Hundreds of members of the church of Jesus Christ of the Later Days gather at a church in Abu Dhabi every Sunday and a hotel in Dubai, praying in a community where they consider them to be a large family.
Tall, curved windows glow in the sunlight that flows into a sandstone church building in the Musaffah area of Abu Dhabi, where believers pray every week. Inside the church, green song books are beautifully placed in front of a wooden fuse ready for Sunday service.
Built in 2013, the “Meeting House” in Abu Dhabi is the first and only church in the Middle East. There are plans to build a new temple in Dubai, Expo City, Dubai.
Announced in 2020, the building is still three years away. Discussions with the authorities are continuing with the conspiracies and designs to include the building in 170 Mormon temples in the world. Once built, it will be the first Mormon holy place in the Middle East to perform rituals of marriage and baptism.
For church worship and social activities, a temple is a source of spiritual strength dedicated to sacred ceremonies, where families are sealed together for eternity. Roland Back, a volunteer consultant for the Middle East and North Africa region of the church, said: “It is very unique to have a temple because there is no one in every country. There is a temple and the other members will want to visit Dubai.”
The community meeting place has about 16 million members worldwide. Their informal name came from their sacred speech, The Book of Mormon, which was published in the 1830s by the founder of the United Nations.
Some of the Emiratis went to work in the country, gathering for a weekly group of about 2,000 Christians, gathering in Abu Dhabi and Dubai weekly.
There are photos of the structures that vary in the walls of the Abu Dhabi church, with many spears placed on the floor or on the roof.
We want to make sure that we represent the sense of tolerance and additions of the UAE – it will also run the design. When the church is open to all, the temple – once dedicated – is only open to loyal members. But there are plans to add a place in Dubai for those who are interested in religion.
