Not a Secret Anymore

Rich With Christian History, Jordan Has Become a Prime Destination for Tourists

Biblical history flows through the nation of Jordan, from the cave where Lot is said to have lived after his wife turned into a pillar of salt to the archaeological park at the site where many believe John the Baptist baptized Jesus.

Abraham passed this way as he traveled from Mesopotamia to Canaan, and Moses climbed Mount Nebo to look out upon the Promised Land. In Jordan's northwest corner at Umm Qais, called Gadara in the New Testament, Jesus performed the miracle of the Gadarene swine. Near Amman is the legendary Cave of the Seven Sleepers, where legend holds that several persecuted Christian boys found shelter and slept there for 309 years.

"Jordan is the best-kept secret in the world as a travel destination, especially for people of faith," said Graham F. Bardsley, a Presbyterian pastor and adjunct faculty member of Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria.

But as more and more travelers uncover that secret, the country is trying to strike a fragile balance between attracting essential tourist dollars and preserving ancient sites from damage by visitors.

Bardsley co-founded a nonprofit network known as Friends of Jordan, which has taken hundreds of Christian leaders to Jordan over the past several years. Many sites in Jordan remain "as they were seen by Moses, Alexander the Great, Saladin, Marco Polo, John the Baptist and Jesus," Bardsley said.

Today, in an area known as Bethany beyond the Jordan, a park stretching 27 square miles with a large visitor center has been developed -- an archaeological wonderland just 40 minutes from Jordan's capital, Amman.

It's a place where Christian history and the story of Jesus' life and ministry seem omnipresent. In the past decade, the site has generated enough publicity to attract such visitors as the late Pope John Paul II and Britain's Prince Charles.

With increased tourism has come more pollution, a higher demand for scarce water, damage to artwork from flash photography and, sometimes, vandalism at archaeological sites.

Already, hordes of tourists, along with damaging weather, have threatened pieces of the ancient rose-red rock city of Petra, perhaps Jordan's most famous site. An estimated 300,000 visitors visit Petra annually.

Since 1996, excavations at Bethany beyond the Jordan have revealed one ancient site after another associated with John the Baptist and John's baptism of Jesus. Pottery, coins, stone objects and architectural remains affirm that the site was in use early in the first century.

Pilgrims may visit a small hill believed to be the place from which Elijah ascended into heaven. The same hill is where God is said to have appeared to Elijah and Elisha in a whirlwind.

In addition, traces of the early Christians can be found throughout Bethany beyond the Jordan. There are architectural remnants of a fifth- or sixth-century Byzantine monastery with churches, baptism and water storage pools, water systems and chapels. A Roman-era building with mosaics has been called an early Christian "prayer hall."