Set within the dramatic geological trough of the Jordan Rift Valley nearly 400 meters below sea level, some nine kilometers north of the Dead Sea and directly opposite the ancient oasis of Jericho, the Jordan River winds through a green corridor of tamarisk trees, reeds, and Euphrates poplars flanked by stark white marl cliffs. Here, where a perennial spring-fed stream flows down the ravine of Wadi al-Kharrar to meet the Jordan River, Christian tradition and archaeological science converge upon one of the foundational events of salvation history: the Baptism of Jesus of Nazareth by Saint John the Baptist, when the heavens opened, the Spirit descended like a dove, and the voice of the Father proclaimed the Beloved Son. Today this protected sanctuary on the eastern bank of the river is globally recognized under its UNESCO World Heritage title: Baptism Site 'Bethany Beyond the Jordan' (Al-Maghtas).
In Arabic, the name Al-Maghtas means the place of immersion or baptism. For the universal Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Protestant communions, Al-Maghtas ranks alongside the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem as one of the three supreme terrestrial landmarks of Christ's earthly life. Moreover, lying less than twenty kilometers northwest of the Memorial of Moses on Mount Nebo, the sacred landscape of Wadi al-Kharrar and its limestone knoll of Tell al-Kharrar (venerated as Jabal Mar Elias, or Elijah's Hill) forms a bridge between the Old and New Testaments: it is the river crossing where Joshua led the Israelites into the Promised Land, the hill from which the Prophet Elijah ascended to heaven in a whirlwind of fire, and the wilderness retreat where John the Baptist heralded the coming of the Messiah.
IThe Baptism of Jesus Christ, the Wilderness Ministry of Saint John the Baptist, and the Ascension Hill of the Prophet Elijah
The scriptural witness locating the ministry of Saint John the Baptist and the Baptism of Jesus on the eastern bank of the Jordan River (in the present-day Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan) is recorded with geographical precision in the Gospel according to Saint John. After recounting John the Baptist's testimony before the priests and Levites sent from Jerusalem, John 1:28 states explicitly: This took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing. In New Testament Greek, the phrase beyond the Jordan (peran tou Iordanou) is the standard geographical term used by writers in Judea and Jerusalem to designate the east bank of the Jordan River (ancient Perea), distinguishing this riverside settlement from the village of Bethany on the Mount of Olives near Jerusalem, the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus.
Near the close of Jesus's public ministry, John 10:40 provides a second geographical confirmation: He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing at first, and there he remained. All three Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 3:13 to 17, Mark 1:9 to 11, and Luke 3:21 to 22) describe the Epiphany or Theophany that unfolded as Jesus stepped up from the waters of the Jordan: the Spirit of God descending upon him in bodily form like a dove and the voice of the Father declaring, You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased. In Christian theology, this moment marks the public inauguration of Christ's messianic mission and the institution of the sacrament of Baptism.
Why did Saint John the Baptist choose the spring-fed valley of Wadi al-Kharrar on the eastern bank of the Jordan as the center of his baptizing ministry? The answer lies in the deep typological continuity between John the Baptist and the Old Testament prophet Elijah (Ilyas in Arabic). According to the Second Book of Kings (2 Kings 2:1 to 14), the Prophet Elijah and his disciple Elisha walked down from Jericho to the Jordan River; Elijah struck the water with his rolled-up mantle, parting the river so that the two crossed on dry ground to the eastern bank. There, at a low hill east of the river identified by ancient tradition as Tell al-Kharrar (Jabal Mar Elias), a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two men, and Elijah ascended to heaven in a whirlwind, leaving his mantle to Elisha.
Because the Prophet Malachi (Malachi 4:5) had foretold that God would send Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome Day of the Lord, first-century Jewish expectation looked toward the eastern wilderness of the Jordan for the forerunner of the Messiah. Clothed in camel's hair with a leather belt around his waist (the exact attire of Elijah described in 2 Kings 1:8), John the Baptist dwelt beside the springs of Wadi al-Kharrar at the foot of Elijah's Hill. When Jesus of Nazareth (whose Hebrew name Yeshua is identical to Joshua, the leader who had led the Twelve Tribes across this very stretch of the Jordan in Joshua 3) descended into the waters of Al-Maghtas, early Christians recognized the fulfillment of both the Exodus crossing and the prophetic promise of Elijah.
Continuous literary and cartographic records from the third to the eighth centuries corroborate the identification of Wadi al-Kharrar as Bethany Beyond the Jordan. In the third century, the biblical scholar Origen of Alexandria visited the Jordan Valley and noted the living local tradition along the river. Following the Peace of the Church in the fourth century, Christian pilgrims left detailed itineraries describing the eastern bank sanctuary: the Bordeaux Pilgrim (333 CE), the nun Egeria (384 CE), Theodosius (c. 530 CE), and Antoninus of Piacenza (570 CE). Theodosius specifically recorded that at the place where the Lord was baptized stood a marble column topped by an iron cross, and nearby rose the magnificent Church of Saint John the Baptist erected by Emperor Anastasius I (reigned 491 to 518 CE) upon lofty vaulted arches to protect it from the seasonal flooding of the Jordan River.
Visual confirmation from the sixth century survives on the famous Madaba Mosaic Map (c. 560 CE, preserved on the floor of St. George's Church in nearby Madaba). Along the eastern side of the lower Jordan River just north of the Dead Sea, the Byzantine mosaicists inscribed the Greek caption Aenon now Saphsaphas (meaning the place of springs and willow trees), corresponding directly to the spring-fed willow and tamarisk oasis of Wadi al-Kharrar at Al-Maghtas.
Visitors walking through the archaeological park of Al-Maghtas often encounter two questions that require historical and geological clarification. First, when viewing the cruciform baptismal pool and its twenty-two black marble steps framed by the foundations of four successive Byzantine basilicas, travelers notice that these ancient steps now stand on dry floodplain soil several hundred meters east of the modern river channel. Geomorphological studies have demonstrated that during the Roman and Byzantine eras, the Jordan River carried a vastly larger volume of water and flowed through an eastern meander directly against the foot of those marble steps; over the centuries, major earthquakes along the Dead Sea Transform fault and twentieth-century upstream water diversion caused the river to shift westward into its current narrower bed. Second, while modern pilgrims can also approach the water from the western bank at Qasr al-Yahud, it is the eastern bank complex of Al-Maghtas in Jordan (comprising both Tell al-Kharrar and the five riverside Byzantine churches) that preserves the authentic fourth-to-sixth-century archaeological monuments and holds official UNESCO World Heritage status (inscribed in 2015).
IIFrom Apostolic Memory and Imperial Byzantine Basilicas to the Post-1994 Peace Treaty Excavations
The history of Al-Maghtas spans two millennia of devotion, imperial patronage under the Byzantine emperors, medieval abandonment after catastrophic earthquakes, a twenty-seven-year closure as a mined military border zone in the late twentieth century, and a dramatic scientific and spiritual renaissance following the 1994 peace treaty.
- c. 28 to 30 CEMinistry of Saint John the Baptist at Wadi al-Kharrar and the Baptism of JesusJohn the Baptist preaches a baptism of repentance along the springs of Wadi al-Kharrar and baptizes Jesus of Nazareth in the waters of the Jordan at Bethany Beyond the Jordan.
- 1st to 4th centuries CEEarly Christian hermitages and rock-cut ritual pools at Tell al-KharrarMonks and ascetics inhabit caves around Elijah's Hill (Tell al-Kharrar), constructing early plastered limestone water basins and prayer cells commemorating Elijah and John the Baptist.
- 491 to 518 CEByzantine Emperor Anastasius I constructs the grand Basilica of Saint John the BaptistEmperor Anastasius I erects a monumental three-aisled basilica elevated on massive stone piers beside the Jordan River, linked by monumental marble steps to a cruciform baptismal pool fed by the river.
- 6th to 7th centuries CE (Reign of Justinian I)Expansion of the Rhetorios Monastery on Elijah's Hill and successive riverside basilicasAs seasonal floods and earthquakes damage the riverside structures, Byzantine builders construct three successive basilicas over the marble steps and expand the mosaic-paved Monastery of Abbot Rhetorios on Tell al-Kharrar.
- 8th to 15th centuries CEEarthquake destruction, Crusader chapels, and gradual abandonmentSevere earthquakes (notably in 749 and 1033 CE) and shifts in the river course topple the great basilicas; smaller Orthodox chapels and hermitages survive through the Abbasid, Crusader, and Mamluk periods until the late fifteenth century.
- 1967 to 1994Twenty-seven years as a closed, landmine-strewn military zoneFollowing the 1967 war, the Jordan River valley becomes a heavily fortified frontline seeded with thousands of landmines, rendering the ancient pilgrimage site completely inaccessible for nearly three decades.
- 1994 to 1996Jordan-Israel Peace Treaty, Royal demining campaign, and archaeological excavationsAfter the 1994 Peace Treaty, Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad spearheads the clearance of landmines by the Royal Jordanian Army; in 1996, archaeologist Dr. Mohammad Waheeb (guided by Fr. Michele Piccirillo's textual research) uncovers the intact Byzantine churches and baptismal pools.
- 2000, 2009, 2014, 2015, and 2025Visits of three Popes, UNESCO World Heritage inscription (2015), and Consecration of the Catholic Basilica (2025)Pope John Paul II visits Al-Maghtas in March 2000, followed by Pope Benedict XVI (2009) and Pope Francis (2014); UNESCO inscribes the site in 2015; on January 10, 2025, Cardinal Pietro Parolin consecrates the monumental Catholic Church of the Baptism of the Lord.
From minefields to a sanctuary of peace: the rediscovery led by Fr. Michele Piccirillo, Prince Ghazi, and Dr. Mohammad Waheeb. Few archaeological discoveries in modern Holy Land scholarship have been as dramatic as the recovery of Al-Maghtas. For decades, the Italian Franciscan archaeologist Father Michele Piccirillo (1944 to 2008), renowned for his excavations at Mount Nebo and Madaba, studied sixth-century pilgrimage texts and early twentieth-century travelers' notes mentioning ancient marble ruins hidden inside the closed military zone along Wadi al-Kharrar. Immediately after the signing of the Jordan-Israel Peace Treaty in October 1994, Father Piccirillo shared his findings with Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad of Jordan, who personally championed the project and coordinated a hazardous demining operation by the Royal Corps of Engineers.
Beginning in 1996, a Jordanian Department of Antiquities team directed by Dr. Mohammad Waheeb excavated the length of Wadi al-Kharrar from Tell al-Kharrar down to the Jordan floodplain. Within months, the team uncovered the Greek mosaic inscription of Abbot Rhetorios, ceramic water aqueducts, Roman-Byzantine immersion pools, the four massive stone piers of Emperor Anastasius's church, and the breathtaking staircase of twenty-two black marble steps descending into the cruciform riverside pool. Under the patronage of King Abdullah II, the Baptism Site Commission preserved the entire archaeological zone untouched as a wilderness park while granting land parcels outside the buffer zone to major Christian denominations from around the world to build contemporary churches and monasteries.
IIIElijah's Hill (Tell Al-Kharrar), the Twenty-Two Marble Steps of the Five Byzantine Churches, and the Modern Ecumenical Sanctuaries
Encompassing a 294-hectare UNESCO core zone surrounded by a 957-hectare buffer zone of desert hills and riparian forest, the Al-Maghtas sanctuary is divided into two historic archaeological complexes linked by a two-kilometer shaded footpath following the spring stream of Wadi al-Kharrar: the eastern hilltop monastery of Tell al-Kharrar (Jabal Mar Elias) and the western riverside church complex in the Zor floodplain.
Rising at the eastern head of Wadi al-Kharrar is the low limestone mound of Tell al-Kharrar, venerated as the spot where the Prophet Elijah ascended to heaven in a chariot of fire. Protected beneath a modern wooden shelter are the remains of a walled fifth-to-sixth-century Byzantine monastery named after Abbot Rhetorios (whose Greek mosaic inscription reads: By the help of the grace of Christ our God the whole monastery was built in the time of Rhetorios the most godly priest and abbot). The complex includes a rock-cut cave converted into the apse of a western church, a northern church with geometric mosaic floors, a third prayer hall, and three stepped masonry baptismal pools fed by ceramic aqueducts.
Flowing westward from the base of Tell al-Kharrar is the natural freshwater spring of Wadi al-Kharrar (identified with the biblical Aenon or Saphsaphas). Along its 2-kilometer reed-lined course toward the Jordan River, archaeologists excavated ascetic hermit cells carved into the marl bluffs, water-settling basins for pilgrims, and the foundations of a small Late Byzantine hermitage chapel associated with Saint Mary of Egypt, the fifth-century penitent desert saint who crossed the Jordan to live forty-seven years in solitary prayer.
At the western end of the Wadi in the riverside Zor zone stands the monumental heart of Christian pilgrimage: a stratified complex of four successive Byzantine basilicas and a fifth smaller chapel built between the late fifth and early seventh centuries. Preserved in situ are the four massive square sandstone piers that supported Emperor Anastasius I's elevated Basilica of Saint John the Baptist, fragments of colored marble opus sectile paving, and a grand eastern staircase of twenty-two black marble steps descending into a cross-shaped (cruciform) masonry pool once filled directly by the swirling waters of the Jordan River.
Built directly atop the northwestern stone pier overlooking the marble steps are the foundations of a small sixth-century chapel venerated by Byzantine pilgrims as the exact spot where Jesus laid aside his garments before entering the water. About one hundred meters west of the ancient ruins flows the present-day Jordan River (here only 5 to 10 meters wide), where a shaded wooden deck and stone steps allow pilgrims to step down to the river's edge and touch the water.
Rising among the tamarisk trees near the modern riverbank is the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint John the Baptist, built by the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem. Constructed of warm golden limestone with a tall bell tower and gleaming gold domes, its interior is richly adorned from floor to ceiling with vibrant neo-Byzantine frescoes depicting the Theophany of Christ, the life of John the Baptist, and the saints of the Jordan desert.
Standing on a 3-hectare riverside plot donated by King Abdullah II to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem is the monumental Catholic Church of the Baptism of the Lord, one of the largest church complexes in the Middle East with seating for over 1,000 worshippers. Blessed at its cornerstone by Pope Benedict XVI on May 10, 2009, spearheaded through the generosity of Jordanian-Hungarian philanthropist Nadim Muasher (Knight of the Holy Sepulchre), and solemnly consecrated on January 10, 2025 by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the basilica features golden local tafuh stone facades, a soaring central dome, stained-glass windows of the Jordan flora, and two adjoining monasteries served by the Institute of the Incarnate Word.
| Archaeological Monument or Sanctuary | Historical Period or Date | Key Architectural Features and Liturgical Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Tell al-Kharrar (Elijah's Hill) & Rhetorios Monastery | 1st to 6th centuries CE | Walled Byzantine monastery over a venerated cave, featuring 3 churches, Greek mosaic inscriptions, and 3 early immersion pools |
| Cruciform Baptismal Pool & 22 Black Marble Steps | Late 5th to 6th centuries CE (Emperor Anastasius I) | Monumental staircase of 22 black marble steps descending from the basilica porch into a cross-shaped pool fed by the ancient river |
| Four Superimposed Riverside Basilicas & Pier Chapel | Late 5th to early 7th centuries CE (Anastasius I & Justinian I) | Three-aisled basilicas raised on 4 massive stone piers above the floodplain, with marble opus sectile floors and the Chapel of the Mantle |
| Greek Orthodox Church of Saint John the Baptist | Early 21st century (Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem) | Golden-domed limestone sanctuary beside the modern river channel, center of the Orthodox Epiphany water blessing |
| Catholic Church of the Baptism of the Lord | Cornerstone 2009; consecrated January 10, 2025 | 1,000-seat Latin Patriarchate sanctuary clad in local tafuh stone with adjoining male and female monasteries |
IVThe Lie of the Land and the Facing
It should be stated clearly that the early Christian monastics, Byzantine imperial architects, and modern Church authorities in Jordan did not employ East Asian geomancy (feng shui) in siting or designing the sanctuaries of Al-Maghtas. The site's sanctity arises directly from the biblical events of Elijah, John the Baptist, and Jesus of Nazareth along the Jordan River, and its churches follow traditional Christian liturgical orientation toward the East. The observations below offer a comparative landform reading through the traditional framework of the Hall of Myriad Paths library.
Viewed within the macro-topography of the Levant at coordinates 31.8369 degrees north, 35.5469 degrees east, Al-Maghtas occupies the lowest terrestrial valley on Earth: resting at roughly 390 meters below sea level within the Great Rift Valley just nine kilometers north of the mouth of the Dead Sea. In classical landform reading, this basin forms an extraordinary grand convergence of waters framed by two parallel mountain walls: rising to the east are the lofty escarpments of the Moab and Gilead Highlands (anchored by the 710-meter ridge of Mount Nebo, which stands as an ancestral backing mountain), while across the valley to the west rise the limestone hills of the Judean Wilderness and Jerusalem as a distant facing screen. Between these two highland ranges stretches the broad alluvial plain (the Ghor), channeling the life-giving waters of Mount Hermon and the Sea of Galilee southward through the desert.
In terms of local watercourse geometry, the sanctuary of Al-Maghtas sits precisely at the confluence of two waters: the perennial freshwater spring of Wadi al-Kharrar emerging from the limestone knoll of Tell al-Kharrar (Elijah's Hill) flows from east to west to merge with the winding north-to-south current of the Jordan River. This union of spring water and river water creates a lush green riparian oasis (the Zor) sheltered within sculpted white marl bluffs (the Katar). At the riverside church complex, fifth-century Byzantine builders aligned the twenty-two black marble steps opening westward toward the river while orienting the basilica apses eastward toward Elijah's Hill and the rising sun, establishing a harmonious sacred axis linking the water sanctuary in the river floodplain with the mountain sanctuary of the prophets above.
VThe January Feasts of the Baptism of the Lord and Epiphany, Renewal of Baptismal Vows, and Ecumenical Pilgrimage
As the birthplace of Christian baptism, Al-Maghtas reaches the height of its liturgical life every January, when tens of thousands of Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Protestant pilgrims gather on the eastern bank of the Jordan River to celebrate the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord and the Great Feast of the Epiphany (Theophany).
| Time of Year | Liturgical Tradition | Feast or Pilgrimage Celebration | Rites and Customs at Al-Maghtas (Bethany Beyond the Jordan) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Second Sunday of January (following January 6) | Roman Catholic (Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem) | Annual National Catholic Pilgrimage of the Baptism of the Lord | The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem leads bishops, clergy, and thousands of faithful in solemn procession from the Jordan River to the Church of the Baptism of the Lord for the blessing of Jordan water and Pontifical Mass. |
| January 18 and 19 (January 6 on the Julian calendar) | Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, and Eastern Orthodox Churches | Great Feast of the Theophany (Epiphany) and Blessing of the Jordan Waters | The Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem presides over the Great Sanctification of the Waters, casting a cross bound with fragrant basil into the Jordan River and releasing white doves. |
| Throughout January (designated feast days) | Coptic, Ethiopian, Syriac, Armenian, and Anglican Churches | Oriental Orthodox and Ecumenical Epiphany Pilgrimages | Vibrant processions with liturgical drums, ancient Ge'ez, Coptic, Syriac, and Armenian chants, and immersion rites at the denominational shrines and riverside pools. |
| June 24 and July 20 | Christian liturgical calendar | Nativity of Saint John the Baptist (June 24) and Feast of the Prophet Elijah (July 20) | Special commemorative liturgies and prayers held at Elijah's Hill (Tell al-Kharrar) and beside the Byzantine Basilica of Saint John the Baptist. |
| Year-round (especially Lent and Eastertide) | All Christian traditions worldwide | Rite of the Renewal of Baptismal Promises at the Jordan River | Pilgrim groups from every continent gather at the riverside steps and modern immersion pools, clothed in white robes, to renew their baptismal vows with water from the Jordan. |
Three Papal visits and a global sanctuary of Christian unity. Since its reopening after the 1994 Peace Treaty, Al-Maghtas has been honored by the personal pilgrimages of three successive Roman Pontiffs: Pope John Paul II on March 21, 2000 during the Great Jubilee, Pope Benedict XVI on May 10, 2009 (who blessed the cornerstones of the Catholic and Armenian churches on the site), and Pope Francis on May 24, 2014. With the solemn consecration of the monumental Catholic Church of the Baptism of the Lord in January 2025 alongside neighboring Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox (complete with a riverside pilgrim hostel), Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopian, Syriac, Maronite, and Lutheran sanctuaries, Bethany Beyond the Jordan stands today as a peaceful oasis where Christians of every rite pray side by side in the hospitable embrace of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
VILocation And How To Get There
- Address
- Wadi al-Kharrar Archaeological Park, East Bank of the Jordan River, 9 km north of the Dead Sea, Al-Shuna Al-Janubiyah District, Balqa Governorate, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
- Getting there
- The Baptism Site of Al-Maghtas is located in Balqa Governorate on the eastern bank of the Jordan River, approximately 50 kilometers west of Amman (a 45-to-50-minute drive down the Dead Sea Highway), 10 kilometers north of the Dead Sea resort hotels (15 minutes by car), 25 kilometers northwest of Mount Nebo, and 8 kilometers south of the King Hussein (Allenby) Bridge border crossing. As there is no scheduled public bus route directly to the park entrance, the most convenient way to reach Al-Maghtas from Amman, Madaba, or the Dead Sea is by private rental car, hotel taxi, or an organized Holy Land pilgrimage tour to the Baptism Site Visitor Center.
- Coordinates
- 31.8369, 35.5469
The Al-Maghtas World Heritage Site is open daily year-round (typically 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM in summer and 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM in winter). To protect the fragile wilderness ecosystem of Wadi al-Kharrar and maintain border security along the river, private vehicles are parked at the main Visitor Center, where visitors purchase admission tickets (approximately 12 JOD, or at a discounted rate when bundled with the official Jordan Pass) and board the Commission's eco-shuttle buses, which depart every 15 to 20 minutes with an official guide. From the internal drop-off point, visitors follow a shaded, level 1.5-to-2-kilometer walking trail through the tamarisk forest past the Byzantine cruciform baptismal steps, the modern Jordan River bank, and the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint John the Baptist. Because the valley floor lies nearly 400 meters below sea level, temperatures from May through September can exceed 40 degrees Celsius; visitors should bring drinking water, sun hats, modest attire for entering churches, and comfortable walking shoes. White baptismal robes for pilgrims wishing to perform immersion in the designated liturgical pools are available at the Visitor Center gift shop.
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?Quick Questions
Why do biblical scholars and archaeologists identify the east bank of the Jordan River (Al-Maghtas) as the authentic site of Jesus's baptism?
The Gospel of John (John 1:28 and 10:40) explicitly states that John the Baptist baptized at Bethany beyond the Jordan, a geographical phrase that from the perspective of Jerusalem always refers to the eastern bank of the river. Furthermore, excavations launched in 1996 along Wadi al-Kharrar on the eastern bank uncovered the exact fifth-to-sixth-century Byzantine churches, elevated stone piers, and twenty-two black marble baptismal steps described by ancient Christian pilgrims and depicted on the sixth-century Madaba Mosaic Map.
What do the Arabic names Al-Maghtas and Wadi al-Kharrar mean?
In Arabic, Al-Maghtas means the place of immersion or baptism. Wadi al-Kharrar is the name of the spring-fed valley flowing from Elijah's Hill into the Jordan River; it means the valley of murmuring or rushing water, corresponding to the biblical place name Aenon (meaning springs) near Salim and Saphsaphas on the Madaba Map.
How is the Prophet Elijah connected to the Baptism Site of Al-Maghtas?
According to 2 Kings 2, the Prophet Elijah and his successor Elisha crossed the Jordan River on dry ground to the eastern bank, where Elijah was taken up to heaven in a chariot of fire and a whirlwind. The limestone hill of Tell al-Kharrar (known in Arabic as Jabal Mar Elias, or Elijah's Hill) at the eastern end of Al-Maghtas has been venerated since antiquity as the site of Elijah's ascension, which is why John the Baptist chose the springs at the foot of this very hill to begin his ministry as the new Elijah.
Why are the fifth-century Byzantine marble baptismal steps and cruciform pool now on dry land several hundred meters from the modern river?
During the Roman and Byzantine eras 1,500 to 2,000 years ago, the Jordan River carried a much larger volume of water and its eastern channel flowed directly past the foot of those twenty-two marble steps, filling the cruciform pool. Over the centuries, seismic shifts along the Jordan Rift fault and modern upstream water usage caused the main river channel to migrate several hundred meters westward.
How was Al-Maghtas rediscovered and reopened to pilgrims in the 1990s?
Between 1967 and 1994, the entire Jordan River bank was a closed military zone seeded with landmines. Immediately after the 1994 Jordan-Israel Peace Treaty, Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad oversaw the clearing of thousands of mines by the Royal Jordanian Army, allowing archaeologist Dr. Mohammad Waheeb (building upon the historical research of Franciscan scholar Fr. Michele Piccirillo) to excavate the untouched Byzantine churches and baptismal pools starting in 1996.
Which Popes have visited Al-Maghtas, and what is the Church of the Baptism of the Lord?
Three Popes have made pilgrimages to Al-Maghtas: Pope John Paul II in March 2000, Pope Benedict XVI in May 2009, and Pope Francis in May 2014. On January 10, 2025, Cardinal Pietro Parolin consecrated the monumental Catholic Church of the Baptism of the Lord (whose cornerstone was blessed by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009), a 1,000-seat stone basilica that now serves as the central Catholic pilgrimage church on the banks of the Jordan.