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February 20, 2023Abu Dhabi.
Address of Cardinal Michael L. Fitzgerald
Thanksgiving Prayer Service
St. Francis Church, Abrahamic Family House
We are gathered this afternoon to give thanks to God for the inauguration of the Abrahamic Family House. As you will have seen for yourselves, this space contains a synagogue, a church and a mosque. It also includes a “welcome centre” where members of these three religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and also people belonging to other religions, or to none, may meet in a spirit of openness and respect.
On Thursday evening the Maghrib prayer was performed in the mosque. Earlier this afternoon a prayer was held in the synagogue. Now it is the turn for this church to be used for a prayer, which will be a prayer of gratitude.
We have given praise to God through singing hymns and we have heard proclaimed readings from different parts of the Bible. I now wish to comment briefly on these readings.
The first reading we heard was taken from the book of the Prophet Isaiah, who is common both to Jews and to Christians. It is talking about a place for prayer – this would have referred to the Temple, but Christians apply it to their churches. The place of prayer should also be a place of joy, and I hope that this will be true for all of us here present. You will have noticed that the prophet says it is to be “a house of prayer for all the peoples", and I am sure that this will be so, for Christian worship takes us out of ourselves. Worship first leads us to praise God who is worthy of all praise, and to thank the God of Bounty who has given us so many gifts. But worship opens us up to others, instilling in us "a care for justice, encouraging us to act with integrity. We cannot truly pray to God without remembering the other members of the Abrahamic family, and indeed of the human family.
The second reading was an encouragement from the Christian apostle Paul. It was a call to remember in our prayers those who are responsible for our well-being, and in particular the political authorities. As you can see from the service sheet, we shall do this in a short while. But I think it is only right to thank God for the leaders of this country who have welcomed the building of this Abrahamic Family House, and who have welcomed us all here. It is not easy for political leaders in our times when we see so much violence and conflict. We pray that they may continue to lead us on the path of reconciliation, justice and peace.
The Gospel passage that was proclaimed is in fact a prayer of blessing that is included in the morning prayer of Christians. The father of the prophet John the Baptist (known to Muslims as Yahya) asks God to bless his son. He is asking this of the God of Abraham, the Merciful Lord of Mercy, al-Rahman al-Rahim. What he wants is for us all to be able to serve the Lord "in holiness and virtue in his presence, all our days."
I should like to underline these last words: "all our days". The opening of the Abrahamic Family House is naturally not just for us who are present today. This space is also for those who will come after us, for all time. As we give thanks to God for its Inauguration, let us pray also that it may continue to serve all peoples, promoting justice, reconciliation and peace. Amen.