Anjara

Anjara is a town in the Ajloun hills with a Catholic church, Our Lady of the Mount, built beside a cave that tradition holds sheltered Jesus, Mary and the disciples while travelling through the region. The Vatican designated it a pilgrimage site for the millennium year, and a large statue of the Virgin stands over the church. A wooden statue in the church attracted attention in 2010 after claims about it that were reported widely.

History

The name joins the Arabic ain, "spring", and jara, "running". Local tradition says Jesus and Mary passed through and stayed in a cave here on their way to the cities of the Decapolis, and the Ottoman census of 1596 counted 27 Muslim and 13 Christian households (Wikipedia, Anjara).

Highlights

• The church - Our Lady of the Mount, built beside the cave.
• The cave - the shelter the local tradition attaches to.
• The Virgin statue - the large figure standing above the church.
• The Ajloun hills - the wooded highlands the town sits in.

When to go

March to May and October to November are the comfortable months. Pilgrimage numbers rise around Marian feasts. The church keeps daytime hours.

Before you go

The traditions attached to the site are devotional rather than documented. The church is modern and there is little historic fabric. An hour covers it.

Nearby

Tell Mar Elias is nearby, and Ajloun Castle is west.