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Article: World's oldest church believed found in Jordan.(IN THE BEGINNING)(ancient St. Georgeous Church )
- Article from:
- National Catholic Reporter
- Article date:
- July 11, 2008
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 National Catholic Reporter. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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JERUSALEM -- Archaeologists excavating in Jordan believe they may have uncovered the world's oldest church in an underground cave, but international scholars question the validity of the claim.
Discovered beneath the altar of the ancient St. Georgeous Church in the northern Jordanian town of Rihab, the underground space--believed to be a chapel--dates to A.D. 33-70, just a few decades after Christ was crucified in Jerusalem, according to the Jordanian archaeologists.
If the dates are confirmed to be correct, the chapel would be the oldest known place of Christian worship. St. Georgeous Church dates back to 230.
"The discovery was amazing. We ...