Jordan: consecration of the new church on the site of the Baptism

The church of the Baptism of Jesus on the site of the Baptism-Al Maghtas, in Jordan, and one of the largest in the Middle East, was consecrated on 10 January. The celebration was presided over by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State and special envoy of the Pope for this occasion. The church was also indicated as a  Jubilee Site for the diocese of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

“We are at the lowest point on earth,” the Cardinal highlighted in his homily, “but it is precisely here that God has come to meet us.” The place of the Baptism of Jesus was identified in the 1990s by the Franciscan archaeologist Michele Piccirillo. It was here that the chosen people crossed the Jordan River towards the Promised Land, here Elijah was taken up into heaven, here John baptised Jesus.“The passage of the people through the Jordan,’ recalled Parolin, ’anticipated our passage to eternal life through the waters of Baptism.”

In the rite of consecration, the altar was anointed with the sacred chrism, as were the walls. Water from the River Jordan was poured into the baptismal font and sprinkled over the faithful and the walls of the church. The relics of the Martyrs of Damascus and those of St John Paul II were placed, with others, in the altar.

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