Abu Dhabi’s “Abrahamic Family House” Brings Mosque, Church, and Synagogue in One Complex

Abrahamic Family House connected Saadiyat Island successful Abu Dhabi. Credit: Boubloub / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

On Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island, a abbreviated region from the Zayed National Museum, 3 cubic buildings basal broadside by side. Together, they marque up the “Abrahamic Family House,” a analyzable that has brought Muslims, Jews, and Christians unneurotic nether 1 extortion of shared designation since 2023.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced plans for the task successful 2019, aft Pope Francis visited Abu Dhabi and signed the Document connected Human Fraternity with Grand Imam Ahmed El-Tayeb.

The determination gained further value successful 2020, erstwhile the Emirates became the archetypal Gulf authorities to normalize relations with Israel. Leaders successful Abu Dhabi framed the tract arsenic a imperishable marker of that displacement toward dialogue.

Equal size, chiseled identity

Model of the tract and its 3 main buildings. Credit: U.S. Embassy Jerusalem / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 2.0

British-Ghanaian designer Sir David Adjaye designed the 3 houses of worship with adjacent standard but antithetic character. The Imam Al-Tayeb Mosque uses carved geometric screens and brushed grey carpets. The Moses Ben Maimon Synagogue has Hebrew inscriptions of the Ten Commandments, a Torah room, and a bronze lattice that filters the sun. The St. Francis Church opens to greeting light, with a marble altar and woody pews.

Each operation reflects its contented but sits connected the aforesaid chromatic foundation. Between them, shaded courtyards and fountains connection abstraction for visitors moving betwixt services and events.

A spot for worship and visitors

Since opening successful March 2023, the Abrahamic Family House has hosted regular prayers, Christian services, and Jewish worship — the archetypal of its benignant successful a purpose-built nationalist synagogue successful the Emirates. The analyzable besides draws visitors for tours, lectures, and interfaith programs. Officials reported much than 100,000 visitors successful its archetypal year.

The Abrahamic Family House — a mosque, religion and synagogue by David Adjaye

Abu Dhabi, UAE 🇦🇪 pic.twitter.com/iZHy3ZZq8T

— Architectural Art (A-A) (@4AAAAart) August 1, 2025

The tract has go portion of Abu Dhabi’s taste district, wherever creation museums, monuments, and caller landmarks aspire to reframe the city’s planetary representation beyond lipid wealthiness and commerce.

Boundaries and security

The project has won praise for offering abstraction to faiths that person had a semipermanent beingness but are seldom disposable successful the Gulf. Yet the limits stay clear. Islam is the authorities religion of the UAE, and proselytizing by different faiths is illegal. Conversion from Islam carries ineligible penalties.

Security is besides tight. Visitors walk done metallic detectors and nether cameras fixed astatine entrances and corners, and guards surface cars arsenic they arrive. Measures similar these are seldom seen elsewhere successful the state but are considered indispensable to support worshippers, peculiarly astatine the synagogue.

Measured progress

For Christians and Jews surviving successful the United Arab Emirates, the Abrahamic Family House represents a measurement toward designation successful nationalist life. For Muslims, it reveals that their religion tin stock spaces without losing prominence. For the UAE, it is some awesome and connection — a showcase of tolerance with planetary visibility.

Trump Signs Guest Book At Abrahamic Family House In Abu Dhabi

On May 16, 2025, President Trump signed the impermanent publication astatine the Abrahamic Family House successful Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates earlier departing.

During his visit, helium expressed his views connected the value of the complex,… pic.twitter.com/OK8U2Su8dW

— Blue Owl (@BlueOwlHoots) May 16, 2025

The tract does not resoluteness wider conflicts oregon erase ineligible restrictions. However, it has created a spot wherever 3 religions, adjacent successful standard and chiseled successful tradition, tin commune wrong presumption of 1 another. On Saadiyat Island, that world is present built successful stone.