As December draws to a close, Christian congregations across the UAE are finalising detailed worship schedules for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, reflecting the country’s unusually broad mix of nationalities and traditions. Churches across the emirates are preparing for large turnouts, with services planned in as many as 16 languages to meet the needs of worshippers from different cultural backgrounds.
Across parishes, the range of languages includes English and Arabic alongside Malayalam, Tagalog, Tamil, Sinhalese, Urdu, French, Italian, Spanish, Polish, Korean, Ukrainian, German, Portuguese and Konkani. Church officials say the goal is to allow worshippers to observe Christmas in familiar liturgical settings while preserving customs from their home countries.
Many churches have already begun marking the season with decorations and community events, including carol services, children’s activities and small-scale neighbourhood gatherings. In several parishes, Christmas programmes extend beyond a single day, with prayer services continuing through the end of December and into the New Year.
In Dubai, St Mary’s Catholic Church has announced one of the most extensive schedules in the country. The parish recently hosted the penultimate Simbang Gabi Mass, drawing more than 20,000 Filipino worshippers to the traditional nine-day series ahead of Christmas. On December 24, the church will hold early morning Masses at 6am and 6.45am, followed by afternoon and evening services in English, French and Arabic. Carol singing is scheduled for 11.15pm, leading into the midnight Mass at 12am. On Christmas Day, December 25, the church will hold multiple English and Arabic services from early morning through the evening.
At St Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, Christmas Eve services on December 24 include English Masses throughout the day, alongside Portuguese, Malankara and Malayalam services. An English midnight Mass is scheduled for 11pm. Christmas Day services span English Masses from early morning to night, as well as Italian, German, Sinhalese, Korean, Tagalog, Ukrainian, Spanish, Tamil, Arabic and Polish services, with the Polish Mass set for December 26.
Other Dubai congregations have also released their schedules. Mar Thoma Parish will hold a Malayalam Christmas Holy Communion service on December 24 at 8pm, followed by an English Holy Communion service on Christmas Day at 7am. Christ Church will conduct a Christmas Eve Holy Eucharist service at 10.30pm on December 24 and a Christmas Day service at 10am. St Thomas Orthodox Cathedral will begin evening prayers at 6pm on December 24, followed by night prayer, the Christmas service and Holy Communion. Holy Trinity Church has scheduled its Christmas Eve service for 11.30pm, with three services planned on Christmas Day.
In the capital, St Joseph’s Cathedral will host a full slate of Christmas Eve Masses on December 24 starting at 4.30pm, with additional English services continuing through midnight. Carol singing is planned 40 minutes before each service. On December 25, the day begins with a Malayalam Syro-Malabar Mass at 4am, followed by English, Arabic and multiple language services throughout the day, including Konkani, French, Italian, Spanish, Ukrainian, Tamil, Urdu, Sinhala, Polish and Filipino. Masses for the Christmas Octave will continue on December 26, 29 and 30.
Also in Abu Dhabi, St George Orthodox Cathedral will hold evening prayer on December 24, followed by the Service of Fire and Holy Qurbana. A Christmas community gathering is scheduled for December 28, with evening prayer and a love feast planned as part of the programme. At St Francis Church, a Christmas Eve Mass will take place on December 24 at 8.30pm, followed by a Christmas Day Mass at 12 noon.
Churches in the Northern Emirates are also preparing for busy schedules. St Michael’s Catholic Church will hold multiple English, Malayalam and Arabic services on Christmas Eve, with carol singing beginning at 11.30pm. On Christmas Day, services include Syro-Malabar, Syro-Malankara and English Masses, as well as services in Urdu, Tamil, Konkani, Arabic, Tagalog, African languages, Sinhalese and Malayalam.
In Sharjah, Mar Thoma Parish has scheduled Holy Qurbana services on December 24 at 7.30pm and December 25 at 5am. Further north, St Anthony of Padua Catholic Church will conduct Christmas services across its Jazeera, Nakheel and Umm Al Quwain locations, with programmes beginning before Christmas Eve and continuing through December 25 in English, Malayalam, Arabic, Tamil and Sinhalese.
| Church | Location | Christmas Eve – December 24 | Christmas Day – December 25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Mary’s Catholic Church | Oud Metha, Dubai | 6am (Eng), 6.45am (Eng); 3.30pm (Eng); 5pm (Fr); 7pm (Eng); 9pm (Ar); Carol singing 11.15pm; Midnight Mass 12am (Eng) | 5.30am, 7am, 8.30am, 10am (Eng); 11.30am (Ar); 3pm, 4.30pm, 6pm, 7.30pm (Eng); 9pm (Ar) |
| St Francis of Assisi Catholic Church | Jebel Ali, Dubai | 11am, 3pm, 5pm, 7pm (Eng); 1pm (Portuguese – church); 1pm (Malankara – hall); 9pm (Malayalam); 11pm (Eng Midnight Mass) | 6am, 8am, 10am, 6pm, 8pm (Eng); 10am (Italian – hall); 11am (German – Room 8); 11.30am (Sinhalese – church); 11.30am (Korean – hall); 1pm (Tagalog – church & classrooms); 1pm (Ukrainian – hall); 2.30pm (Spanish – church); 2.30pm (Tamil – hall); 4pm (Arabic – church & hall) |
| Mar Thoma Parish (Dubai) | Dubai | 8pm (Malayalam Holy Communion) | 7am (English Holy Communion) |
| Christ Church | Dubai | 10.30pm (Holy Eucharist) | 10am (Holy Eucharist) |
| St Thomas Orthodox Cathedral | Dubai | Evening prayer 6pm; night prayer; Christmas service; Holy Communion | — |
| Holy Trinity Church | Dubai | 11.30pm (Christmas Eve service) | 8am; 9.30am; 7.30pm |
| St Joseph’s Cathedral | Abu Dhabi | 4.30pm, 6pm, 8pm, 10pm, 12am (all Eng); carol singing 40 mins before each | 4am (Malayalam Syro-Malabar); 6.30am, 7am, 9am, 10.30am, 12nn, 4pm, 5.30pm, 7pm (Eng); 7.30am (Malayalam Latin); 9am (Konkani); 10.30am & 7.30pm (Arabic); 10.30am (French); 12nn (Italian); 4pm (Spanish); 4pm (Ukrainian); 5.30pm (Tamil); 5.30pm (Urdu); 6pm (Sinhala); 7.30pm (Polish); 8.30pm (Filipino) |
| St George Orthodox Cathedral | Abu Dhabi | Evening prayer 5.30pm; Service of Fire 7pm; Holy Qurbana 7.45pm | — |
| St Francis Church (Abrahamic Family House) | Abu Dhabi | 8.30pm (Christmas Eve Mass) | 12nn (Christmas Day Mass) |
| St Michael’s Catholic Church | Sharjah | 5.30pm, 7pm, 10.15pm (Eng); 8.15pm (Malayalam); 10pm (Arabic – Assisi Chapel); Carol singing 11.30pm | 3am (Syro-Malabar); 5am (Syro-Malankara – Parish Hall); 5.45am, 7am, 8.15am, 9.30am, 5.30pm, 7pm (Eng); 8am (Urdu – Assisi Chapel); 10.45am (Tamil); 10.45am (Konkani – Parish Hall); 12nn (Arabic); 12nn (Tagalog – Parish Hall); 1.30pm (African – Assisi Chapel); 2pm (Sinhalese – Parish Hall); 3pm (Syro-Malabar); 8.15pm (Malayalam) |
| Mar Thoma Parish (Sharjah) | Sharjah | 7.30pm (Holy Qurbana) | 5am (Holy Qurbana) |
| St Anthony of Padua Catholic Church – Jazeera | Ras Al Khaimah | 6.30am, 7pm (Eng); 5pm (Arabic); 8.45pm carols; 9.30pm (Malayalam Latin); 11.15pm carols; 12am Midnight Service | 6.30am, 10am, 12nn, 7pm (Eng) |
| St Anthony of Padua Catholic Church – Nakheel | Ras Al Khaimah | 6.30am (Eng); 7pm (Tamil); 9pm (Sinhalese) | 6.30am, 7pm (Eng) |
| St Anthony of Padua Catholic Church – Umm Al Quwain | Umm Al Quwain | 9pm (Eng) | 7am (Malayalam Syro-Malabar) |
Several churches have also confirmed that New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day services will be held, with full schedules published on parish websites for worshippers planning to attend services beyond Christmas Day.
