Christian Heritage in Jordan

Jordan is part of the Holy Land and includes sites of religious historic interest such as Madaba, Mount Nebo and Bethany beyond the Jordan, so please do ask us if you would like to include a Christian heritage element in your Jordan tour.

Madaba is often called “the city of mosaics” and includes the wonderfully vivid, 6th century Byzantine mosaic map showing Jerusalem and other holy sites. With two million pieces of coloured stone, and a full 25×25 meters in its original state – most of which can still be seen today – the map depicts hills and valleys, villages and towns, as far away as the Nile Delta.

Mount Nebo is the mountain from which Moses was allowed to see the Holy Land… but not allowed to enter it. Nowadays the mountain is a memorial site. Here you will find the “Church of Moses”, built by the first Christians and displaying a large number of beautiful mosaics. Like Moses, you can have a great view over Jordan, the Dead Sea and Israel. When the weather is clear, you should even be able to see Jerusalem, which is about 60 kilometres away.

Bethany beyond the Jordan is the site where according to tradition Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and was therefore “spiritually born”, and is also the site marking the location of Elijah’s ascension to heaven in a fiery chariot after he and Elisha crossed the Jordan.