Doha: As Qatar completes its preparations for the Football World Cup, the Catholic Church in Doha is trying to prepare prayer facilities for believers who come from different countries to watch the matches. The North Arabian Vicariate has decided to open the ‘Our Lady of the Rosary’ church in Doha, the capital city of Qatar, for prayers throughout the World Cup season.
This was announced by Bishop Paul Hinder, Apostolic Administrator of the North Arabian Vicariate. The World Cup matches will be held from November 20 to December 18. Our Lady of the Rosary Church, part of the North Arabian Vicariate which includes Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, is one of the largest churches in the Persian Gulf. More than 2000 people can participate in the rituals simultaneously.
Bishop Hinder disclosed this while responding to a question raised by a leading Italian media about the possible impact of the Football World Cup on fraternity efforts. He also responded that the Football World Cup will create a special opportunity for brotherhood and friendship. “Let sports competitions, including football, be a means of cultural and religious coexistence,” he wished.
‘Our Lady of the Rosary’ Church is also a church where services are held in many languages like English, Korean, Italian, French, Spanish, Indonesian, Sinhala, Tamil, Malayalam, Urdu and Arabic. Apart from this, there are two other Catholic Churches in Qatar. They are St. Mary’s Syro Malankara Temple and St. Thomas Syro Malabar Temple.