Manama (Agenzia Fides) – There are special events that mark the path of the Catholic Christian community of the Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia: in particular, today, October 24, all the parishes of the Catholic Church of the Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia are preparing to celebrate solemn Masses for the liturgical feast of the martyrdom of Saint Arethas (see Fides, 20/10/2023).

“This evening we will celebrate the Jubilee of Saint Arethas and his fellow martyrs. Then on November 4th the Holy Door of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Arabia in Bahrain will be opened and on November 9th that of the Cathedral of Abu Dhabi”, Bishop Aldo Berardi of the Order of the Fathers of the Holy Trinity and of the Captives (O.SS.T.) tells Fides about the preparations for this important event, which commemorates the 1500th anniversary of the martyrdom of Saint Arethas ( 523-2023), together with his Companions, about 4,000 Arab Christians from the ancient city of Najran in southern Arabia, today’s Saudi Arabia.

“There are no signs or religious symbols in the churches of the Vicariate, which includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, they are banned except in Bahrain,” explains Bishop Berardi, Vicar Apostolic of Northern Arabia. “I had a large cross put on the new cathedral to show that it is a church.” The Cathedral is outside the city, and to make it easier for the faithful to reach it, a special bus route has been set up, “with the inscription: Cathedral,” adds Bishop Berardi.

“The Vicariate of Northern Arabia consists of four countries with different realities. In the so-called authorized countries, such as Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar, there are churches and priests, but there is a lack of space and we would like to build more places of worship. Bahrain is the most open of the four countries, while the other three are still very restricted”, said Bishop Berardi, who also mentioned the commitment to education in this context: “The Sacred Heart School has existed in Bahrain for over 70 years led by the Indian Apostolic Carmelite Sisters and attended by two thousand children. Today the school has a huge campus”.

The bishop cited the inauguration of the Holy Door of the Co-Cathedral of the Holy Family in Kuwait as another important event in the Catholic community of the Apostolic Vicariate. “On September 29, we celebrated the inauguration of the Holy Door in the Co-Cathedral of Kuwait, which was attended by all the faithful of the parishes who prayed and sang specially created songs”, said Bishop Berardi regarding the celebrations which he presided over together with the other priests of the Vicariate.

“But in Kuwait,” the bishop explained about the current setbacks, “there is no political stability, freedom is increasingly restricted. We are also in the process of reviewing many things because new conditions have been created for us. Everything is complicated, the laws are changing constantly, fundamentalists have also appeared on the scene. We have four parishes: the former Cathedral of the Holy Family, the small church that gave rise to the Shrine of Our Lady of Arabia where a large statue brought by the Carmelites is preserved which this year will celebrate 75 years of its presence. Over the years we have sought land to build a church in the area, but agreements with the government ultimately fell through. But we would need many more churches to accommodate all believers!”.

Bishop Berardi adds there are also three schools in Kuwait: one run by the Carmelite sisters, one by the Salesians and another by the Lebanese nuns of the Rosary. “They are not called Catholic schools, Christian religion cannot be taught here. They are mixed private schools open to all, Muslims and Christians. However, we know that they are Christian schools because the nuns wear their religious habit”. (AP) (Agenzia Fides, 24/10/2023)

*The original article on Fides online can be accessed here.