Every Friday at noon, the holiest day of the week for Muslims, the NYUAD Office of Student Life will organize a trip to Maryam bint Sultan Mosque, the only English-speaking mosque in Abu Dhabi. Non-Muslims are welcome and encouraged to join the Islamic students in their Friday prayer.

As I rushed down to the elevator to join the Islamic Student Union in their Jumu’ah Friday prayer last week, I felt a strange sense of unnerving excitement.

It was 12.40 pm when we arrived at the mosque. Despite the scourging heat, people were already gathering outside. One by one, visitors removed their shoes, bowing reverently before opening the heavy outer wooden door to be greeted with waves of cool air and a recitation of the Quran.

The Friday prayer normally starts with the sounding of the “adhan”, the first call to prayer, to remind the nearby neighborhood of the Friday prayer. Approximately half an hour after the adhan, the mosque sounds the “khutba adhan,” the second call to prayer, which signals the start of the jumu’ah ritual.

At the start of the jumu’ah ritual, the imam, the religious leaders of the prayers, preached sermons addressing various topics including kindness, hospitality and manner. The sermon is traditionally delivered in Arabic. However, the influx of Muslims that do not speak Arabic into the UAE has inspired the construction of English-speaking mosques throughout the country. After the sermons, specific bowing rituals were conducted and lasted approximately ten minutes to signal the end of the Friday prayer.

It is easy to notice the abundance of mosques and cultural oases while living in a modern city like Abu Dhabi. Such abundance represents the effort of the government to ensure that no man would have to walk more than 500 steps to reach a mosque from his home. In another effort to warrant a fulfilling Friday prayer experience for all Muslims, the government declared Friday a holiday instead of Sunday so that worshippers can amply prepare themselves for jumu’ah by showering and wearing the best of clothes.

During my visit to the jumu’ah, I was accompanied and instructed by Abdullah I Mohamed, chair of the Islamic Student Union, whose affability and knowledge of Islam helped wash away my initial anxiety. Thanks to the hospitality of the Islamic Student Union, the visit was a thoroughly peaceful and eye-opening experience.