Christian Voluntourism in Jordan

AQABA, Jordan and McLEAN, Va. (March, 2011) – A group of Christian media from North America, including Brandon Crouch, JCTV co-founder, and the producers of “Travel with Spirit,” are mixing ‘volun-tourism’ along with ancient holy sites and modern adventures in a Lenten-timed press tour of Jordan hosted by the Jordan Tourism Board. The group reached Aqaba today on the seventh of nine days in this biblical “Land of Refuge.”

A highlight of the trip was a March 14 “volun-tourism” experience at the Holy Land Institute for the Deaf in historic Salt. Several of the journalists joined students at the school to make traditional handicrafts such as mosaics, rugs and belts. The center offers a wide range of vocational training courses, including ceramics, metallurgy, weaving, cooking and computer skills, to ensure the boys and girls have employable skills once they leave. Volunteers who visit the school can join in the activities to encourage and interact with the students.

Chuck Chalfant, web producer of CBN.com, blogged about the experience saying:

“I had no idea what to expect, but was excited to serve and meet the kids. What I learned about love and servanthood and my own shortcomings was priceless, … Brother Andrew A.L. de Carpentier is the executive director and a very wise yet humble man. One of the things he said that stuck out was that the deaf communicate not with their mouths, but their hands. To say something, they have to do something. That pretty much sums up the whole place – show your love and communication through action.”

Malia Asfour, director of the Jordan Tourism Board North America adds:

“We have worked hand in hand with our suppliers and religious travel planners about how to build volun-tourism into some of their Holy Land travel programs, … Now we are giving Christian media a glimpse of how volun-tourism, unlike longer one-week or two-week mission trips, can be built into any type of trip to Jordan.”

Asfour views faith-based travel as one of the primary niches for Jordan tourism. She has been working since 1997 to promote the destination of Jordan to the North American travel market, and decided early on that Jordan needed a re-branding in the religious sector in order to educate and re-introduce the kingdom’s biblical sites and experiences to prospective travelers. A passionate advocate for volun-tourism, Asfour sees it as a natural element of any faith-based tour to Jordan.

The Jordan Tourism Board North America, in cooperation with “Travel with Spirit,” is producing promotional videos and public service announcements (PSA’s) about volun-tourism. “Travel with Spirit” is a half-hour television program that features destinations that appeal to Christian travelers seeking spiritual enrichment as a part of their travel experience. The show airs on several networks, including FamilyNet, Sky Angel and NRB Network.

The crew filmed one PSA segment featuring Brandon Crouch at the Holy Land Institute for the Deaf.

Crouch, a Christian evangelist, inspirational speaker, television broadcaster, and co-founder of JCTV (Jesus Christ Television),  summed up his support for volunteering on vacation in this way:

“Volunteering for as little as one hour can turn a vacation into a life-changing experience. Jordan has opened up my eyes to the rest of the biblical sites that I had always wondered about from the other side, … Aaron’s tomb, Mount Nebo, the Red Sea and so much more are combined with a rich culture, loving people and delicious food. You can’t go wrong with Jordan!”

Biblical Background of Jordan:

Bethany-beyond-the-Jordan – where the Bible says Jesus came to be baptized by his cousin John – is part of the wilderness area associated with John the Baptist and also contains the traditional spot where the Bible says Elijah the prophet ascended to heaven in a chariot of fire. Today, the holy site is a rustic, eco-protected park that welcomes hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.

While Jordan is home to hundreds of biblical locations, some of the most pivotal biblical events occurred at these sites:

• Mount Nebo, where Moses saw the land he would never enter and, according to the Bible, is buried nearby in an unknown location;
• Mukawir, a mountaintop fortress not far from the Dead Sea where John the Baptist was imprisoned and beheaded;
• Tel Mar Elias, the birthplace of the prophet Elijah (also known as Elijah the Tishbite), located among the ancient Hills of Gilead;
• Umm Qais, a Roman Decapolis town overlooking the Sea of Galilee where the miracle of the Gadarene swine took place;
• Jabbok River, where Jacob wrested with “the Angel,” and his name was changed to Israel, meaning “He who wrestles with God.”

For more information, please visit the Jordan Tourism Board North America website and the Blog Jordan Wiki.

The first day started off with a three hour camel ride in Lawrence’s old stomping grounds, Wadi Rum. Yes, camel riding is the iconic Middle Eastern experience (not to mention Lawrence’s preferred method of transportation) but believe you me, we could have lived without the angry, farting camels and all the leg and back pain associated with being perched atop them for three hours.

The above description come courtesy of a couple of best friends studying the Arabic language – who took some time off to visit the desert T.E. Lawrence described in his famed ‘7 Pillars of Wisdom‘ as ‘Vast and echoing and god-like.‘

A landscape whose plains are challenging by camel as its numerous jagged and jutting rock structures are for rappelling and ‘trad climbing‘ . The latter explained by Ben Heason in his RockRun.com post entitled ‘Tales from Wadi Rum:’

Whilst the climbing is often of a serious nature, there remains an air of convenience when climbing in Wadi Rum. More akin to alpine climbing than UK cragging, Wadi Rum offers some long and memorable outings, of all grades, but without the arduous approaches, slogging up long steep hills so often associated with alpine climbs…

… After a couple of days familiarising ourselves with the climbing style, which is often of a slightly crumbly nature, repeating delightful classic shorter routes such as Inferno (E2 5c) and The Beauty (E2 5b, 5 pitches) we decided to go for our first big route of the trip – Inshallah Factor …

After repeating the super classics of Merlin’s Wand (E1 5b, 5 pitches), Star of Abu Judaidah (E2 5b, 7 pitches), Les Rumeurs De La Pluie (E2 5c, 3 pitches) and the less traveled, run-out and technical Neige Dans Le Desert (E5 5c/6a, 7 pitches) my appetite for a return trip to Barrah Canyon had been sufficiently whetted.

…  I have rarely had such a feeling whilst climbing, of elation and fear combined, and for such a lengthy period. For almost the entire day I remained petrified, yet in my element at the same time, thriving on the experience.

Of course one not need be an expert climber to enjoy some if the heights and sights offered in this amazing landscape.  An experience nicely described by this GW student of Arabic and history:

The above picture of the Rock Bridge is one of the famous sites at Wadi Rum because it forms a natural bridge. To climb up it, we had to scale the face of the rock to the right of it, which was an exercise in conquering your fear. The nearly vertical climb up was not for the faint of heart, and I would be lying if I said it was easy. Once atop, I quickly walked across the bridge and descended (which was even more difficult) to the safety of the ground below. On the way down, as I’m slowly making my way, some Bedouin tour guide is calmly and confidently walking down the rock face as if it’s nothing. It was a pretty funny sight: I’m doing a crab walk next to someone walking normally.

Uncomfortable with climbing? Not a problem, there’s always camping:

We stayed the night in the Bedouin camp and traveled to Petra the next morning. What a spectacular place. Words don’t do justice to treasure trove of amazingly preserved – Beholding the World

And while the ‘tent’ accommodations may not be entirely authentic Bedouin, it certainly makes for an entertaining experience:

Moving along in the afternoon we went to a “Bedouin camp” in Wadi Rum. Obviously most people visiting Wadi Rum want to spend the night in a “Bedouin tent” are not the authentic homes of the Bedouin, but are erected for the tourists. It is nevertheless a special experience to sleep out in the desert, several of them have “amenities” like toilets and showers.

… I sleep with socks, gloves and my jacket and hood on. The bed is just full of sand, as we had to change tents last minute due to the kerosene spillage…it was quite cold and the bed very uncomfortable but it beats sleeping on the ground. Thank god i only had to walk once to the bathroom before going to bed, but it was a pain to have to walk the distance through sand … – Judie’s Travels

Sure it gets a bit chilly at night, but there’s nothing like seeing Wadi Rum for the moonscape that it is … by way of full lunar illumination:

Last weekend I went to Wadi Rum and Aqaba for a conference sponsored by the Rotaract of Amman-West. It was incredible! Wadi Rum is a desert canyon area, and Aqaba is the little bit of coast that Jordan has with the Red Sea. We got down to Wadi Rum after the sunset unfortunately (it is supposed to be spectacular), but it was close to a full moon which was also incredible. We stayed at a camp called “Beit Ali” and went up to the top of the hill for a breathtaking view of the moonlit desert.  – Greg Sheppard’s Blog

Personally, I’m conflicted – as I found myself more impressed with Wadi Rum than Petra after my first visit to Jordan in my post: Wadi Rum: vast and echoing and god-like, magically haunted.

Next it was off to the black basalt columns of Umm Qais, but not, of course, without a bit of a run-around first. After happening upon a bus to the awful, awful city of Irbid, we intended to catch another bus to our hostel in Umm Qais. Instead, an opportunistic Jordanian man attempted to drive us to Ajlun. Perhaps Jordanian taxi drivers think that shouting a city’s name about twenty times equates to a different city entirely, but I’m more inclined to think that this particular man was simply rather daft. Well, anyway, we did make it there eventually. So take a gander.

The quote above is from the blog ‘Travel to Saturn,’ painting a verbal picture the potential thrills and spills of striking out on one’s own in Jordan.

That said, while checking out what some other recent Umm Qais related bloggery, I came across these two images of the dark basalt stonework over at Flickr:

The contrast between antiquity & modern - by Puri

I might have taken the same shot, except our tour guide was immutably parked there this past November.

Only For the Royal Family - by Faris Madi

This latter image from taken from the last row of seats lining the ancient Umm Qais Greco-Roman theater. As the photographer, Faris Madi nicely puts it:

As you can see they made it from rocks in a curvy way…perfect

And finally this word image (followed by some huge .jpg photos)  from Lauren’s Live Journal of what many experience their first day out of Amman on a guided tour:

First stop – Umm Qais. Umm Qais is in the North West of Jordan, and is home to the ruins of the Roman city of Gadara. My guidebook says you can see Syria, Israel and the Palestinian Territories from Umm Qais, and there were terrific views there, but with my shoddy sense of direction I had no idea what I was looking at. The scenery was nice, whichever country it was.

One of the things I really loved about Jordan (it was also the case, to a lesser extent, in Turkey) was that the Roman ruins aren’t ‘fenced off‘ the same way they are in Italy (and the way Greek ruins are, in Greece). There were no guards, no ‘keep out’ signs, really nothing from stopping you from getting up close to the ruins. Umm Qais was really quiet – there was our party of four, and a couple of other small groups, and that was it.

Emphasismine … as I was quite disappointed this past summer while touring the Acropolis … having to pay to take photos from several yards away of historic locations obscured by ugly chain link fences.

Not so in Jordan, there you can still see, feel and touch the Biblical and ancient history – especially at Umm Qais.

The Quarryscapes project started in 2005 and is now almost finished … The project is basically an effort to study and raise awareness about ancient quarries in the eastern Mediterranean area. In this context, we in Jordan studied ancient Bronze aged quarries in the Jafr area, Nabatean quarries in Petra and Roman quarries in Jerash. In the upcoming meeting, I will present some of our work in Jerash.

How cool is that?! And how can I get in on such action the next time I tour Jordan?

Until then, I suppose I’ll just have to live vicariously through posts like the one above by Nizar over at the Jordan science and engineering blog …

… and project websites such as “Quarryscapes” that offer ancient imagery of:

• Al Jafr – whose formation begins as massive thickness of chalky limestone or marl, then repeated the sequence by chert and chalky limestone, chalk or hard limestone.
• Jerasa – where  visit to the site will reveal that stone was brought to the site from many sources. Remarkably, large granite columns are present, apparently brought all the way from Egypt.
• Petra – The stone is extracted from the Cambrian Um Ishrin formation. This is a well indurated fluviatile quartz arenite. The lower section consists of reddish sandstone and the upper is whitish.

Like I said … where do I sign up to see some awesome archaeological sites like these?

As a follow up to my September 8 post ‘Pavarotti to be remembered at Petra by Elton John, Bono, Celine Dion, Joe Cocker and Sting‘ – and as a once aspiring opera singer myself – it is thrilling to see that the two surviving members of the musical trio simply known as “the Three Tenors” celebrating the late maestro’s ambition to perform at one of the World’s Seven New Wonders.

As this event continues to gain in excitement and momentum, the list of singers now also includes opera stars Roberto Alagna, Angela Gheorghiu and Andrea Bocelli, all conducted by Maestro Eugene Kohn according to the Epoch Times.

The Hashemite Kingdom of late, becoming a popular backdrop to the “big singing” as just this past summer, Placido Domingo, Julia Migenes, and jazz singer Diana Krall were the highlight acts at this year’s Jordan Festival.

A number of noted non-singing celebrities will also be among the exclusive guest list of 500, including Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the billionaire ruler of Dubai who is married to Princess Haya – daughter of the late Hussein bin Talal, King of Jordan (may his name be blessed).

As Reuters reports:

The tribute is the brainchild of Nicoletta Mantovani, Pavarotti’s widow and HRH Princess Haya, a fellow UN Messenger of Peace and daughter of Jordan’s late King Hussein. “A concert in Petra was a dream once shared by the late King Hussein of Jordan and Luciano,” said Mantovani. “I am so grateful to Her Royal Highness Princess Haya, for making it possible to turn this dream into a reality.”

The proceeds of the concert will support joint projects in Afghanistan by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the UN World Food Programme (WFP).  A local charity supporting disabled children in Petra will also benefit from the concert. More information about the UNHCR-WFP Pavarotti Tribute Project can be found on their ReliefWeb page that includes contacts information.

Also, as reported on blogJordan last month, websites providing tour packages can also be found at:

• thepavarottitribute.com
• eventsbyappointment.com

Below is a list of some other blogs writing about this exciting event.

• Gheorghiu Tribute In Petra, Jordan: Luciano Who?
• Cynthia Lawrence Headlines Pavarotti Tribute
• Concerto a Petra (English translation)

Finally, here’s a few articles enumerating my own experiences in the ‘Rose Red City:’

• The Petra Treasury Indiana Jones didn’t show you
• Best Online Photo Gallery of Petra Ever!
• Petra: 10 miles + 2 mountains of world wonder

Oh what this bass-baritone wouldn’t give to be there (again)!

Food channel cook and author Michael Smith gets a taste of Jordan’s desert hospitality during this first episode of Chef at Large, Season VI, on the cable Food Channel. With the help of the Petra Kitchen – a cooking school/restaurant in Petra – Smith enjoys the creation and consumption of mansaf, a meal traditionally made for guests … one of whom will be Prince Mired Al Hussein of Jordan.

This according to an online article in TheStar.com which also informs us that:

Later, Smith and the prince travel by camel through the desert to Wadi Rum where a Bedouin tribe welcomes them with a meal of goat cooked in a barrel under the sand.

This is not the first time The Petra Kitchen has been featured on a cable network, as the Travel Channel also featured this fun respite last year as described in this online synopsis that includes both some video – and more importantly recipes – for how to make some of the yummy Arabic cuisine one learns to make there, hands on:

This month on TRAVEL 2007 we visit the PETRA KITCHEN, which gives visitors a great opportunity to learn more about Jordanian food. It’s a very hands on approach – you eat what you’ve prepared. Wendy Botham, the owner, was kind enough to pass on some of the most popular recipes to us …

Some of those recipes include (note, links open a new window):

• Shourbat Freekeh – Green Wheat Soup
• Fatoush – Cucumber and Tomato Salad
• Salatat Khyar – Cucumber and Yoghurt Salad
• Magloubet – Upside-Down

Here are what some other blogs are saying about the Petra Kitchen:

• Jordan Jubilee – the Petra Kitchen is now open.
• Great idea, but poor execution – TravelAdvisor
• Egypt Magic – how I could barely stop laughing …
• Off The Beaten Path: Petra Kitchen  – VirtualTourist

When I went, I was incredibly tired and footsore from a day climbing all over Petra – so I didn’t get as “hands on” as other members in the group. That said, I wasn’t so fatigued that I didn’t enjoy the soup, mezza, salad, and Levant – nor the furnishings and the tableware which all crafted in Jordan and produced by the Iraq al Amir Women’s Cooperative (via the Queen Noor Al Hussein Foundation) and the aprons and table linens all hand-embroidered by the Jordan River Foundation (a Queen Rania Al-Abdullah initiative).

The regular price of JD 30/person includes the cuisine course, meal and all non-alcoholic beverages as well as take-home recipes for all dishes prepared that evening. For more information or to book your evening at The Petra Kitchen, contact:

• The Petra Kitchen
  P O Box 40
  Petra, Jordan
  tel/fax +962-3-215-7900
  email: kitchen@petramoon.com

Jihad, Shmahad – Southern Jordan, Petra

Let me preface this by saying: Petra is too amazing to be understood in digital picture format. It’s older than anything in the United States (300 BC). As for a little background you might understand: Do you remember Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade? The one with Sean Connery? Remember when Indiana is riding his horse through the valley at the end to find the temple with the Holy Grail in it? That’s Petra.

Wade Jewkes, Deseret News: Petra — Ancient Nabateans built a place of wonder in the wilderness

… everyone who visits here is left breathless by the stunning, architectural beauty. And the breathless part can be taken almost literally when one considers the hike in is about two miles to the main bowl area and from there it requires a steep climb covering 950 steps to reach the famed Monastery monument — that is if the wear and tear on your body can withstand the rigors required from this masochistic behavior. But it is worth it.

Trans-Ferir – Professor da Universidade do Porto – PETRA (Jordan)

A little farther from the Treasury, at the foot of the mountain called en-Nejr is a massive theatre, so placed as to bring the greatest number of tombs within view; and at the point where the valley opens out into the plain the site of the city is revealed with striking effect. Indeed, the amphitheatre has actually been cut into the hillside and into several of the tombs during its construction, rectangular gaps in the seating are still visible. Almost enclosing it on three sides are rose-coloured mountain walls, divided into groups by deep fissures, and lined with tombs cut from the rock in the form of towers

Lee Abbamonte – The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

I wish I was more poetic, to be able to aptly describe what the opening walk in Petra is like, but I will try my best. Entering the city, you first see various different sculptures along the road that winds into a mountain. As you enter the Siq, it seems like you are walking aimlessly for a very long time. After about 20 minutes or so you see an opening in the narrow slit in the Siq.

As you approach the ending the narrow gash gets wider and more and more light shows itself and the temperature starts to get hotter as your heart starts to beat heavier. Finally as you are about to exit the pass you are blinded by the rush of light and as you clear your eyes and continue walking out the tunnel you are greeted by the single most amazing site ever concocted by mankind. Right there in front of you is the Treasury, Petra’s most famous and magnificent structure.

And the adventure continues…. on to Jordan and Israe! – Petra, Jordan

Well things didn’t work out as planned and I did not spend my birthday at the pyramids!  I thought Petra would be nice, one wonder of the world for another, but I was disappointed.  I got there at 10am and quickly went to the sight … The second day I had a much better time and started to like Petra a lot more.  It is amazing to see the same sight twice because the light changes completely during the day and it looks very different.

Hiking Petra – The Monastery

By this point we were quite ill again, but I decided it would be a good idea to continue hiking up the 800+ steps carved into the sandstone which lead to the monastery. I really enjoyed this part of the hike, in part because of the view at the end, but in part because we met several families that lived in a neighboring village with whom we exchanged greetings and who were kind and welcoming. I was fascinated that the trails leading among these wonders of the world were their daily paths.

Southern Exposure offers these three photo journal posts:

• Southern Exposure: Petra
• Southern Exposure: Aqaba
• Southern Exposure: Wadi Rum

Of course, there’s my post from November of 2007 – The Petra Treasury Indiana Jones didn’t show you

Two days ago I was standing alone on the steps of the Treasury at Petra. The images still awe me, more so this 2nd visit than the 1st.  Below is a brief description along with 3 YouTube videos explaining why …

Hey, I know what some of you are thinking … but trust me … while there’s alot of “touristy stuff” going on there … none of it detracts from finding your own grail in the glory of Petra.

“You want a horse? You wont make it five feet” – This was the advice of a young man who is part of the “horse mafia” that operates here in Petra.  If you go into Petra as a group you have to pay an additional 7 JOD on top of the large sum of cash you already dished out.  This money goes directly to the horse mafia in order to keep them off your tail and to allow you to ride a horse if you wish.

The above quote coming from a recent Travel Post that along with describing the once-in-a-lifetime thrill that is visiting Petra, some of the not-so-thrilling aspects of the local tourist enterprises.

In my first visit to Petra, I noted the same – where a number of soot covered boys would come right up next to me and holding strands of cheap bracelets and necklaces in my face would shout out sales pitches into my ear – often including empty flattery about the U.S.A. – which they correctly (and probably easily) guessed as my country of origin.

But that was benign and almost cute. What wasn’t was the horses running up and down the Siq – an awe-inspiring spectacle of geology almost 0.825 mile (1.3 km) long, 600 foot (182 m) story high. It is through this rose-red gorge one walks through before arriving at the Treasury – with an awe inspiring view similar to that seen in the film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) that I captured and posted to YouTube my second visit … but I digress …

It is also through this cavern that I and others have almost gotten run over by … as another blogger describes: “Untrained horses with untrained kids racing the horses down a rocky trail …”

And it is this safety issue, along with a health issue one confronts while climbing the long set to steps up to the Monastery … avoiding the odorous ‘presents’ left by mules some tourists take to the top … and then are taken at the top by the ‘donkey mafia‘ when they discover the negotiated 2JD price for riding up is taxed with a surprise 10JD to be let off the animal!

Hopefully, the recently announced plans at Petra to regulate services & enhance visitor experience will remedy such incidents as they tend to distract somewhat from the experience … though I have my doubts if there is any truth to this snippet from another Petra blogger also commenting on the infamous horse mafia:

At Petra the horse mafia rule the roost. They’re so cunning that they hold the King to ransom and force him to include the price of their terrible horse ride into the entry price to Petra. And when the King tried to change things, they threatened to blow up Petra with dynamite… long story.

Still, with increased travel to the historic site up over the half million mark this year alone, something is going to have to change before a fatal accident and/or a health issue ruins it for everyone.

BUT please, don’t let these descriptions of the horse mafia, the donkey mafia, the bands of junk jewelry hawkers and other minor distractions deter you from visiting Petra. They are annoyances at best, usually quickly forgotten moments after experiencing fantastic and incredible sites such as:

• The Siq
• The Treasury
• Street of Facades
• The Amphitheater
• Royal Tombs
• High Place of Sacrifice
• Colonnaded Streets
• Winged Lions & Qasr al-Bint Temples
• The Monastery
• The Petra Museum

Trust me, as time passes and one looks over the photos of Petra, you don’t think too much about them crazy kids racing them rickety carriages up-n-down the SIQ.

dj.tigersprout of Aminus3.com shares with us this gorgeous picture as one of many he’s taken of the moonscape of Wadi Rum … describing the grandeur that inspired the likes of T.E. Lawrence, when DJ writes:

i happily leave you with another near monochromatic ochre desert shot i dug up the other night — it never made it into any of my previous slideshows for friends or work colleagues, and this is really the first time even i have set eyes on it, short of the minimal prepping i accomplished last night for the purposes of this evening’s posting.

If you’d like to enjoy more of this … as this 2 time visitor to Wadi Rum has … then visit DJ’s online photo album entitled “the Golden Lands of the Nabatene, Wadi Rum, Jordan”

Perhaps then one can understand the sentiment “… if Petra is Jordan’s Gold, then Wadi Rum is it’s silver.“

Franciscan Church atop Mt. Nebo - via Wikipedia

Me personally, I enjoyed my visits to Mount Nebo especially the latter.

There was no haze that evening and from this 3300 ft. elevation located just 6 miles north west of Madaba, giving me an opportunity to look out onto “Gilead, as far as Dan,” and seeing for miles what Moses was recorded seeing in Deuteronomy 34:1.

I also marveled at the magnificent series of Byzantine mosaics that adorned the now Franciscan church atop Mt. Nebo … the largest being some 10 yards in length.

That reminds me to get those pix and videos online … so little time …

… speaking of time … my aggregator brought my attention to a book entitled “Temple at the Center of Time: Newton’s Bible Codex Deciphered and the Year 2012.”

A ‘best-selling prophecy book‘ that asserts that via author David Flynn’s studies of the Temple Mount, the Ark will can be found at Mount Nebo in Jordan.

Just as a quick catch-up, Mt. Nebo, a.k.a. Jebel Musa and/or Fasaliyyeh, had like many sites of pilgrimage in early Christendom, a sanctuary was built to commemorate the Biblical history associated with the location. We know that Lady Egeria (Aetheria) visited the site in 394 AD.

We know that from Greek inscriptions on the mosaics, we know the name of the mosaicists, Soel, Kaium, and Elias, and the name of the Bishop of Madaba, Elias – both dating back to 532 AD. That later in the 6th century, it appears the structure was significantly expanded. Records indicate that the site was still active in the 13th century, but then found abandoned by a Portuguese Franciscan monk whom visited the site 1564.

Many of these discoveries the result of an that a handful of experts from the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum whom were given stewardship of the site back in 1932. It was these Franciscans who discovered the mosaic of the Old Baptistery Chapel in the Memorial Church of Moses at Mount Nebo back in August of 1976. Since that discovery, an annual feast of Moses is celebrated on September 4, 1976 where the Christian community join with the Franciscan Fathers in this solemnity.

In 1993, the site was purchased outright by the Franciscans, who further excavated and restored the area. Work was completed in time for Pope John Paul II’s visit on March 19, 2000, where he planted an olive tree next to the Byzantine chapel.

Along with the many mosaics discovered, six tombs have been found hollowed from the natural rock beneath the mosaic-covered floor of the church.

Perhaps this is these discoveries, along with some Millennium inspired Internet chatter, that inspired David Flynn’s findings. I’m not sure, but either way, there’s quite a bit more written about the book over at WorldNetDaily - a good source for political punditry – though this writer isn’t so sure about their archaeological chops.

Whether or not the Temple Mount points to location of lost Ark, is the location of the Ark, is where the Ark once rested, etc … my recommendation is to visit Jordan for yourself, enjoy some shopping, mezza, and mosaics in Madaba … then trek on up to Mt.Nebo to see the sun set.

Just make sure to bring your filters for your camera lens, because while you may not find the resting place of the lost Ark of the Covenant up there, you will enjoy a spectacular panorama of the promised land, moving mosaics, and a chance to take photos of this beautiful place of Biblical antiquity … before it is dug-up crazy by Ark seekers.