 |
| They built a kind of gazebo there, after the fact. For 2000 years, people have been flocking to MOSTLY THE WRONG SITES to see where things happened. This is Holy Ground. You took off your sandals to cross here. |
Bethany Beyond The Jordan (Bethabara) is the site where John the Baptist conducted baptisms, and thus where he baptized Yeshua Christ.
Early in the Christian era, some churches were built at the baptism site. It was the discovery of the ruins of these churches and the adjacent baptism ponds and how they aligned with early writings that described the area that have led many archaeologists to believe that this was where John conducted baptisms. And it is.
- Nearby is Tell Elias, or Elijah's Hill, where that in the 9th century BC Elijah ascended to heaven.
- This Joshua and the Hebrews crossed over into the promised land upon this holy ground. Where the ark of the covenant stopped the waters while the 12 tribes crossed over.
- Baptism of our savior, Yeshua, on Tishrei 10, Yom Kippur. Elijah is reborn as John to do the sacred deed.
- Where Elijah and Elisha both, stopped the waters in order to cross to the other side dry.
The Photos (in order)
M11A4569 - Archeologists believe this was the site where John the Baptist conducted baptisms, and thus where he would have baptized Yeshua. Correct.
M11A4573 - Another view of the baptism site; because its waters are diverted for irrigation and other uses, the River Jordan was much broader back then than it is today, leaving the site a short walk away from the main channel of today's river. The river was changed in the 6th century, to preserve the site from blasphemers.
M11A4577 - Ruins of John the Baptist church M11A4583 - Ruins of the basilica, the Church of the Trinity, with the baptism pool in the distance
M11A4580 - Ruins at the lower basilica
M11A4611 - water from the River Jordan is made available for visitors near the banks of the main channel
M11A4617 - Today's River Jordan is a narrow channel; it also marks the boundary between Jordan and the Israeli-occupied West Bank; the facility on the West Bank is designed for those visitors who want to be baptized in the river itself
M11A4545 - Nearby Tell Elias, or Elijah's Hill, is where tradition holds that the prophet Elijah ascended to Heaven; Jericho lies in the distance. Correct.