Pope Francis' visit a dream come true for the Christian community of Bahrain and Middle East

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Staff Reporter

Thousands of Catholics in the Kingdom and from abroad formed long queues to attend the Papal Mass at Bahrain National Stadium last night. 

Their tireless and unrelenting efforts involved remaining awake the whole night to catch the buses to the stadium that transported them in the middle of Friday night from previously-mentioned gathering points. 

The crowd of about 30,000 people that filled Bahrain’s National Stadium was the second-largest gathering for a papal Mass on the Arabian Peninsula, following one that drew more than 100,000 in the United Arab Emirates in 2019.

“I can’t believe this. This is just a miracle which I never thought I would accomplish in my lifetime,” said Gloria Macapagal, a Filipino national Bahrain resident.

She said her community was overwhelmed since knowing the news of Pope Francis visiting the Kingdom.

“He is our light and he has been guiding the world to destroy the forces of evil.”

Joesph Mathew, who is a schoolteacher in the Kingdom, thanked His Majesty for inviting Pope Francis into the Kingdom. “All my siblings and family members live in the Kingdom.

All of them are here to catch a glimpse of the Pope and attend the Papal Mass.

“We were really thrilled after coming to know about this Pope visit. He is our greatest shepherd, guiding us away from the hands of evil towards God and God’s Kingdom.”  

Passes were previously sent to those registered online as part of the Bahraini government’s preparation plans to welcome pilgrims from the whole of Middle East including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other Gulf countries. 

Michael Stephen, an Indian national residing in the Kingdom for the past thirty years, appreciated the authorities for making great arrangements for the faithful to attend the Papal Mass.

“Fantastic arrangements have been done for the faithful to attend this event.

This is actually a great honour for the Kingdom’s Christian community, which largely comprises expatriate population.”  

Marshal Augustine Thekkumpuram, a resident in the Kingdom for over ten years, praised the Kingdom’s open-hearted policy towards all religions and cultures.

“This very land offers the most promising image of coexistence in diversity, increasingly fuelled by the constant migration of peoples and by a pluralism of ideas, customs and traditions,” he said.

Many non-Christians also attended the event. A non-Christian resident who was at the stadium said Pope Francis belongs to the whole of humanity.

“He is a religious figure but most importantly he is the main ambassador of peace.

I love him and wish him good health. I also thank His Majesty for inviting the Pope to this country.” 

The prayers of the faithful during the Mass were read in languages spoken by expatriate workers including Tagalog, Swahili, Malayalam , Tamil and Konkani.

The Mass was attended by Royal Family members, several government ministers and senior government officials.