Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
man's Muhajireen bus station (800 fils, 45 minutes), as well as Madaba (600 fils, 45
minutes) and Salt (500 fils, 45 minutes). There are also frequent minibuses to Suweimeh,
3km from the Dead Sea resorts.
A few simple restaurants and grocery stores are scattered around town. Consider char-
tering a taxi (if you can find one) for a few hours from Shuneh al-Janubiyyeh to places
like Bethany-Beyond-the-Jordan (JD15) and Amman Beach (JD15).
Bethany-Beyond-the-Jordan
(Al-Maghtas)
Then Jesus came from the Galilee to the Jordan to be baptised by John.
Matthew 3:13
This took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptising.
John 1:28
Whatever one's religious persuasions, it's hard not to be moved by this minimal pile of ru-
ins with its preposterously long name, lying at the end of the Jordan Valley near the Dead
Sea. This is the site, archaeologists assure us, where John the Baptist preached, where Je-
sus was baptised, where the first five apostles met and where, thereby, the foundations of
the early Christian faith were laid. They chose an auspicious spot, as many also believe
that this was the place from where prophet Elijah (who was born in Mar Elias in north
Jordan) ascended to heaven in a whirlwind:
And as they still went on and talked, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated
the two of them. And Eli'jah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
2 Kings 2:11
Although John was later beheaded by Herod at Machaerus (
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)
and Jesus was cru-
cified in Jerusalem, the meeting between the two men at this spot in the fertile Jordan Val-
ley was one of hope and new beginnings. It is little surprise, then, that it became a focus
for early pilgrimage, and remains so to this day.
History
The name Bethany comes from the Aramaic Beit Anniya (House of the Crossing). As you
stand by the almost-stagnant river at this point, Israel and the Palestinian Territories is al-
most within arms' reach. Pilgrim churches, guesthouses and a 6th-century pilgrim road
developed around the crossing as pilgrims broke their journey between Jerusalem and Mt
Nebo. Today, there's little visible evidence of the early passage of pilgrims but the sense
