Dubai’s first Mariapolis

“We find ourselves here in countries of the United Arab Emirates due to work,” Claudia says. “Our workplaces are often strongly competitive, and it is difficult to integrate because there is little time for relationships that are simple and authentic.
“The Catholic Church in Dubai is young, lively, joyous and not overly complicated. More than 2,000 faithful participate in and focus on daily mass – mostly from the Philippines, Pakistan and India.
“Our local Focolare community is also made up mostly of migrants, and we try to give witness to the Gospel in the circles we move through, bringing love and unity around us. There are many who know about and live the spirituality of unity after first hearing about it in their home countries. We try to propose it to those whom we’re close to as a remedy to the frenetic, individualistic life here.
“For us the monthly Word of Life meeting is fundamentally important. We read it together and try to go deeper into its meaning, sharing experiences that emerge from putting it into practice.
“Maria Voce and Jesus Moran’s trip to India in January 2016 gave us a new drive to bring the ideal of unity to many, staying closely networked together.”

“So we naturally involved all the people we’re in contact with to live the Mariapolis experience, which we took great care in preparing,” explains Amjad. “On January 27–28, 65 people from 12 countries (4 from the Middle East, the rest from Pakistan, the Philippines, Brazil, Japan, Italy and Cameroon) decided to come together at Ras Al Khaimah, an emirate near Dubai, to experience our first Mariapolis in these lands.
“Emotions were running high! For some it seemed like a dream come true to finally get together after such a long time. We were welcomed by the parish of Father Willy, who is originally from the Philippines. The theme we chose, ‘Unity in diversity,’ reflected the reality and challenges that we all live through really well.”

“What really struck me,” writes a young person from India,” was what we heard from Chiara Lubich about the ‘technique’ of building unity. Now I’d like to practice it.”“To discover how Jesus, in the moment he felt forsaken by the Father, can become a ‘key to unity’ in as much as I try to imitate him, filled me with hope,” said a woman from the Philippines.

In a joyous atmosphere, participants were able to tell of their joys and difficulties, both in the hall and smaller groups, which is so important in order to share our lives together. There were moments to play, pray, and an intercultural evening to relax that included songs, video clips, skits and dances that involved everyone.

“Special care was given to activities for the children, some of whom did not want to go back home,” says Claudia. “It was like an oasis,” explains Amjad, “where each of us found a family, with a spiritual presence of Jesus that is alive.”
“During these past days, the fire of this ideal, which I got to know many years ago, was re-awakened,” confides a man from Brazil. “Now I want to give this fire to others.”

Mia and Michel write: “It seemed to us that by the end, everyone returning to their countries or emirates, like Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, brought with them that ‘piece of fraternity’ that they had lived at the Mariapolis. Everyone evidently wanted to continue living this in their own environment, bringing hope to everyone. Now we keep connected through social media in a vibrant network, trying to help us live for each other, open to everyone.”