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Home , Holy Land, Jordan River, Mount Nebo

Pope Francis stands by the River at Beyond the Jordan. Jordan A place of history, mystery, and

by Marge Fenelon

hat comes to your mind However, there’s another when someone mentions that is as beautiful and mysterious as it the Holy Land? If you’re is important. Tat land is Jordan, ofen likeW most people, you’ll think about the referred to as “Te Other Holy Land,” and many places in where lived and rightfully so. died. With the exception of Bethlehem “Te stories of , , , — which is in — many of the , , , , , milestones in our Lord’s life took place Jesus, the apostle Paul and many others there. cannot be told without including events BOARD TOURISM OF JORDAN COURTESY PHOTOS

36 digest.com To subscribe: 800-678-2836 • catholic that took place in Jordan,” said Christine Valley is the garden referred to in Genesis, Moore, consultant for the Jordan Tourism and the is the river that fowed Board. out of Eden to water the garden. Legend “Tis is the area of the Crossing — the has it that stood for 40 days in the area of the Jordan River, just north of the waters of the Jordan River afer the Fall, , where the crossed praying and begging ’s forgiveness. over afer their long Exodus journey. And Jordan is the land of the prophets and there are so many other biblical events of the First through Moses. Here that took place in Jordan. Te says Moses delivered the Jesus preached, taught, healed and trav- to the Israelites and later in his life gazed eled throughout the region east of the upon the from the heights Jordan River, where most of the cities of of Mount Nebo. In this region wres- the were located. My hope is tled with the , and God appeared to that every to the Holy Land would his people in the form of a whirlwind, pillar follow the Bible and the early Christian of fre, cloud of light, and voice speaking — rather than modern maps — to to the prophets. Jordan was designated by make an authentic Holy Land pilgrimage God as a place of peace and refuge. Tus that includes Jordan.” the prophets journeyed from the east bank Jordan’s heritage is rich, indeed. Experts of the Jordan River — the “wilderness” — have located the Garden of Eden along the to the — the “Promised Land.” banks of the Jordan River in the north- In times, Jordan was ern near Wadi Rayyan, an home to the last of the prophets — John the area known for its lush fora and abundant animal life. It is believed that the Jordan A pilgrim prays on the Jordan River bank.

June/July/August 2016 37 • Baptist — who carried out his mission and was proclaimed. It is in Jordan that one was imprisoned and murdered by Herod can see the chapters of the Old Testament there. Jesus began his public ministry in and New Testament unfold.” Jordan, preached, performed , and Time and again the Old and New called fve of his disciples, including Peter. Testaments converge in Jordan, but “In Jordan, we fnd the geography of the one area where that is most promi- salvation,” said Father Nabil Haddad, a nently seen and felt is Bethany Beyond in the Melkite Catholic the Jordan. Not to be confused with the and founder and executive director of the Bethany where Martha and Mary lived, Jordanian Interfaith Coexistence Research Bethany Beyond the Jordan is located Center. “Seventy-fve to 80 percent of bib- on the eastern side of the Jordan River in lical events took place in this region, and southern Jordan. it is the birthplace of . Jesus One of the most important sites in was born in Bethlehem, but Christianity this area is Elijah’s Hill, the place where was proclaimed at Bethany Beyond the Elijah ascended into heaven on a chariot Jordan. It was there also that the Trinity of fre. John the Baptist lived in a cave on the western side of the hill, and the area has

Rustom Mkhjian, assistant director of the been restored to look much like it did in Site Commission, guides Pope John’s time. Te reeds so ofen mentioned Francis at the site of Jesus’ baptism. in the Bible are present throughout the

38 digest.com To subscribe: 800-678-2836 • catholic 2015 annuity ad.qxp_catholic digest 2015 2/20/ year, as well as the small bushes that are habitat Divine Word to bees — a reminder of the locust and wild that sustained him. From here John began Charitable his ministry of preaching conversion, baptizing, Gift Annuity and heralding the coming of the Christ. Since the Rewards you with a fixed Bible predicted that Elijah would return before the income and supports our ’s coming, it’s no wonder that the people mission to serve the were initially confused about John’s identity! poorest of God’s people. Because of its holiness, a was built on the site in the ffh century, becoming the frst monastery on the east side of the Jordan River and resting along the early ’ pilgrimage route between and Bethlehem on the west and Mount Nebo on the east. One of the most notable things about the monastery is that the monks were allowed to live there unprovoked during the period of Islamic rule. Tat peaceful coexistence between Christians and continues to this day in Jordan and is an example for the rest of the world. “Christian communities have continued to live here in peace nonstop for 2,000 years, and it was to Jordan that the early Christians fed during the frst persecution,” Haddad said. “Here Christians and Muslims live together, telling a great story of harmony and love of neighbor under one God.” Diana von Glahn, host and producer of Te Faithful Traveler television series, atests to Jordan’s culture of biblical history and modern-day welcome. “I’ve been blessed to travel to the amazing Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan twice in my life. Jordan is a jewel in the Holy Land that, unfortu- nately, too many pilgrims bypass. I cannot recom- mend it enough as a place of pilgrimage and fun. It’s the only country in the entire where the government is making a concerted efort to CONTACT US bring peace among Muslims and Christians, and 1 - 800 - 461 - 3064 you can tell just walking along the streets. I long [email protected] to return to Jordan.” www.annuitysvd.org Von Glahn’s documentary, A Papal Pilgrimage Divine Word Gift Annuity in the Holy Land, features extensive footage of her (SVD Funds, Inc.) PO Box 6067 trip through Jordan. 1985 Waukegan Road Techny, IL 60082-6067 In spite of its predominantly Muslim A pilgrim population, the Jordanian government is “Is there any mystery greater than commited to restoring and preserving the relationship of Father, Son, and Holy the Christian holy sites within its . Spirit?” asked Moore. “Surely this great Tat commitment is especially evident at mystery of the divine relationship — frst Bethany Beyond the Jordan, including the revealed to mankind at the baptism of site where Jesus was baptized. Jesus and recorded in all four — Te Jordanian government has declared has permeated this land of the baptism. the site a legally protected national park Bethany Beyond the Jordan, the wilder- and has instituted the Baptism Site ness of John east of the Jordan River where Commission, an independent board of Jesus was baptized, is like no other place on trustees appointed by King Abdullah II earth. According to Scripture, the heavens bin Al-Hussein and chaired by Prince opened twice here — frst as Elijah was Ghazi bin . Te commission taken up to heaven on a chariot of fre, and has a paid, full-time staf dedicated to its second at the , when the continued restoration, preservation, and descended like a dove upon development. Its goal is to make the site Jesus, and our Heavenly Father proclaimed accessible to pilgrims of all and from his beloved Son.” all over the world, allowing them to see the But for a time that place of mystery area just as Jesus and John saw it. was lost. From the era of John the Baptist Bethany Beyond the Jordan refects not until the 14th century, Bethany Beyond only the beauty and history but also the the Jordan was a well-known pilgrimage mystery of Jordan. site. Afer the and subsequent

40 digest.com To subscribe: 800-678-2836 • catholic weakening of the , the of early-century pilgrims, archeologists area came under the control of local tribes were able to identify the exact spot upon and was no longer safe. Eventually, pilgrim- which our Lord was baptized by John the ages stopped entirely, and its exact location Baptist. was forgoten. “Because Jordan is the In 1897, a scholar from Holy Land, four popes Jerusalem discovered the A chance meeting visited the area — Paul Madaba Map, a sixth-cen- between a monk and a VI, John Paul II, Benedict tury named afer XVI, and recently Pope the city in which it was prince afer the signing Francis,” said Ra’ed discovered and depicting of the 1994 Jordan- Bahou, regional director a map of the Middle East. for the Catholic Near East This discovery renewed Israel peace treaty Welfare Association. “All interest in locating the site turned things around. of these visits show clear of Jesus’ baptism, and the evidence that Jordan is a search began. However, Holy Land worth visit- , the fall of the Otoman Empire, ing at least once in a lifetime [even for World War II, and then the Palestinian- popes].” Israeli confict with wars in 1948, 1967, and 1973 again curtailed the search, leaving the Marge Fenelon is a Catholic author, columnist, and area desolate and flled with land mines lef speaker. She writes for a number of publications over from batle. and is a regular guest on Catholic radio. You can A chance meeting between a monk learn more about Marge at MargeFenelon.com. and a prince afer the signing of the 1994 Jordan-Israel peace treaty turned things TO LEARN MORE: around. While on pilgrimage to Mount The Baptismal Site of Jesus Christ: Nebo, Bin Muhammad met the archaeolo- Bethany Beyond the Jordan gist and monk Father Michele Piccirillo, (ofcial site) who convinced the prince of the impor- BaptismSite.com tance of relocating the baptismal site of Jesus Christ. Bin Muhammad agreed and Jordan Tourism Board VisitJordan.com initiated further investigation, including help from the local tribes (who The Faithful Traveler knew the territory) and from the military TheFaithfulTraveler.com to clear the land mines to make the area Jordanian Interfaith safe for exploration. Coexistence Research Center Te search proved fruitful. Potery, CoexistenceJordan.org , caves, and marble were discov- Catholic Near East Welfare ered, as well as the remains of fve diferent Association churches, dating all the way back to the frst CNEWA.org century. Based on the writings of a number

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