Christianity in Qatar

Christianity is practiced in Qatar primarily of Indians, Arabs, Europeans, Americans and Filipinos.

No missionary group working openly in Qatar. Conversion from Islam to another religion is a crime punishable by death to be valid in. Since independence, although no one was indicted for that reason, but there are arrests for the attempted proselytizing of Muslims. A committee of members of Christian communities were established to have direct contact with the State Department on Religious Affairs.

Confessions

Among those mentioned in the World Christian Encyclopedia, Second edition, Volume 1, Page 617 Christian denominations are the Mar Thoma Church, the Arabic Evangelical Church, the Christian Brethren and the Anglican Church. About 50,000 Catholics live in Qatar. Qatar is part of the territory of the Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia. The Anglican population in Qatar consists of 7000-10000 people. The small Coptic minority in Qatar has among the Muslim population reputed to be influential.

Church building

2006 began the first construction of a church for 14 centuries. It will contain a conference center. The Church of Our Lady of the Rosary was opened on 15 March 2008 and is the first Christian church in Qatar. According to the guidelines of the government, they could not have a steeple, church bells or visible from the outside crosses. The building complex is, when it is fully completed, be one of the largest Christian centers in the Gulf region. It consists of buildings for Catholics, Anglicans, Copts and Greek Orthodox Christians, in addition there are inter - denominational useful building who wish to use some Indian Christian faith groups among others. The church in the southern outskirts of the city of Doha can accommodate about 2700 worshipers. The building was of Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al- Thani, the made ​​available Emir of Qatar.

Cross inside the church