Churches in Jordan annually celebrate many Christian celebrations, along with major holidays such as Christmas and Easter Glory, and religious events in churches and parishes. The most prominent of these central ceremonies are those taking place in places that in where there is a history of salvation and written events, the most important of which are: the days of the pilgrimage of churches to the site of the baptism of Jesus Christ Baptism (Al-Maghtas), the celebrations at Macaur Castle where Saint John the Baptist was martyred, at the shrines of the Prophet Moses on Mount of Nebo, and at Tel Mar Elias in Ajloun.
On the second Friday of January, the Catholic Churches, headed by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, hold a Mass celebration in the Baptismal Church on the eastern bank of the Jordan River. The mass will be attended by representatives and heads of Catholic churches in Jordan, scouts, chanting teams, youth and monastic orders, and thousands of citizens. It has been the custom for several years to hold an annual press conference, organized by the Catholic Center for Studies and Media, in which the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, the Director of the Baptism Site, and the Patriarch of Jerusalem speak.
On the third Friday of January, the Orthodox churches, headed by the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Jordan, make an annual pilgrimage to the baptismal site, and people seek blessings in the holy waters of the Jordan River. It is also followed by a pilgrimage to the various recognized churches.
On the third Friday of June each year, the Catholic Church in Jordan commemorates National Pilgrimage Day at the shrines of the Lady of the Mountain in the town of Anjara, Ajloun governorate. The shrine is one of the five Christian religious sites in Jordan adopted by the Vatican for the pilgrimage during the Great Jubilee in 2000.
This Marian shrine was founded by late father Youssef Naimat, one of the priests of the Latin Patriarchate, as a tribute to the Virgin Mary. According to tradition, Christ and his mother passed through that town and relieved themselves in a cave in the Ajlon Mountains, near Mazar, which is located in the hills of Gilead, east of the Jordan Valley. There is also a Christian tradition that Christ gave preaching about the sacred secret of blessed marriage from this blessed area.
Mar Elias Day is celebrated on July 20 every year, and churches hold religious ceremonies at the Mar Elias site located in the town of Lestep, Ajalon governorate. Mar Elias (Prophet Elijah) is one of the great characters in the Bible, and we have in Jordan the largest share Prophet's life: he was born in Gilead - Lestp, and baptized in Tel Mar Elias, at the site of the baptism of Christ (Al Maghtas) in his fiery chariot to heaven.
The site is one of Jordan's five religious sites adopted by the Vatican to make the pilgrimage to it during the Great Jubilee in 2000. At this site, archaeological excavations revealed a huge church dating back to the beginning of the sixth century, with its floor encrusted with colorful mosaics. A second, smaller church was discovered, adjacent to the west, called the first grand and the second minor.
Every year, on September 4th, it has celebrated with St. Moses Lawful's Day who is the Prophet who led the people of the Old Testament from slavery in Egypt to freedom in the land of the date. Moses did not enter the Earth, but looked at it from Mount Nepo, from the top of the space opposite the palm city of Jericho (Book of Deuteronomy 34, 1-12). This is where today the Holy Shrine is guarded by the Franciscan monks of the Holy Land, where a ceremonial Mass is celebrated every year, in memory of St. Moses.
The shrine of St. Moses is One of the sites adopted by the Vatican as pilgrimage sites during the Great Jubilee in 2000. The shrine, located eight kilometers northwest of Madaba City, was the pilgrimage for many popes (Pope John Paul II in 2000, Pope Benedict XVI in 2009) and many church presidents and pilgrims from around the world.
Saint John the Baptist is considered the main patron saint of the Church in Jordan. The feast of his martyrdom is celebrated on August 29 of each year, when the Catholic Church holds a national pilgrimage and a festive mass at the Mukawir Castle, located 32 km southwest of Madaba, where John the Baptist was imprisoned in the citadel, and where King Herod beheaded, she says. Historical evidence and religious traditions.
In the city center of Madaba, John the Baptist Beheading Church, affiliated to the Latin Patriarchate, was designated as a national shrine to perpetuate the name of the former Christ. There is also a festive mass celebrated on the feast of the martyrdom of the Baptist every year, and a festival is held on this occasion.
On 11 February each year, the Catholic Church of the World commemorates the Day of Prayer for the Patient. In Jordan, it is celebrated with a ceremonial Mass at Mazar-e-Virgin Mrs. Lourdes, in the town of Naour, south-west of the capital Amman, where patients are wiped away with holy meron oil and prayed for them, so that the Lord may help them in their pain and discover his love of mercy in the secret of pain. At the end of the Mass, a candle march is held at the shrine, and sang sagas.
The shrine is a quasi-origin of Mrs. Lord's Miraculous Shrine in France and was given a special pond by the Church in Jordan and the Church in France, and also visited by Archbishop Lord. The shrine was paid tribute to the reign of the then priest of the parish, Rafat Badr, in 2015, and is located within the walls of the Latin monastery in the town. During the subsequent years, Ms. Lord's Multi-Purpose Auditorium and St. Bernadette's Courtyard were opened.
The monastery, which belongs to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate, is located in the town of Dibeen in the Jerash Governorate, within a wooded area characterized by the calm and serenity necessary for monastic life. The idea of the monastery originated in the triangle of mercy, Patriarch Diodoros, and was adopted by Archimandrite Christophoros Atallah, due to the importance of monastic life in maintaining the upright faith, and for reviving the spiritual life in the souls of believers, and for the importance of monasteries in helping the church with its pastoral mission.
It is noteworthy that the monastery was opened in 2022, and includes a church, cells for nuns’ housing, a library, and a workshop to carry out various manual works, such as candle and incense works, church embroidery and icon painting. It is also equipped with the necessary infrastructure to host pastoral activities. It is noteworthy that the monastery hosts many religious celebrations, most notably the Monastery Day on the first Friday after Easter.
Churches in many parishes in Jordan organize a mass cross path on Good Friday, where the towns and their streets are filled with believers carrying the Holy Cross, singing and commemorating the holiest day in Christian life, which is the crucifixion and death of Christ.
In the city of Fuheis, for example, the Greek Orthodox, Melkite Roman Catholic and Latin churches hold the Way of the Cross prayer, starting from the Latin Church and ending to the cemetery church square, passing through the city’s streets, amid the participation of a large number of believers from the city and those coming from outside as well.
The churches in Jordan, as well as the churches of the world, participate in the World Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which takes place from January 18-25 of each year. In addition to the prayers that are held in churches across Jordan, a major celebration is held in a church that is chosen every year, in which the heads of churches and their representatives participate, in addition to many believers who raise their prayers with one heart and pray to the Lord with the intention of establishing a spirit of unity and brotherhood among them.
On May 6 of each year, the Orthodox Church in Jordan celebrates the feast of St. George (his martyrdom), or what is also known as St. Grace or Al-Khidr, at the site named in his name in Mahis, adjacent to the city of Fuheis, in the Balqa Governorate. The celebration includes a festive mass presided over by the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan, with the participation of many priests, and the presence of a group of public figures and citizens from all churches. After the mass, everyone shares the green ribbons, which are sanctified during prayer, and put them in their cars and homes.
The Orthodox Church celebrates the reception of the Holy Light coming from the city of Jerusalem in an atmosphere of joy and happiness. In the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the Holy City of Jerusalem, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem presides over the flood of the light ceremony, on Holy Saturday. From Jerusalem, this light radiates to the whole world. In Jordan, the ceremony of receiving the light is presided over by the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan, in one of the Orthodox churches, in the presence of a large crowd of priests and believers who came carrying candles and lanterns to be blessed with the light coming from the empty tomb, on the eve of the glorious Easter celebration.
The Feast of the Annunciation is an annual feast in which churches celebrate the Annunciation of the Angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary, that she will be the mother of Christ. On this occasion, in addition to the religious celebrations that pervade the churches, the Catholic Center for Studies and Media in Jordan is organizing a national, Christian-Islamic celebration aimed at strengthening the bonds of brotherhood, friendship and cohesion among the members of the one Jordanian family, by taking the example and personality of the venerable Virgin Mary. In the Holy Bible and in the Holy Qur'an.