قصر اليهود | |
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  Shown within the West Bank | |
| Alternative name | Al-Maghtas[1] |
|---|---|
| Location | Area C,Jericho Governorate,West Bank (State of Palestine) |
| Coordinates | 31°50′18″N35°32′21″E / 31.838333°N 35.539167°E /31.838333; 35.539167 |
| Palestine grid | 201/138 |
| Site notes | |
| Public access | Yes (see website) |
| Website | [1] (Baptismal Site on the Jordan River - Qasr al-Yahud)[2] |
Qasr al-Yahud (Arabic:قصر اليهود, lit. "The citadel of the Jews",[3]Hebrew:קאסר אל יהוד), also known asAl-Maghtas,[1] is the western section of the traditional site of thebaptism of Jesus byJohn the Baptist on theJordan River (Matthew 3:13–17). It has also been traditionally identified with two episodes from theHebrew Bible, as one of the possible points through which theIsraelites have crossed the Jordan river as they reached thePromised Land (Joshua 3), and as the site where prophetElijah ascended to heaven (2 Kings 2:1–14).[4][5] "Qasr al-Yahud" is actually an Arabic name given to the nearby Monastery of St John the Baptist, but is also being used for theWest Bank section of the baptism site itself.[6]
The spot is located inArea C of the West Bank[7] and it sits directly across theeastern section (on Wikipedia as "Al-Maghtas"; known officially inJordan as "Baptism Site "Bethany Beyond the Jordan"") and close to thePalestinian city ofJericho. Since theSix-Day War in 1967, the baptism site has been underIsraeli occupation, and the site and facilities are currently administered by theIsraeli Civil Administration and theIsraeli Ministry of Tourism as part of anational park, wherebaptism ceremonies can be performed.
The Jordanian side uses the namesAl-Maghtas,Bethany beyond the Jordan andBaptism(al) Site, while the western part is known asQasr al-Yahud. The nearbyGreek Orthodox Monastery of St John the Baptist has a castle-like appearance (thusqasr, "castle"), and tradition holds that the Israelites crossed the river at this spot (thusal-Yahud, "of the Jews").[8][9][10] The monastery is known in Arabic both as Deir Mr Yuhanna, lit. "Monastery of Saint John", and Qasr el-Yahud.[6]
It is variously spelled as Kasser or Qasser, al- or el-, Yahud or Yehud etc.
Qasr al-Yahud is located in theWest Bank, a little southeast fromJericho, and is part of theJericho Governorate[11] Since theSix-Day War in 1967, it has been underIsraeli occupation, and the site and facilities are currently administered by theIsraeli Civil Administration and theIsraeli Ministry of Tourism as part of anational park.
As part of the traditional site of the baptism of Jesus, it has been a pilgrimage site since late antiquity.
The 6th-centuryMadaba Map places Bethabara ("house of the ford", "place of crossing"), a name used by some versions of the New Testament, on the west bank of the Jordan (seeAl-Maghtas#Bethabara).
Qasr al-Yahud is close to the ancient road and river ford connecting Jerusalem, via Jericho, to severalTransjordanian biblical sites such asMadaba,Mount Nebo and theKing's Highway.[11]
According toProcopius (writing c. 560 CE), EmperorJustinian I had acistern constructed here.[12] In 1883 it was described as "still visible, in almost perfect condition".[13]
According toTheoderic (c. 1172), theTemplars had built a castle next to the Greek monastery of St John and the Baptism site, of which no trace has been found.[14] The Templars, together with theHospitallers, had the mission of protecting the pilgrims who came to the Holy Land in the time of the CrusaderKingdom of Jerusalem, and this castle was part of a chain of Templar fortifications along the pilgrimage route down to the Jordan, which also included the castle ofMaldoim halfway between Jerusalem and the river, and the fortified top ofMount Quarantana above Jericho.[14]
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The west side of the traditional baptism site became again a target for mass pilgrimage toward the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century.[15] Later in the 20th century, a large number of churches and monasteries were built between the old Greek Orthodox Monastery of St John the Baptist and the river, an area that became known as the "Land of the Monasteries". It comprised Catholic (Franciscan),Greek,Ethiopian Orthodox,Syriac,Russian,Romanian, andCoptic churches.[16][17]
The site was closed in 1967 during theSix-Day War.[11] The restoration project was approved before the 2000millennium celebrations but was delayed due to theSecond Intifada and flooding in the region in 2003.[4] In 2000, PopeJohn Paul II held a private worship at the site.[4]
The modern site reopened in 2011.[18]Qasr al-Yahud is administered by the Israeli Civil Administration and the Israeli Ministry of Tourism. In 2019, the area near the site was demined by theHALO Trust.[19]
... Palestinians shall have the right to religious pilgrimage to theAl-Maghtas under the Palestinian flag. Safe passage will be provided from the Jericho Area toAl-Maghtas for this purpose. (Annex III: Protocol Concerning Civil Affairs. Article 32: Religious Sites. Point 5.)
The Holy Monastery of St John the Baptist on the banks of the Jordan River/Qasr-el-Yahud […] The perimeter walls, specifically their uppermost portion, terminate at battlements, which lend the monument the form of a Medieval castle. This is in all likelihood why its Arab name isQasr al-Yahud [The castle of the Jews]
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31°50′18″N35°32′21″E / 31.83833°N 35.53917°E /31.83833; 35.53917
