15 thousand attend first mass in Doha church

ICC Note: This is an incredible story – 15,000 people attended the first service at the first church built in Qatar, which has a capacity for only 5,000 – and it is even more remarkable when you consider that Qatar has only recently begun allowing more religious freedom for non-Muslims.

3/17/08 Qatar (AsiaNews/Agencies) – 15 thousand attended the first “ordinary” mass celebrated in the church of Our Lady of the Rosary, in Doha on Saturday. The mass was presided over by Cardinal Ivan Dias, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of peoples. The day before the Cardinal had consecrated what is in effects, the first church in the Gulf State.

The faithful began arriving early morning, but the building, which has a capacity of 5 thousand, couldn’t contain them all: thousands were forced to follow the rite from outside… [Go To Full Story]