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Christians of the Middle East
العربية
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Jordan

الأردن

The baptism site and the mosaics of Madaba

The baptism of Christ took place on the east bank of the Jordan, and Madaba holds the oldest known map of the Holy Land. Jordan's Christian community is small and settled, mostly Greek Orthodox, with a presence reaching back to the Christian Arab tribes.

Christian population

About 150,000–250,000

Estimates; roughly 1–2% of the population, and figures vary given the presence of Christian refugees from Iraq and Syria.

Languages of liturgy and life

Arabic is the main liturgical language, with Greek in some Greek Orthodox services.

Churches and denominations

  • Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem

    بطريركية القدس للروم الأرثوذكس

    The largest Christian denomination in Jordan.

  • Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem

    بطريركية القدس للاتين

    Parishes and schools in Amman, Madaba and Fuheis.

  • Melkite Greek Catholic Church

    الروم الكاثوليك (الملكيون)

    Present in Amman and Zarqa.

  • Armenian Apostolic Church

    الأرمن الأرثوذكس

    A small community in Amman.

  • Anglican & Evangelical

    الأنجليكان والإنجيليون

    Churches alongside educational and health institutions.

Historical milestones

  1. c. 30 AD

    The baptism of Christ by John at “Bethany beyond the Jordan”, according to the Gospel of John.

  2. 4th century

    Bishoprics at Jerash, Umm Qais, Hesban and Pella, within the Roman province of Arabia.

  3. 5th–6th century

    The Ghassanids, Christian Arab tribes, rule the Levantine frontier and build churches.

  4. 6th century

    The Madaba mosaic map, the oldest known map of the Holy Land.

  5. 6th–8th century

    The mosaics of Umm ar-Rasas continue into the Umayyad period, evidence that church life persisted after the conquest.

  6. 1921 onwards

    The founding of the emirate and then the kingdom, with a settled Christian part in public life.

Places and heritage sites

The modern Orthodox church at the Al-Maghtas baptism site: pale limestone with a gilded dome and cross, two bells in an arched gable, and a deep arched porch patterned with stars, with palms and visitors around it.
Image: Berthold Werner · CC BY 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Al-Maghtas

المغطس (بيت عنيا عبر الأردن)

Jordan Valley

The baptism site, on the UNESCO list.

Inside the memorial church on Mount Nebo: rows of ancient stone columns and capitals preserved within a modern shelter with a slatted timber ceiling, three narrow stained-glass windows above the sanctuary, and glass floor panels revealing the mosaics.
Image: Carole Raddato from Frankfurt, Germany · CC BY-SA 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Mount Nebo

جبل نيبو

Madaba

Where Moses saw the Promised Land; a memorial church with Byzantine mosaics.

The Madaba mosaic map on the floor of the Church of St George, its cities picked out in coloured stone.
Image: Bashar Tabbah · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Madaba

مادبا

Madaba

The Church of Saint George and its celebrated mosaic map.

The mosaic floor of the Church of St Stephen at Umm ar-Rasas: a central field of vine medallions holding animals and figures, framed by panels of named cities with Greek inscriptions, many of the figures deliberately effaced long ago.
Image: Dosseman · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Umm ar-Rasas

أم الرصاص

Madaba

Mosaic floors from the Byzantine and Umayyad periods, on the UNESCO list.

The shrine of Our Lady of the Mountain at Anjara: a modern church in pale stone, a deep arched entrance through which icons inside are visible, a gilded statue of the Virgin and Child above the façade, and two olive trees on the paved forecourt.
Image: Thaler Tamas · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Anjara

أنجرة

Ajloun

The shrine of Our Lady of the Mountain, an approved pilgrimage site.

On the map

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References

General further reading, not citations to specific pages.

Further reading

  • Habib Badr, Suad Abou el-Rouss Slim, Joseph Abou Nohra (eds.). Christianity: A History in the Middle East. Middle East Council of Churches, 2005
  • Andrea Pacini (ed.). Christian Communities in the Arab Middle East: The Challenge of the Future. Clarendon Press, 1998
  • UNESCO World Heritage Centre. UNESCO World Heritage List. whc.unesco.org
  • Pew Research Center. Religious composition reports for the Middle East and North Africa. www.pewresearch.org