All you need to know about the St. Mary church in Dubai History of the Church of St. Mary in Dubai dates to 1962 when the UAE began exporting oil. After the discovery of oil in the UAE, the country’s economy boosted rapidly and the number of Christians and Catholics increased in society. At that time, Bahrain was the only city in the Middle East with a perfect Catholic church, the Church of the Sacred Heart.
Priests from the Holy Bahrain Church visit the UAE every month to carry out other Catholic orders such as baptism ceremony and marriages. But because the UAE has not established a church, Catholics will have to carry out these sacred commands at home.
However, the increasing number of Catholics in Dubai and other emirates in the UAE clearly demonstrates the need for a permanent place of worship for permanent pastors.
This was when the bishop went to the UAE to visit the late UAE Vice President and Prime Minister Sheikh Rashid Bin Said Al Maktoum, and he asked for the construction of the first church in Dubai. The history of St Mary’s Church in Dubai begins here.
Finally, on April 7, 1967, Bishop Luigi blessed the place. Magliacani is dedicated to Mary’s ascension to heaven, named “Dubai Mary’s Church”.
The school created in 1968 has expanded rapidly with more branches and it is still considered to be one of the major English secondary schools in the UAE.
St. Mary’s Church in Dubai
For more than 50 years St. Mary Church has been serving Catholics which makes it one of the oldest churches in Dubai. It has evolved from a prayer room to a church, which has the largest parish in the area. This church in Dubai currently serves more than 500,000 church worshippers. The people speak Arabic, Tagalog, French, Konkani, Malayalam, Tamil, Sinhala, and Urdu Mass in 12 languages including metropolitan and Portuguese.
After
the restoration in 1988, the houses of the St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Dubai
underwent major changes. In addition to the main church and teaching building,
there is a staff dormitory for all permanent priests and nuns, as well as a
separate office for each office.
There is also a store where you can buy
religious supplies etc. In addition, the Ceasers Hotel has a fully equipped
dining room, a soccer field, a basketball court and an auditorium for schools
and churches.
Location
The
St. Mary’s Church in Dubai is located on Oud Metha Road, opposite the Indian
High School.
All
modes of transport are easily accessible. If you travel by metro, Oud Metha
metro station on the green line is the nearest metro station to St Mary’s
Dubai. There is also a bus stop
in front of the church. Bus routes X23, X25, F18, C7, C4, C18, 28, 44 all stop
here.
Mass Timings
The mass Timing for days can be found at the official website of the church.