AMMAN — Visitor numbers to the Baptism site saw the highest increase since
the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, topping 9,756 in September, a 56 percent
increase from the previous month, according to Al Ghad.
اضافة اعلان
The
site of the Baptism of Jesus will host pilgrims during Epiphany celebrations in early 2022, under specific conditions
as outlined by the instructions of defense orders. This comes after the
pandemic prevented pilgrims from performing their rituals at the beginning of this
year.
Rustom
Mkhjian, director general of the Management Office of the Baptism Site,
said that the reason for the increase is due to the sustainability of the
efforts of the site’s management in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism
and Antiquities, Tourism Promotion Authority, and all workers in the tourism
sector, tourist offices, and airlines.
As for
the Epiphany celebrations, Mkhjian confirmed that the management of the site
decided, in coordination with Council
of the Heads of Churches in Jordan and relevant
authorities, to hold the Epiphany celebrations under specific conditions and according
to defense orders, to prevent the spread of the COVID-19.
Visitors
must have received two doses of the coronavirus vaccine, or one dose in
addition to a recent negative PCR test, and any other health requirements
stipulated by the defense orders.
He
points out that an agreement will be made with the Council of the Heads of Churches in Jordan to determine the number of participants in the
celebrations, to ensure that health requirements are met, such as social distancing,
and wearing masks, among other requirements.
The Baptism site is where Jesus was
baptized by John the Baptist according to Christian beliefs, and it was opened
to visitors and pilgrims in the year 2000 after the visit of Pope John Paul II.
Since then, thousands of Christian pilgrims from all over the world have celebrated
the Epiphany each year at the Baptism site, which has become a destination that
receives tourists and Christian pilgrims daily.
In 2015, the UNESCO declared the
Baptism Site on the east bank of the Jordan River as a World Heritage Site,
which increased the number of its visitors, which topped 200,000 visitors in
2019.
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