Will churches soon be allowed in Saudi Arabia? Not a chance…

Mar 19, 2018 by

By Thomas Craughwell, National Catholic Register.

Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, visited London for three days recently. He and Theresa May’s government had a lot to talk about—trade, terrorism, oil prices, women’s rights. It was a busy if predictable agenda. The most interesting topic came up when the Crown Prince paid a call on Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury. It is the type of photo op visit that most dignitaries make when visiting a foreign country. But Archbishop Welby caught everyone off guard when he departed from the polite chit-chat and asked the prince to do something the Saudi royal family has refused to do since the founding of their dynasty in 1744: The archbishop asked that King Salman lift the ban on the free practice of Christianity in his kingdom and permit Christians to construct churches.

After the meeting, the archbishop’s spokesman said that in reply to the archbishop’s appeal, the Crown Prince “made a strong commitment to promote the flourishing of those of different faith traditions, and to interfaith dialogue within the Kingdom and beyond.”

On other words, his answer to Archbishop Welby is, “No.”

In fairness, Saudi Arabia is not targeting Christianity. It does not permit any religion to build a house of worship in the kingdom. Technically, it does not permit any non-Muslim religious services, but on this point government officials are willing to turn a blind eye as long as there has been no advertising of the service—and the ban on advertising extends even to posting a notice on a bulletin board. The place where the service is held must be obscure. The place cannot be permanent, even if it is a sacred place. For example, we have American troops stationed in Saudi Arabia—that has been the case for years. Yet chaplains cannot have a room or even a tent to use as a chapel because under Saudi law it is considered a permanent location.

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