A few weeks ago at Stake Conference, Elder Holland came to dedicate the first owned and constructed church building in the Middle East. It is a 3-story Stake Center in Aub Dhabi, complete with a cultural hall and chapel and an official sign out front!
It was so special to witness. Historic. To have our very own building to gather as Saints and unite as a Stake. I will never forget it. It was broadcasted throughout our Stake so we met at a member's home and watched the dedication via satellite. Although we were not physically there, I could feel the joy and excitement of the whole congregation; it was so palpable! Saints have been waiting for this day for a long time. We have not been here in Doha for long, but we have loved the church associations that we have made here. This was such a sweet experience.
We meet for church on Fridays since that is the Sabbath in Islam. Friday is the new Sunday. It is still taking some getting used to. It really throws off the weekend. For example, Thursday night is now the new 'Friday date night'. But, church is at 9 am and traffic is so bad on Thursday evenings that we usually don't go far. Saturday is just Saturday; going out is possible that night but school and work are in the morning. Sunday is like a Monday. It has been an adjustment; the weekends are just plain weird.
Our ward in Doha meets in a rented villa. In other words, this-used-to-be-someone's-home. They have renovated it to suit our needs as a ward but still it's kind of a funny layout as you can imagine. For example, the chapel is the living room and dining room combined. It really isn't enough room, so there is an overflow chapel (formally the master bedroom) with a TV where Sacrament meeting is being recorded from the other room. This is also where Relief Society meets for 3rd hour. Our family usually ends up in this room since 99% of the time we are late to church. The mothers lounge is off of this room, too, which makes it nice for me with Eli. But...there is no bathroom in there. So, if one has to go to the bathroom during the meeting, you have to walk across the living room and all the people
in it to use the toilet. Awkward.
Here is the new Stake Center in the UAE, complete with a dome on top to fit in with the Islamic Mosques around it.
Anyway, the church exists here and it is thriving, despite the lack of proper church facilities!
Here is a link to the full story on the church news:
LDS church dedication of building in the Middle East
It was so special to witness. Historic. To have our very own building to gather as Saints and unite as a Stake. I will never forget it. It was broadcasted throughout our Stake so we met at a member's home and watched the dedication via satellite. Although we were not physically there, I could feel the joy and excitement of the whole congregation; it was so palpable! Saints have been waiting for this day for a long time. We have not been here in Doha for long, but we have loved the church associations that we have made here. This was such a sweet experience.
We meet for church on Fridays since that is the Sabbath in Islam. Friday is the new Sunday. It is still taking some getting used to. It really throws off the weekend. For example, Thursday night is now the new 'Friday date night'. But, church is at 9 am and traffic is so bad on Thursday evenings that we usually don't go far. Saturday is just Saturday; going out is possible that night but school and work are in the morning. Sunday is like a Monday. It has been an adjustment; the weekends are just plain weird.
Our ward in Doha meets in a rented villa. In other words, this-used-to-be-someone's-home. They have renovated it to suit our needs as a ward but still it's kind of a funny layout as you can imagine. For example, the chapel is the living room and dining room combined. It really isn't enough room, so there is an overflow chapel (formally the master bedroom) with a TV where Sacrament meeting is being recorded from the other room. This is also where Relief Society meets for 3rd hour. Our family usually ends up in this room since 99% of the time we are late to church. The mothers lounge is off of this room, too, which makes it nice for me with Eli. But...there is no bathroom in there. So, if one has to go to the bathroom during the meeting, you have to walk across the living room and all the people
in it to use the toilet. Awkward.
Here is the new Stake Center in the UAE, complete with a dome on top to fit in with the Islamic Mosques around it.
Here is a link to the full story on the church news:
LDS church dedication of building in the Middle East
1 comment:
How cool!!! Having the Sabbath on Friday would totally throw me for a loop. You guys are experiencing some really awesome stuff!
Post a Comment