wondered how the stereotypes about the Arab world contrasted with the wonderful example of acceptance and tolerance I just witnessed.
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