Source: MTI-Hungary Today
A new church in Jordan has been consecrated in the presence of guest of honor Tristan Azbej, Hungary’s State Secretary for the Aid of Persecuted Christians. The church, located at the baptismal site of Jesus Christ, was built with financial support from the Jordanian and Hungarian governments.
In a telephone interview with MTI, the State Secretary said that on Friday he held bilateral talks on the situation in the Middle East with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Holy See, and the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa.
During his visit to Jordan, the two church leaders consecrated the new church, which bears the name ‘Baptism of Our Lord,’ in his presence as guest of honor, along with over five thousand people.
The construction was co-financed by the Jordanian and Hungarian governments, with Hungary contributing 700,000 euros.
Archbishop Pizzaballa also thanked Hungary in particular for the help it has been providing through the church to the Christians living there and in the wider region, as well as to the Lebanese people, since the outbreak of the armed conflict in the Gaza Strip.
Al-Maghtas, officially known as Baptism Site “Bethany Beyond the Jordan,” is an archaeological World Heritage Site in Jordan, on the east bank of the Jordan River. The site is reputed to be the location of the Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist and venerated as such since the Byzantine period.
In addition, Tristan Azbej announced that the second regional branch of the Hungary Helps Agency abroad has been opened in the Jordanian capital, Amman. He emphasized that the office, like the regional office in Chad, will be responsible for supporting local Christians and other communities in crisis, and will oversee the use and allocation of in-kind and monetary donations from Hungary for the intended purposes.
In this way, the Hungarian government’s goal of ensuring that people in need choose to stay in their home country rather than emigrate will continue to be achieved, the State Secretary explained. The opening of the office follows the launch of the Hungary Helps Program in 2017, with humanitarian aid for the Yazidi minority in the Middle East, who are being persecuted by the Islamic State terrorist organization, he added.
