St. Joseph's Cathedral, Abu Dhabi
St. Joseph's Cathedral[1] is the seat of the Apostolic Vicar of Southern Arabia and is one of the five Catholic churches in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi[2][3] besides St. Paul's Church in Musaffah, St. Mary's Church in Al Ain, St.Francis Church in the Abrahamic Family House in Saadiyat Island and St. John the Baptist Church in Ruwais.[4] 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. Joseph's Cathedral | |
|---|---|
| St. Joseph's Parish Church | |
 | |
 | |
| 24°26′57″N 54°23′07″E / 24.449125831605784°N 54.38534929744973°E | |
| Location | Al Mushrif, Abu Dhabi |
| Country | United Arab Emirates |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic Church |
| Religious institute | Order of Friars Minor Capuchin |
| Weekly attendance | 100,000+ |
| Website | www |
| History | |
| Status | Cathedral and Parish Church |
| Founded |
|
| Founder(s) | Fr. Barnabas Madii |
| Dedication |
|
| Events | 14 October 2014 (Inauguration of St. Therese Church) |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Groundbreaking |
|
| Completed |
|
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia |
| Deanery | United Arab Emirates |
| Clergy | |
| Bishop(s) | Most Rev. Paolo Martinelli, OFM Cap. |
| Rector | Rev. Fr. Chito Bunda Bartolo, OFM Cap. |
Masses are conducted in various languages, reflecting the population of expatriates in the country, primarily English but also Arabic, German, Tagalog, Spanish, Malayalam, Italian, Sinhalese, Urdu, Konkani, Tamil, and French.[5]
History
editThe 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 25 February 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 30 January 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]
On 2 July 2022, Msgr. Paolo Martinelli was canonically installed as the Vicar of Southern Arabia in the cathedral as a successor to Msgr. Paul Hinder.[9]
Papal visit
editOn 5 February 2019,[10] Pope Francis made a private visit to the cathedral. He addressed[11] the people summoned to visit him, mainly consisting of the needy, people of determination and altar servers. He entered the church with the Vicar of Southern Arabia, Paul Hinder.[12]
Clergy
editPresent and past parish priests
edit| Name | Term Start | Term End | Image | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barnabas Maddii, OFM Cap.[13] | 1965 | 1969 | |
| 2 | Attilio Franceschetti, OFM Cap. | 1969 | 1976 | |
| 3 | Daniele Cerofolini, OFM Cap. | 1976 | 1982 | |
| 4 | Eusebius Daveri, OFM Cap. | 1982 | 1989 | |
| 5 | Eugine Mattioli, OFM Cap.[14] | 1989 | 2006 | |
| 6 | Savarimuthu Anthonysamy, OFM Cap. | 2006 | 2015 | |
| 7 | Johnson Kadukanmakal, OFM Cap. | 2015 | 2021 | |
| 8 | Chito Bunda Bartolo, OFM Cap.[15] | 2021 | Incumbent | |
Mass timing
editSunday Mass
edit- 6:30 AM
- 8:30 AM (Catechism Mass)
- 10:15 AM
- 12 AM (Tagalog)
- 2:30 PM (Malayalam)
- 4:30 PM
- 6:30 PM
- 8:15 PM (Arabic)
Daily Mass schedule
editMonday To Friday
edit- 6:30 AM
- 9:00 AM
- 7:00 PM
Saturday
edit- 6:30 AM (Weekday liturgy)
- 8:30 AM (Catechism Mass | Sunday liturgy)
- 10:15 AM (Sunday liturgy)
- 4:30 PM (Sunday liturgy)
- 6:30 PM (Sunday liturgy)[16]
Please note that mass times can change on holy days.
References
edit- ^ Berlitz (27 November 2013). Berlitz: Abu Dhabi Pocket Guide. Apa Publications (UK) Limited. ISBN 9781780047690.
- ^ Guides, Insight (1 December 2015). Insight Guides: Oman & the UAE. Apa Publications (UK) Limited. ISBN 9781780055480.
- ^ Annual Report on International Religious Freedom 2005, April 2006, 109-2 Joint Committee Print, *. 1 January 2006.
- ^ Binsal Abdul Kader, Staff Reporter. "Catholics in Abu Dhabi get new church in Musaffah". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
- ^ "Mass Times". St. Joseph's Cathedral Abu Dhabi. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
- ^ Malayalam Catholic Community Abu Dhabi Archived 2012-06-27 at the Wayback Machine retrieved April 29, 2012
- ^ "::: St Joseph's Cathedral :: Abu Dhabi, UAE :::". www.stjosephsabudhabi.org. Archived from the original on 24 August 2017.
- ^ "St Joseph's Cathedral, Abu Dhabi, UAE". www.stjosephsabudhabi.org. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
- ^ "Installation Mass of Bishop Paolo Martinelli as the Apostolic Vicar of Southern Arabia". Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia. Retrieved 2 July 2022.
- ^ "Papal visit: Pope Francis in Abu Dhabi to mark a historic day for inter-faith relations - as it happened". The National. 4 February 2019. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
- ^ "Visit to St. Joseph's Cathedral, Abu Dhabi" (PDF). The Visit of Pope Francis to the United Arab Emirates: 1.
- ^ "Apostolic Journey of the Holy Father to the United Arab Emirates (3-5 February 2019) | Francis". www.vatican.va. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
- ^ "History". St. Joseph's Cathedral Abu Dhabi. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
- ^ "Fr. Eugene Mattioli OFM Cap. returns to Italy". Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
- ^ "Newly Appointed Parish Priest - St. Joseph's Cathedral, Abu Dhabi". St. Joseph's Cathedral Abu Dhabi. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
- ^ "St. Joseph's Cathedral Abu Dhabi". St. Joseph's Cathedral Abu Dhabi. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
