Abu Dhabi: Churches in Abu Dhabi are preparing to welcome tens of thousands of Christians over the next few days as they mark and celebrate the occasion of Easter, with several masses and services set to take place.
“On Easter Sunday, we are expecting thousands of Christians to attend church. There are 21 masses taking place on the day for several different congregations representing many different nationalities including Arabs, Indians, Europeans, and Filipinos, among many others,” said Father Thomas Sebastian, who serves at St Joseph’s Church.
“We are also holding services leading up to Easter on Good Friday and Saturday as we consider these days to be important as well and then, of course, comes the main celebration on Sunday. So it is a busy time with a lot of worshippers coming to the church,” he added.
Speaking on the message the church would be giving to its faithful congregation on Sunday, Fr Sebastian said the message would be one based on hope.
“We are going to be celebrating and commemorating the foundation of our faith on that day, and our message will be to strengthen our faith despite whatever difficulties and uncertainties we might face.
“There are members of our congregation who are going through tough times, some of them have lost their jobs and so they are facing difficulties, and so our message will be one about hope and the need to keep strong,” he added.
Fr Sebastian also commented on celebrating the Christian holiday in a Muslim country like the UAE, praising the country for its tolerance and acceptance of different faiths.
“Here in the UAE, we are definitely experiencing tolerance and coexistence, we look at the Muslim community as our dear brothers and sisters who worship the same God as us. The UAE stands out as a very good example of welcoming different people, and I can say that we as a Christian community have never experienced any problems in this country. We are always free to carry out our religious worship,” he said.
Reverend Canon Andy Thompson of St Andrew’s Church said the church would start its Easter festivities with the observance of Good Friday.
“There will be a Good Friday service at 10am. During this service, we will be focusing on the work of the cross of Jesus and reflecting on what this means to us as individuals. Then on Easter Sunday we will have a big family service followed by an Easter egg hunt. In the evening, we are hosting the Howard University Gospel Choir from the US who will help us celebrate the occasion.
“On our church campus, we will be expecting over 15,000 people coming to join over 50 congregations this weekend,” he added, highlighting the high number of people who will be attending the religious festivities.
Rev Thompson said the theme for this year’s Easter message, much like St Joseph’s Church, would be centred on love and hope.
“Where there is violence and discord, we are called to bring peace. The Easter story is a wake-up call to the church to be a transformational community in a world that needs more love, more peace and more hope.”
Rev Thompson also paid tribute to the UAE’s religious tolerance.
“I was speaking in the House of Parliament recently in London and again saw the surprise and astonishment in the faces of British politicians as they discovered that not only are there churches in the UAE but they are flourishing under the positive welcome and tolerance of the UAE authorities. God bless the UAE.”
