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Episode 7 – The Church of the Baptism of Jesus and Machaerus

In the footsteps of Scripture

In the seventh episode of the podcast In the footsteps of Scripture: a travel diary in Jordan between the Old and the New Testament, the group of pilgrims, from the banks of the Jordan, walk to the nearby Church of the Baptism of Jesus, consecrated in January 2025. Here they meet Father Sergio Perez, who is responsible for the community of the Institute of the Incarnate Word, entrusted with the care of this site. He tells the story of the church’s construction. The episode also features reflections from Archbishop Giovanni Pietro Dal Toso on the significance of the site. After visiting Madaba, where is found the oldest map of the Holy Land, designed as a mosaic floor, the pilgrims travel south to Machaerus, the ancient fortress where Herod Antipas ordered the beheading of Saint John the Baptist. “Today," Father Francesco Giosuè Voltaggio explains, "we can still see the same fortress where Herod held banquets and celebrations, and where this tragic yet deeply meaningful event took place: the martyrdom of John the Baptist, a fiery prophet who swam against the tide and had the courage to speak the truth to Herod.”