The first Christian church in the conservative Muslim state of Qatar since the arrival of Islam in the 7th century is to be built on land donated by the reform-minded Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani.

The $7 million development of the Church of the Epiphany, which will not have a spire or freestanding cross, will begin early next year.

Clive Handford, the Nicosia-based Anglican Bishop in Cyprus and the Gulf, says: "We are there as guests in a Muslim country and we wish to be sensitive to our hosts ... but once you're inside the gates it will be quite obvious that you are in a Christian center."

The walkways and grounds of the church, in Qatar's capital, Doha, will have crosses and flower motifs resembling those used in early Christian churches. "We hope that the center can be a base for ongoing Muslim-Christian dialogue," Bishop Handford told The Monitor...