Dubai: Simbang Gabi cancelled on Thursday due to heavy rains, unstable weather

Simbang Gabi, the traditional Filipino outdoor mass that runs for nine days before Christmas, is cancelled in Dubai on Thursday, December 18, “due to the current weather conditions and heavy rainfall,” St Mary’s Catholic Church announced at around 5.30pm today.

There will be no online mass for the 8pm Simbang Gabi, but the 7pm mass will be streamed online instead.

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Simbang Gabi is a Filipino Christmas tradition that began in the late 1600s during the Spanish colonial era. Filipino Catholics brought this tradition to the UAE in the early 2000s. Aside from St Mary’s Church, other Catholic churches across the UAE also hold Simbang Gabi (evening mass), which began on Monday, December 15.

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More than 20,000 churchgoers attended the first day of the nine-day mass, which is traditionally held outdoors within the compound of St Mary’s Church to accommodate the huge number of people attending the mass. Attendance was estimated to have reached as high as 30,000 on Tuesday night, December 16, when popular Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelisation — Section for the First Evangelisation and the New Particular Churches, presided at the mass.

For everyone’s safety

In a Facebook post on Thursday, St Mary’s Catholic Church said: “In line with the directives from the Community Development Authority (CDA)-Dubai, and due to the current weather conditions and heavy rainfall, all parish events and activities are cancelled until further notice.”

“For everyone’s safety, parishioners are kindly advised to remain at home and avoid any gatherings during this period. We will strictly comply with all official instructions and will share updates as soon as further guidance is issued.

Please note that there will be no online mass for Simbang Gabi. The 7pm mass will be streamed online instead.

“Thank you for your understanding and cooperation. Please stay safe and keep each other in prayer,” the church added.

Angel Tesorero

angel@khaleejtimes.com

Angel Tesorero is Assistant Editor and designated funny guy in the newsroom, but dead serious about writing on transport, labour migration, and environmental issues. He is a food lover too.