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Introducing:

Jordan - New Church for Irbid

In a joyous and festive afternoon in February, in the heart of Jordan’s third largest city Bishop Suheil Dawani laid the cornerstone for the new Church of St. Mary the Virgin. In an interview the bishop was asked “Why now and why Irbid?” He replied: “We have an expanding and well respected ‘Special Needs’ school serving the community and a growing congregation that needs more space for education and worship, as well as for community social services. Irbid is now a large metropolitan city with two major centres for higher education that enhance the community’s cultural pursuits. With the growth of our school in serving special needs children through the fifth Grade, and with the congregation overflowing the Chapel the need for a Church to replace the smaller school Chapel became a high priority for the Diocese.

Laying the cornerstone. From the right: Mr Wael Hamrani (Architect), Ven Luah Haddad (Archdeacon). the Bishop, Revd Samir Esaid (Vicar of the Parish)

The new Church facilities will enable the school to use the vacated space as well as the new facility to add classrooms for another 250 students and from the inquiries and waiting list, that number will quickly be reached”. In naming the new Church St. Mary the Virgin, the Bishop explained, “You should know that we have not had a Church named for the Holy Mother of our Lord in the Diocese. With the school being a family oriented educational ministry serving children whose sight is impaired it was appropriate to name its church ‘St. Mary’, honoring the caring love of the Mother of our Lord in the Holy Family. Perhaps equally important is that Irbid is a predominantly Muslim City. The Blessed Virgin Mary has a special place in Islam. The Blessed Mother as the Koran states grows under direct divine protection and is nourished daily by angels and has visions of God every day”.

The Bishop went on to thank King Abdullah II of Jordan for his support. “He supports the Christian community’s concern for those needing special help such as this school provides. As with his father the late King Hussein, His Majesty always gives his blessing to such worthy communal educational and social services endeavors”. Expressing his great admiration for the King, Bishop Suheil said that “as a Diocese, and along with the entire Christian community in Jordan, we are most grateful for the warm support and collegiality in purpose that our Institutions receive from the Government in the fields of education, healthcare and social services”. The bishop ended the interview on a positive note that underlines his vision of partnership which the diocese enjoys ecumenically as well as in interfaith and governmental collegiality by saying: “The school has grown with 150 children now enrolled through the Fifth Grade, of whom 32 are sightimpaired or blind. They are served by highly dedicated and specialized teachers from interfaith traditions, some of whom are vision-impaired themselves. Each year volunteers, from Germany and the United States, enhance the school’s teaching and social services staff. As the school grows, vital employment opportunities are created for young professionals and the local economy is strengthened through the education of special needs children.” The bishop paid tribute to Revd. Samir Esaid the parish priest and to his wife Sabah the head teacher whose determination had brought the vision to reality. “In this diocese we have six Institutions which help people with special needs to become active and selfsustaining members of the community. In this, in Irbid, St Mary’s church and school will surely play a pivotal part in civil society.” he said.

The new Church will seat 200 parishioners comfortably providing the space needed for congregational and school growth. The multi service Parish Hall on the lower ground floor of the Church will accommodate 250 persons seated for dinner and can also be utilized for meetings by community groups related to the school.