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Mount Nebo | Memorial of Moses
Mount Nebo – Siyagha | Faysaliyah – P.O.B. 2 | 17196 Madaba | JORDAN
Tel: +962.5. 325.29.38 |Fax: +962.5.25.29.32 | e-mail: nebo@custodia.org
The Christians here are a small minority, about 220,000 out of just over 6 million inhabitants, 2.8/3 percent of the total population. Of these 220,000 about half are Orthodox. Of the other half, about 80% are Catholics, mostly of the Latin rite (alongside a few tens of thousands faithful of the Melkite rite).
In Jordan the Custody of the Holy Land is present in two locations and with two very different but prestigious activities: the Terra Sancta School situated in the capital Amman and the Memorial of Moses on Mount Nebo.
The Terra Sancta School in Amman is more than 60 years old and is highly regarded among the educational institutions of Jordan, both for the quality of the teaching, both for the facilities that it offers to its 1100 students, of which only the 42% are Christians.
Mount Nebo overlooks, from its 800 meters of height, the Jordan River valley. From this natural balcony you can lay your eyes on a large section of the Holy Land, from Jericho to the Dead Sea, all the way to Bethlehem, and up to the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. From here, Moses was finally able to observe the Promised Land, that he did not enter. To emphasize the importance of this place, we remember the visit of Pope John Paul II in 2000 and that of Pope Benedict XVI in 2009. The basilica is currently the only sanctuary in Jordan. The great importance of the site lies in the fact that Moses, as a symbol of hope, is a point of contact between the three great religions of the Holy Land: Christians, Muslims and Jews.
The remains of a church and a monastery were discovered on the summit of the mountain, known as Syagha. The first records date back to 394; two centuries after the church was converted into a beautiful three-nave basilica with splendid mosaics; it was completed in the late sixth and early seventh century.
In 1932, the Custody of the Holy Land with the help of the Emir Abdallah, grandfather of King Hussein, succeeded in taking possession of the ruins, which were excavated and studied by the archeologists of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum of Jerusalem starting July 1933. Later, other excavations were made. Thanks to the impetus given by the Franciscan archaeologist Fr Michele Piccirillo, the Memorial of Moses has become an essential step for every visit to Jordan.
After more than 70 years, the site has served as a springboard for the increasingly important role played by the Franciscan archaeologists in the cultural politics promoted by the government in Amman for the discovery and exploitation of the immense archaeological heritage of Jordan. The working group of the Mount Nebo became the basis for the establishment of a school for the mosaic in the nearby town of Madaba, as well as for further excavations in the surrounding region.
The Custody of the Holy Land continues his work of restoration and conservation of this place.
The pipe organ of Mount Nebo is a small portable organ built by the organ master Nicola Puccini of Florence in 2014 and it will be inaugurated in 2015 as soon as the additional works in the Basilica are completed.
The organ was designed especially to accompany the liturgy in a chapel, but you can also do concerts of chamber music, along with other instruments. The wind pressure of 82 mm produces a clear and strong sound: the organ is equipped with shutters that ‘open and close’ the sound. Using the tuning rings, the organist can get the mean-tone temperament and the equable temperament. The keys are designed for a dynamic intonation. The Nightingale effect is suitable for pastoral songs and Christmas carols.
Details
Height: 100 cm
Width: 118 cm
Depth: 54 cm
Bordone of wood of 8
Flauto camino 4
Decimaquinta of 2
Nazardo soprano 2-2 / 3
Keyboard 51 notes C1-D5
Special Effects: Nightingale
Case in solid Tulipwood lacquered
Windchests in cedar
Wind pressure 82mm