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A Christian pilgrim is baptized Oct. 8, 2022, at the baptismal site known as Qasr el-Yahud on the Jordan River near the West Bank city of Jericho. (CNS photo/Debbie Hill)

Catholic leaders urge pilgrimage to site of Jesus’ baptism in Jordan


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OSV News Filed Under: News, World News

BETHANY BEYOND THE JORDAN, Jordan (OSV News)– Catholic congregants throughout Jordan and international visitors joyfully celebrated Epiphany on Jan. 9 at the site of Jesus’ baptism.

The site is officially recognized by the Catholic Church as the starting point of Christ’s mission after his baptism in the Jordan River.

Catholic clergy representing the Latin Church as well as Greek Catholics, Maronites, Chaldeans, Syriacs and Armenians gathered, issuing a call for pilgrims worldwide to visit Jordan and experience the baptism site for themselves, as one of Christianity’s most important and revered places.

Rosaries are seen displayed at a souvenir shop in a file photo as Orthodox Christian pilgrims make their way to Mass at a baptism site on the Jordan River. (OSV News photo/Muhammad Hamed, Reuters)

“We are proud to offer this place after St. Pope John Paul II’s visit here in 2000. He blessed this site, the river’s water and pilgrimage place,” Father Rifat Bader told OSV News.

“Jordan’s King Abdullah, during his visit to the Vatican last November, invited Pope Leo XIV not only to visit Jordan, but to come to the baptism site,” he said. “This is the new identity of Jordan. We hope the pope will answer the invitation.”

So far, four popes have visited the site. The earliest being Paul VI in 1964, followed by John Paul II, Benedict XVI and Francis.

Jordan is the only country to host visits of the four popes, all affirming the site’s significance.

The cloudy day began with a gentle rain that providentially stopped just as thousands of pilgrims from many nations descended on the Catholic Church of the Baptism of Jesus Christ for Mass on Jan. 9. Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, presided over the inauguration and consecration of this new church near the banks of the Jordan River in January 2025.

And God indeed seemed to be in charge of the weather because it conveniently resumed raining after the multitudes and buses had already left the holy site, found near the northern tip of the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth.

Bishop Iyad Twal, patriarchal vicar for Jordan, made the point to journalists during a press conference preceding the Mass, saying the rain symbolized “blessing,” particularly for Jordan as one of the most water-poor countries in the world.

“We gather today to remember Christ’s baptism in the nearby waters, recounting his holiness and love. This is the way for the Church,” he said. “Come, come to the Holy Land, come to the Jordan River, visit this holy place, visit this church, and be blessed by the waters of the Jordan River.”

Bishop Twal told reporters that some calm and peace has returned to neighboring Palestine and Gaza. He said Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, was heartened during a recent visit to the coastal enclave to see “a genuine determination to begin new life with optimism that this year will be one of lasting, just and comprehensive peace,” Bishop Twal said.

“Today the Church invites us to celebrate the feast of the Baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ, which reveals to us the true face of God: boundless love, a love that knows no discrimination or barriers,” he told the faithful during Mass.

“At Christmas, it is God who comes to us in the gentleness of a child, and at the feast of the Epiphany, it is humanity that seeks God. And today, at the Baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan River, we see God opening the way for us to become his beloved children, and to discover his essence in love and in the Trinity,” Bishop Twal said.

Faith “is not a destination, but a journey. Baptism is the beginning of this journey, a call to persevere in faith, even if we don’t understand everything at once,” he said. “What matters is the desire for and pursuit of a personal encounter with Jesus Christ, because this encounter transforms our lives.”

Among the international visitors at the Epiphany Mass were a Vatican press delegation, led by Andrea Tornielli, editorial director of the Dicastery for Communication. Visitors from France and the Philippines were also present.

Tornielli, who has been part of several papal visits to Jordan, shared his impressions with reporters.

“It is very important to emphasize that Jordan is the Holy Land. Not only events from the Old Testament but also from the Gospel took place in this land,” he said. “Today, we are here to celebrate Mass at the site of Jesus Christ’s baptism.”

“Jordan was the first country to be visited on papal trips in the modern era. It is important to invite pilgrims and visit the holy places in this land,” he said.

Tornielli mentioned that in 2030, Jordan will experience a special jubilee commemorating the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River, ahead of the Church’s great jubilee of 2033 celebrating Christ’s passion, death and resurrection.

Imad Hijazeen, Jordan’s tourism minister, expressed his appreciation to the Catholic Church for its Catholic Pilgrimage Day marking the 26th year.

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