For the first time since the seventh century, a church is to be constructed in the predominantly Muslim gulf emirate of Qatar

Christian Century, May 3, 2003

* For the first time since the seventh century, a church is to be constructed in the predominantly Muslim gulf emirate of Qatar. Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams blessed a cross-shaped stone for the new building at a service for Qatar's Anglican community April 6 conducted by the bishop of Cyprus and the gulf.

Williams was in Qatar for the second "Building Bridges" seminar of Christian and Muslim scholars, including seven from the United States, to examine the state of Christian-Muslim relations. The purpose of the meeting, he said, was to discover more about how each community believes it must listen to God while being conscious of how very differently they identify and speak of God's revelation. "Listening to God and listening to one another as nations, cultures and faiths have not always had the priority they so desperately need," the archbishop said.