UAE names Abu Dhabi mosque after ”Mary, Jesus mother”

Authorities have renamed a mosque in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, after the mother of Jesus Christ. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, said he ordered the change in a bid to build bridges with other religions. The name change to “Mariam, Umm Eisa,” Arabic for “Mary, […]

Authorities have renamed a mosque in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, after the mother of Jesus Christ.

Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, said he ordered the change in a bid to build bridges with other religions.

The name change to “Mariam, Umm Eisa,” Arabic for “Mary, the mother of Jesus,” on Wednesday, would “consolidate bonds of humanity between followers of different religions,” he said.

In February 2016, the sheikhdom opened a Ministry of Tolerance, alongside a Ministry of Happiness,  to “promote tolerance as a fundamental value in UAE society,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, said at the time.

Minister of Tolerance Sheikha Lubna al-Qasimi said the move reflected Sheikh Mohammed’s “pure humanity and portrays a bright image of the real tolerance and coexistence in the UAE,”

Rev. Yousuf Farajallah, Pastor of the Evangelical Arab community in Abu Dhabi, said that the gesture reflects the spirit of Christian and Muslim brotherhood, and the principles and values of interfaith coexistence in the UAE. (Khaleej Times)