SW News: Call it a colossal symbol of peaceful co-existence in the Middle East. The island of Bahrain in the Persian Gulf is now home to the largest church in the Arabian Peninsula. The newly built Cathedral of Our Lady of Arabia is all set to be opened on Thursday, December 9 by none other than the ruler of the country His Majesty King Hamad bin Issa bin Salman Al-Khalifa.

The anointing of the high altar and the consecration of the building will take place on Friday and the ceremony will be led by Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, in the presence of Apostolic Nuncio to Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain Archbishop Eugene Nugent and Apostolic Administrator of the Vicariate of Northern Arabia Bishop Paul Hinder.

The cathedral is an architectural marvel and it is modelled on the Tent of Meeting of the Old Testament. "The cathedral resembles the Tent of Meeting in which Moses spoke to God. It has been built in this manner to represent the encounter of God and mankind," said Fr Saji Thomas, a Capuchin priest in charge of the construction project, in an interview with SW News. Topped with an octagonal dome, the structure stands on a 9,000-square meter plot that was donated by the island’s ruler. Fr Thomas said that the benevolent ruler took a personal interest in the project and extended all help.

In short, the cathedral is a powerful symbol in stone of the peaceful coexistence of Christians and Muslims in the country as well as the tolerance and munificence of its king.
It wouldn’t be wrong to say that the colossal structure symbolizes the universality of the Catholic Church as believers of different nationalities from Bahrain and other neighboring countries contributed generously for the mammoth project, said Fr Thomas. Located almost 20 km away from the capital Manama, the cathedral complex also houses the residence of the Vicar Apostolic, a spacious courtyard and a sprawling car parking area.

Attached to the cathedral are two chapels. While one of them houses the Blessed Sacrament the other is dedicated to Our Lady of Arabia. It contains a beautiful crowned statue of Our Lady seated on a throne holding the Child Jesus and a rosary. Interestingly, Cardinal Tagle, who hails from the Philippines, will bless this statue that was carved in his home country on December 10 during the consecration ceremony.

What captures the attention of believers as they step inside the cathedral are the series of hand-painted icons in the medieval style. The 16 icons, measuring 500 cm X 400 cm each, were hand-painted in Italy and they depict the history of Salvation starting from the Trinity and the Annunciation to the Birth, Death and Resurrection of Christ. They also portray the Dormition and Assumption of the Blessed Mother.

The cathedral can accommodate 2,300 worshippers and there are two big rooms with cubicles for confession. The altar, baptistery and pews were crafted in Italy. Another speciality of the cathedral is the huge baptistery resembling a pool in front of the altar with marble steps. There are provisions to fill it with water and drain it. A large wooden San Damiano Crucifix in the sanctuary overlooks the altar.

The project was the dream of late Bishop Camillo Ballin, the Vicar Apostolic of Northern Arabia, who was very close to His Majesty the King. During his visit to the Vatican on May 19, 2014, His Majesty met Pope Francis at the Apostolic Place and presented him with a scale model of the cathedral. The blessing of the foundation stone gifted by the Holy Father was held on May 31 the same year.  On June 10, 2018, the ground-breaking ceremony was held at the site in the presence of the Nuncio, Archbishop Francisco Padilla, who was also the Apostolic representative of the Pope in the Arabian Peninsula, and Bishop Ballin along with Bahraini officials. The construction project was managed by Fr Thomas, who is also in charge of the Awali Church.

The blessing and anointing of the main altar and the consecration of the cathedral will be telecast live on SW News on December 10 at 10 am local time.