On a clear day, the view from the summit of Mount Nebo stretches all the way across the Jordan Valley to Jerusalem. In fact, this is the panorama that Moses looked out upon before his death; knowing God had brought His people to the edge of the Promised Land, Moses consigned himself to never setting foot in the land he had sought out for decades. Scripture records the moment with quiet dignity: “The Lord showed him the whole land” (Deuteronomy 34:1-4). Standing in that same spot, looking toward the same horizon, is one of the more humbling experiences available to a Christian pilgrim anywhere in the world.
The Memorial Church of Moses has stood on this summit since the 4th century. Early pilgrims documented their visits here centuries before the age of modern travel, drawn by the same impulse that brings people today. Inside, Byzantine mosaics in extraordinary condition have survived the centuries. Outside, the Brazen Serpent sculpture by Giovanni Fantoni references both the account in Numbers 21 and Jesus’ own words in John 3:14, where He used that same image to describe what His crucifixion would accomplish. The Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land has cared for this site for generations.
Photo credit: Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin FRCP(Glasg), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
