http://www.kuwaittimes.net/read_news.php?newsid=NzM0NzAwMTU3OA==
Christians celebrate Christmas in Kuwait Published Date: December 26, 2011 By Ben Garcia, Staff Writer KUWAIT: Thousands of Christians celebrated Christmas throughout Kuwait yesterday against the backdrop of 'the usual traffic jam near the place of worship' in Kuwait City. It is a common scene on Christmas Day in Kuwait City where many expatriates congregated at churches to celebrate Christmas. Christians mostly from South Asia and the Philippines converged in large numbers to celebrate Christmas. Most workers are only allowed to take a day-off on this special religious occasion. After church services, expats meet at restaurants and other shops situated in and around Kuwait City to catch up with friends, making it almost impossible for many motorists to penetrate into Kuwait City. The National Evangelical Church and the Holy Family Cathedral, the biggest Christian denominations are both based in Kuwait City although their satellite churches are present in some parts of Kuwait. Members observed Christmas as the most important time of the year. The Evangelical Church in Kuwait organized 'Christmas bonfire' where members gathered to sing carols in native dialects Tagalog, Hindi, Malayalam, Arabic and English around the huge bonfire. Pastor David Peacock officiated the ceremony before the two consecutive Christmas Eve Services which followed between 9 pm and 11pm. Pastor Warren Reeve led the congregation to reflect the real message of Christmas by recollecting the current events known to many today as the Arab Spring. He noted that the world needs the Prince of Peace now more than ever, "Peace in the world starts with you and I when we are connected with Jesus. Each of us needs peace, all God's children need peace." The Holy Family Cathedral [The Catholic Church] arranged several masses in Malayalam, Konkani, Bengali, Tamil, English, French, Korean, Italian and Arabic from as early as 4 am [December 25] till 9 pm last night. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
