Project Updates 2022
All plans have been finished, and permits have been obtained from the municipality in Jordan in order for the project to start. The first phase will start summer 2022.
Located in the heart of the middle east, Jordan is home to some of the oldest places mentioned in the Bible, including Bethany, Mount Nebo, Sodom and Gomorrah and the Jordan River.
Located near the Dibbeen National Forest, Dibbeen Baptist Church is on the way to Jaresh, north of Amman. The forest is a portion of the less than 1% area of Jordan that is not arid. That’s where we planned to build our Center.
Past, Present and Future
Jaresh Baptist Church in Jordan has a vision to renovate the old church in Dibbeen and build a conference center on the land surrounding the church. The main goal is to reach young people and children with the gospel of Jesus Christ through camps and retreats, and to give the opportunity for Christians to fellowship with each other and spend time with the Lord in a place that is considered one of the prettiest in Jordan. The center will serve the 22 local Baptist churches and up to 56 evangelical churches with up to 10,000 members.
The idea of building a conference center in Dibbeen started when Mr. Paul Smith, head of the Baptist mission in Jordan, established a ground for a summer conference using tents in the 1960’s. Early in 1980, a full-scale plan was prepared to build a conference center, but part of the Ajloun mission facilities were given to the Jordan Baptist Association and the project in Dibbeen was put on hold.
Although many of the locals left the village in the 1970s to pursue jobs in the bigger cities surrounding Dibeen, a few were left there and continued the ministry. In later years the number of Evangelical churches increased in Jordan and the Ajloun conference center could not accommodate this growth, so the vision of building a new conference center in Dibbeen was established again.
A Jordanian committee under the Southern Baptist Association is currently overseeing the project locally and raising funds. The plans and permits have are ready and the project will have three phases before completion:
Phase one will be focused on building the hall and facilities, and will cost approximately $500,000.
Phase two is building the dormitory and will cost $850,000.
Phase three is building the sanctuary and facilities and will cost $1,100,000.
In total we will need $2,450,000 to complete this project.