There’s no better place to be baptised than where Jesus himself was baptised, right? Jordanian and Israeli scholars believe that they have located the spot where Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist – and now you can be baptised there, too – in the town of Bethany Beyond the Jordan or Bethabara.
The Story: the Baptism Site of Jesus Christ
As noted by the Official Baptism Site of Jesus Christ:
“This unique site is where 2000 years ago Jesus came to see John to be baptized by him: Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him (Matthew 3:13). According to the Bible, it is just beyond the Jordan (John 3:26) i.e. on the East Bank of the River Jordan in what is now the modern day Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The Bible says clearly: These things were done in Bethabara beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing (John 1:28).
The Baptism Site Today
In April 2008, Jordan’s King Abdullah II donated a plot of the region to the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem for the building a church dedicated to the baptism of Jesus, right near the Jordan River. Construction of the church will begin in 2009 and is estimated at approximately $2 million.
In donating the land, the royal family hopes to strength ties within the country as well as invite the international Christian community to visit or pilgrimage to the site. In 2007, approximately 400,000 visitors graced the site and the hope is that many more will come in the future.
VIP visits that have been made so far include Pope John Paul II in 2000; Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales in 2004; Crown Prince Phillipe and Princess Mathilde of Belgium in 2004; President François Bozizé of the Central African Republic in 2005; and Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin in 2007.