St. Joseph's Cathedral, Abu Dhabi

St. Joseph's Cathedral[1][2] is the seat of the Apostolic Vicar of Southern Arabia and is one of the four Catholic churches in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi[3][4] besides the St. Paul's Church in Musaffah, St. Mary's Church in Al Ain and St. John the Baptist Church in Ruwais.[5] The first church was built in 1962 in the present Corniche on a plot of land donated by Sheikh Shakhbut, the ruler of Abu Dhabi.

St. Joesph's Cathedral
LocationAl Mushrif, Abu Dhabi
Country United Arab Emirates
DenominationRoman Catholic Church
Weekly attendance100,000
Websitewww.stjosephsabudhabi.org
History
StatusCathedral/Parish Church
Founded1981
DedicationFebruary 25, 1983
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Completed1983
Administration
DioceseApostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia
Clergy
Bishop(s)Most Rev. Paul Hinder, OFM Cap.
RectorRev. Fr. Johnson Kadukanmakal, OFM Cap.

Masses are conducted in various languages, reflecting the population of expatriates in the country, primarily English but also Arabic, Tagalog, Malayalam, Sinhalese, Urdu, Konkani, Tamil, and French.

History

The foundation for St. Joseph's Cathedral was laid in 1962. In October 1963, work began for the First Church in Abu Dhabi, and the foundation stone was blessed in February 1964, on a plot of land along the present Corniche, donated by Shakhbut bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the ruler of Abu Dhabi at that time. Fr. Barnabas Madii undertook the task of constructing the Church and a residence for the priests, and on 19 February 1965, the first church was inaugurated. A school was opened on the same plot in 1967 and was called St Joseph's School.

On 19 March 1981, the foundation for the present church was laid, following the ruler’s decision that the Church and its associated schools be moved to a different location. The inauguration of the new complex took place on 25 February 1983, in the presence of Sheikh Shakhbut. On February 25, 1983, the Church became a cathedral serving as the seat of The Vicar Apostolic of Southern Arabia with the late Giovanni Bernardo Gremoli as resident bishop.

On January 30, 2005, upon Gremoli's retirement, Paul Hinder was ordained as bishop.[6]

The parish today has over 100,000 expatriate Catholics from all over the world. With the growing economy within the region, the Church also witnessed a steady increase in the number of faithful. Masses are celebrated in several different languages, and the church is generally seen packed to full capacity at most services.

The Bishop's House and St Joseph's School are located within the same compound and recently there has been some renovation.[7]

A significant section of the parish complex was demolished at the beginning of 2013 to give way for the construction of new halls/ catechetical rooms/ offices/ residence for priests and staff, Today this newly constructed part is known as St. Therese of The Child Jesus Church.[8]

References
  1. JY Newsletter Feb'2013. Jesus Youth.
  2. Berlitz (2013-11-27). Berlitz: Abu Dhabi Pocket Guide. Apa Publications (UK) Limited. ISBN 9781780047690.
  3. Guides, Insight (2015-12-01). Insight Guides: Oman & the UAE. Apa Publications (UK) Limited. ISBN 9781780055480.
  4. Annual Report on International Religious Freedom 2005, April 2006, 109-2 Joint Committee Print, *. 2006-01-01.
  5. Binsal Abdul Kader, Staff Reporter. "Catholics in Abu Dhabi get new church in Musaffah". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  6. Malayalam Catholic Community Abu Dhabi Archived 2012-06-27 at the Wayback Machine retrieved April 29, 2012
  7. http://www.stjosephsabudhabi.org/news/bishop-bernard-giovanni-gremoli-91-passes-away/
  8. "St Joseph's Cathedral, Abu Dhabi, UAE". www.stjosephsabudhabi.org. Retrieved 2020-02-09.

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