Abu Dhabi has a 7th century Christian monastery, and it reveals a history of coexistence

With about 200 nationalities residing within its borders, the UAE has put significant emphasis on promoting tolerance and coexistence.

This tradition predates the nation's oil boom by more than a thousand years, as Christian monastery on Abu Dhabi's Sir Bani Yas Island reveals. Excavated in the 1990s and opened to the public in 2010, the 1,400-year-old Christian site reveals a lot about the ancient history of the region.

Christianity spread throughout the Gulf region between 50 A.D. and 350 A.D. Archaeologists believe the monastery was founded around 600 A.D. and continued to be used well into the early Islamic Era.

Dr. Joseph Elders, the project's archaeological director, told The National in 2010 that before the monastery was excavated, it was unknown that Christianity had spread so far south and east.

He also said that the monastery continued use after the arrival of Islam demonstrates "tolerance of the Muslims quite close to their heartland"

"We know that there are stories of everyone living in harmony," Elders said.

Archaeologists believe the monastery was eventually abandoned as the Christian community shrank.

This month, Abu Dhabi brought together more than 30 regional Christian leaders for a special prayer service at the monastery site.

The service was part of the government's National Program for Tolerance, which was launched last year. UAE leaders want Christian communities in the country and the region to be an integral part of the program's initiative.

Minister for Tolerance Sheikh Lubna Al Qasimi said: "Nations develop and flourish when they accept differences and work on their similarities."

She said the Christian site represents the UAE's "values of tolerance, coexistence and peace."

Archbishop Barthelmaues Nathaniel Joseph, Patriarchal Vicar for the Arabian Gulf of the Syrian Patriarchate of Antioch and all the East of the Syrian Orthodox Church, said that the UAE's preservation and promotion of the site shows its devotion "to the promotion of religious tolerance and freedom of worship today," 

When the site opened to the public, the chairman of the UAE's Tourism Development and Investment Company said: "We are proud of our heritage."

He said the historic site provides "an insight into the rich history."

The site was open to a small but open community. Archaeologists have said it was a hardworking community.

"The church contained private cabins for monks and prayer rooms. Archaeologists found nearly 15 kinds of pottery and glassware, some of which was used in religious ceremonies," Sheikh Lubna explained during a speech at the site last spring.

Another tourism official explained that the site reveals not only information about Christianity, but also about "various religions and cultures that inhabited the island for thousands of years."

"It reflects the richness of the country’s history," he said.