# Qatar; Religious Expectations



## donutfunky (Nov 28, 2014)

Hello expatforum.

First post here and what seems to be an incredible source of information that I hope to both leverage and contribute to. 

I am just looking for some advice with regards to a possible job opportunity I am working towards in Qatar. After several rounds of interview, the company and the work seems like it would be quite interesting and the overall package is quite attractive and I seem to be very close to an offer that I would like to strongly consider. 

Now I know the basics of Sharia Law and understand that Qatar is may be more conservative than other middle-eastern cities like Dubai. The dilemma I am facing is that though I am Muslim by birth, I have never practised and I am also married to a non-Muslim so am concerned on what impact this would have on this opportunity.

I wouldn't say I was an "apostate" or an atheist as such. I consider myself more of an agnostic and certainly don't drink, smoke or partake in other such activities otherwise frowned upon by Islamic society, both by upbringing and personal choice. I certainly have no intention on suppressing my wifes' beliefs though she isn't overly pious herself. At the same time, I don't want to put myself and my wife down as muslim for the sake of appearances. 

It would be a shame to pass up a good opportunity for this but I just wanted to ask if anyone knows of any societal religious expectations to be aware of in this situation and whether it's worth discussing these views up front with the company. Any thoughts, views or experiences would be appreciated.

Thanks in Advance,
df


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## pagbati (Apr 9, 2014)

df, I've only just logged in and read your post. I also see that it's a couple of weeks since you posted and note that you haven't had any replies. Have there been any developments i.e. have you moved to Qatar or are you still thinking of moving? Only asking because I don't want to waste time offering advice if you've changed your mind or have actually had the interview and made the move.


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## donutfunky (Nov 28, 2014)

Hi mabrouk. Thanks for the bump and appreciate your interest.

I went last week and the interviews seem to have gone well. The company and role all seems perfect and there's a lot of room for growth. There's a fair amount I'll be able to build from the ground up. The people working there also seem very nice, all very well educated and globally aware. From my drives around, I can draw many similarities to Abu Dhabi. There certainly seems to be a lot of potential and reading the papers, the growth plans are enormous.

I did manage to strike up casual conversations with a few people, both locals and expat, but they skirted around the discussions. Seemed like they didn't really want to talk about it too much (being one of the two global/universal "forbidden" topics to have discussions on, the other one being politics)

I guess I'll see if/as/when they offer but I left feeling quite positive about an offer. Still uncertain about the religious expectations so certainly interested in an opinion. Feel free to PM me if need.

Thanks again.
df


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## pagbati (Apr 9, 2014)

donutfunky said:


> Hi mabrouk. Thanks for the bump and appreciate your interest. Feel free to PM me if need. Thanks again.
> df


df, I've just tried to send you a PM but you've set up your profile not to accept them. You need to activate this under the 'User CP' section. You can give it a test run by sending me a PM; I can then respond directly to that. Thanks.


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## donutfunky (Nov 28, 2014)

Sorry mabrouk. I must be dense and can't find the the place to change PM. Given I'm new here, may be there some sort of minimum number of posts before it can be enabled.

In any case, unless what you're to say is contentious, feel free to put it in the thread here until I can get PM sorted and then we can chat directly.


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## pagbati (Apr 9, 2014)

donutfunky said:


> Sorry mabrouk. I must be dense and can't find the the place to change PM. Given I'm new here, may be there some sort of minimum number of posts before it can be enabled.
> 
> In any case, unless what you're to say is contentious, feel free to put it in the thread here until I can get PM sorted and then we can chat directly.


Df, no problem, I’ll try to guide you through the process. To my knowledge, there is no minimum number of posts before you can access the PM facility. First and foremost, you must log in in order to access your profile. As soon as you’ve done that, go to:
1.	User CP. Shown in the 2nd toolbar from top. After you have clicked this on, a Control Panel comes up on the left hand side. Then, under one of the headings, Settings and Options (shown in green), 
2.	Select ‘Edit Options’, 
3.	Under ‘Messaging and Notification’, 
4.	Go to the ‘Private Messaging’ box and 
5.	Make sure the box ‘Enable Private Messaging’ is ticked. 
6.	Once you have done this, scroll down and click the ‘Save Changes’ box and you should be in business.

There are a number of ways to send a PM but until you get familiar with the system, I’d recommend the easiest way is as follows:
•	Go back to your original thread. 
•	Then go to one of my posts and click on the green/ blue dot beside Mabrouk.
•	In the drop down menu, select ‘Send a private message to Mabrouk’. 
•	This will take you back to your user profile section and you can draft the message.

If you encounter any difficulties at any stage, let me know and I’ll try to talk you through it. If you’re still unsuccessful after that then we can consider contacting an administrator or moderator and they will help you further.

With regard to posting comments directly on the thread, well, considering the thread title is ‘Qatar - Religious Expectations’, common sense and 10-years of working and living in the Middle East has taught me never to take the subject of religion lightly. If you’ve lived in Dubai for any length of time, then you should already know that some topics are inadvisable in a public forum. Religion is one of those topics where honesty and frankness is rarely appreciated anywhere in the world and certainly not in the Middle East. What I find uncontroversial, others may find contentious. I’m afraid, therefore, that it has to be PM.


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## donutfunky (Nov 28, 2014)

Aaah! It won't allow me to do private messages unless I upgrade. I'll try that and give it another go.

And totally with you with regards to the "topic". Had to ask because I've not seen any constructive guidance or advice on it anywhere and I'm mindful of the delicacy needed ;-)

Thanks for being willing to discuss mabrouk. Will PM you as soon as I get this working.


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

Just post a few more times, once you have 5 posts?? the PM function opens up.


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## pagbati (Apr 9, 2014)

donutfunky said:


> Aaah! It won't allow me to do private messages unless I upgrade. I'll try that and give it another go.
> 
> And totally with you with regards to the "topic". Had to ask because I've not seen any constructive guidance or advice on it anywhere and I'm mindful of the delicacy needed ;-)
> 
> Thanks for being willing to discuss mabrouk. Will PM you as soon as I get this working.


Thanks Pazcat. 

df, as you now have 4 posts, by replying with a simply thanks message, this should give you the required 5 posts and you're free to go.


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## donutfunky (Nov 28, 2014)

Wow. I really am thick. Thanks for the advice to both of you


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## pagbati (Apr 9, 2014)

donutfunky said:


> Wow. I really am thick. Thanks for the advice to both of you


df, don't be so hard on yourself. The system does take a little time to get used to. Besides, I've just clicked on the green/ blue dot beside your name and it looks to me as if you still can't access the PM facility. If you can't access it from there, I don't see why it would make any difference trying it from your 'User CP' section. Could be any number of reasons for this. My first guess is that the system hasn't recognised/ caught up yet. The other is that it may require another one-liner post from you. Worth trying the latter first.

In the meantime, if a moderater or anyone in admin is reading this post, can you offer df any advice as to why he still cannot use the PM facility. I've just checked the rules and #16 does imply that the PM facitlity becomes available after '5 good posts'. Thanks


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## pagbati (Apr 9, 2014)

*Success?*

df, I've just checked your profile again and you now have access to sending PM's. Good luck.


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