The Catholic Church of Our Lady of the Rosary (Arabic: كنيسة سيدة المسبحة) is a Catholic church in Doha, Qatar. It is located, along with churches of other Christian denominations, at the Religious Complex in Abu Hamour.[1] It is the first church built in the country since the Muslim conquests in the 7th century.[4][5]

Rosary Church, Doha
Catholic Church of our Lady of the Rosary
كنيسة سيدة المسبحة‎
Map
LocationAbu Hamour,[1] Doha
CountryQatar
DenominationCatholic
Websitehttps://qatarcatholicchurch.org/home
History
Consecrated15 March 2008[2]
Specifications
Capacity2 700[3]
Administration
DivisionApostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia
Clergy
Priest in chargeFr. Xavier Marian D'Souza OFM Cap.
Church facade

The church was constructed at a cost of around $20 million on land donated by the Emir of Qatar, Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani.[3] Due to the laws in Islamic Qatar, the church displays no Christian symbols like crosses, bells, or a steeple on its exterior.[6]

The church was dedicated on 14 March 2008, by Cardinal Ivan Dias, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation,[7] in a ceremony attended by Qatari Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah; Archbishop Mounged Al Hachem, the ambassador of the Holy See to the Gulf; Bishop Paul Hinder, Apostolic Vicariate of Arabia; Archbishop Giuseppe Andrea, former nuncio of the Holy See to the region; and several Qatari officials.[2][8]

The church is part of the Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia and serves around 200,000 Catholics in Qatar,[1] most of them migrant workers from the Philippines, India, South America, Africa, Lebanon and Europe.[1][9][10]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Ramesh Mathew (22 February 2014). "Prince Charles visits churches in Abu Hamour". Gulf Times. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  2. ^ a b "First Christian church opens in Qatar". USA Today. Associated Press. 15 March 2008.
  3. ^ a b Khatri, Shabina S. (2008-06-20). "Qatar opens first church, quietly". Al Jazeera English.
  4. ^ Ayed, Nahlah (2008-03-21). "Faith in the desert: Qatar's first official Catholic church". CBC News.
  5. ^ Murphy, Caryle (2009-02-09). "For the first time, Christians in Qatar worship in church". The Christian Science Monitor.
  6. ^ Verma, Sonia (14 March 2008). "First Catholic Church Opens in Qatar, Sparking Fear of Backlash Against Christians". Fox News. Archived from the original on March 16, 2008.
  7. ^ AsiaNews.it. "15 thousand attend first mass in Doha church". www.asianews.it. Retrieved 2019-10-22.
  8. ^ "First Catholic Church in Arabic country to be dedicated to Mary". Catholic News Agency. 29 February 2008.
  9. ^ "Re-Organisation of the Vicariates of the Arabian Peninsula". Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia.
  10. ^ "First church in Qatar has low profile". United Press International. 2008-03-14.


Further reading

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25°12′45″N 51°31′19″E / 25.2126°N 51.5219°E / 25.2126; 51.5219