Legal framework on freedom of religion and actual application
Since it was established, the Kingdom of Jordan has been ruled by the Hashemite dynasty, which originally hailed from Makkah and claim to be direct descendants of the Prophet Mohammed. In 1948, Jordan (then called Transjordan) seized East Jerusalem and the West Bank in the first Arab Israeli War. It lost those territories to Israel in the Six-Day War in 1967. As a result of both conflicts, Jordan took in hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees, who now constitute much of the Jordanian population. Only a minority of Jordanians belong to traditional Bedouin groups who have lived for centuries in the area. In 1994, Jordan signed a peace treaty with Israel, which confirms the Jordanian King’s rights title as Custodian of the Holy Places in East Jerusalem.
Relations between Sunni Muslims and Christians in Jordan are generally peaceful. The Christian community has praised Jordan’s royal family for fostering a spirit of tolerance. The Catholic Church is present with parishes and institutions such as Caritas Jordan. The country has also welcomed Christian and Hindu migrant workers, mainly from Asia, temporarily living and working in the country.
According to Article 2 of the Jordanian constitution[1] of 1952, “Islam is the religion of the State”. Article 6 declares that: “Jordanians shall be equal before the law with no discrimination between them in rights and duties even if they differ in race, language or religion.” Article 14 obliges the State to “safeguard the free exercise of the rites of religions and creeds in accordance with the customs observed in the Kingdom, if such is not inconsistent with public order or morality.” Under Article 28e, it is “a condition for the person who shall ascend the Throne to be a Muslim, […] and of Muslim parents”.
Article 99 establishes civil, religious, and special courts. Article 104 divides religious courts into Shari‘a courts and the tribunals of other religious communities. All matters related to the personal status of Muslims are regulated by Shari‘a (Islamic law). Christians are subject to their own ecclesiastical courts. Civil marriage does not exist. A Muslim woman cannot marry a Christian man. If a Christian woman converts to Islam, her Christian husband must convert too if they want to remain married; otherwise, they are automatically divorced.
The constitution and other relevant laws do not explicitly ban Muslims from converting to another faith, and there are no penalties under civil law for doing so. Nonetheless, by giving primacy to Shari‘a, which prohibits Muslims from converting to another religion, the government effectively prohibits both conversion from Islam and proselytising Muslims by members of other religions. According to Islamic law, there are consequences for Muslims when they adopt a religion other than Islam. For instance, if someone is convicted of apostasy the Islamic courts adjudicating matters of personal status have the power to void the person’s marriage and deny their right to inherit from their spouse and Muslim relatives unless there is a will which states otherwise.[2]
Jordan explicitly criminalises blasphemy. Article 273 of Jordan’s Penal Code of 1960 states that any individual who insults any of the prophets is liable for a term of imprisonment of one to three years.[3]
Christians have nine seats in Jordan’s Parliament and have access to higher office in the Jordanian government and armed forces.[4]
The 2014 Law for Councils of Christian Denominations officially recognises 11 Christian denominations.[5] They are the Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Greek Catholic (Melkite), Armenian Orthodox, Maronite Catholic, Assyrian, Coptic, Anglican, Lutheran, Seventh-day Adventist and United Pentecostal Churches. Some Churches were recognised in 2018 as “associations”, namely the Free Evangelical Church, the Church of the Nazarene, the Assemblies of God, the Christian and Missionary Alliance, and the Baptist Church. Jehovah’s Witnesses are one of the still unrecognised denominations, but some of such groups have been able to practise their faith, manage schools, and operate health facilities without hindrance.[6] Also the Bahá’í religion is not officially recognised. While Bahá’í members can practise their faith, they face many legal challenges when it comes to personal status affairs.[7]
Incidents and developments
In January 2023, Pope Francis named Archbishop Giovanni Pietro Dal Toso as the new Apostolic Nuncio to Jordan.[8]
In June 2023, members of an Israeli delegation were denied entry into Jordan, after Jordanian border guards prevented those wearing Jewish garb from entering the country. Allegedly Jordanian border officials ordered the delegation members to lift up their shirts, so that the guards could see if they were wearing any religious Jewish garments underneath. One participant told Israel Hayom that a Jordanian border guard took his kippah and threw it in the bin.[9]
In July 2023, the Israeli Foreign Minister, Eli Cohen, sent an official démarche to Jordan in protest of the kingdom's treatment of religious Jewish tourists. The letter was sent after the detention of 150 Haredi Jews for 48 hours by Jordanian border police at the southern crossing in Eilat. The Haredi Jews said that the Jordanian security officials insisted that they cut their traditional sidelocks. The official reason cited by the guards was that it was safer for tourists not to be visibly Jewish while travelling. In his letter, Cohen said that while Israel appreciated the Jordanian desire to ensure the Israelis' security, it was inconceivable that this would result in having them not enter Jordan or forcing them to dispose of Jewish artifacts.[10]
In May 2023, the Councils of Christian Denominations (CCD) in Jordan approved a draft Law of Wills and Inheritances for Christians, which grants equal inheritance rights for men and women. “This is an important achievement since we have been working on ensuring just rights for Christian women since the end of 2018,” said Christine Faddoul, the first ever female judge at the Orthodox Church's Court of Appeals in Jordan.[11]
In May 2023, the Palestinian journalist Ghassan Mustafa Al-Shami wrote an article for the semi-independent Jordanian daily Al-Dustour, in which he described “the Zionist Jews” as “the descendants of apes and pigs,” “devil worshippers,” and “the most twisted and impure creatures on the face of the earth.”[12]
In June 2023, the Jordanian press reported that the country’s security forces had thwarted an ISIS attack on Shi‘a Muslims. According to the report the arrested individual, after having sworn allegiance to ISIS, was planning to target and kill Shi‘a who go to the shrine of Jafar al-Tayyar near Karak in southern Jordan. After being charged with threatening to carry out terrorist attacks and promoting the idea of a terrorist group he was sentenced to five years of labour.[13] The term was later reduced to four.[14]
In September 2023, the Roman Catholic Mariusif Church in Safut was subjected to an attack of vandalism and the demolition of the church's outer wall, local media reported. The attack was the second act of vandalism in that year against the same church.[15]
In November 2023, an individual attacked and vandalised property in the monastery and school of the Latin Patriarchate in south Zarqa. According to press there were no significant injuries and damage from the fire was limited to the properties themselves. After the arsonist’s arrest it was revealed that he suffered from mental illness, and he was transferred to an institution.[16]
In November 2023, Queen Rania of Jordan said in an interview with CNN, that supporting the protection of Palestinian lives does not equal being antisemitic or pro-terrorism. “I want to absolutely and wholeheartedly condemn antisemitism and Islamophobia,” Jordan’s Queen was quoted saying.[17]
In December 2023, an unspecified Christian leader in Madaba said a group of youths had thrown stones at his church.[18]
In February 2024, Prince Ghazi Ibn Muhammad, senior adviser to the King for religious and cultural affairs and personal envoy, inaugurated the Three Hierarchs Greek Orthodox Church in Debeen, Jerash Governorate.[19]
In May 2024, Pope Francis received King Abdullah II in the Vatican.[20]
In June 2024, the new office of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) was inaugurated in Amman. The inauguration took place under the patronage of Prince Ghazi Ibn Muhammad.[21]
In September 2024, the Islamic Action Front, the Jordanian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, tripled its representation in the kingdom’s parliamentary elections. With 31 out of 138 seats the Islamist party became the biggest party in Parliament and gained the highest percentage of seats for 22 years. [22]
In October 2024, Israeli border troops killed two armed men who had crossed into Israel from Jordan and wounded two soldiers in an exchange of fire. The assailants were linked to the Muslim Brotherhood. They were “members of the group and always participated in events in solidarity with Gaza and in support of the resistance,” a Muslim Brotherhood spokesman told AFP.[23] In September, a gunman from Jordan killed three Israeli civilians at the Allenby Bridge border crossing in the occupied West Bank before Israeli security forces killed him.[24]
In October 2024, an unknown visitor threatened a Christian bookshop in Amman. The individual confronted a volunteer serving in the bookshop threatening to use a bomb to blow up the bookshop. The authorities were informed.[25]
In December 2024, King Abdullah II received Christian and Muslim religious leaders from Jerusalem and Jordan in Amman. The King stressed that Jordan would continue to undertake its historic role in safeguarding Muslim and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, under the Hashemite custodianship.[26]
In January 2025, a new Roman Catholic church at Bethany Beyond the Jordan, the site of Christ’s baptism, was consecrated on land donated earlier by King Abdullah. The new church is amongst the biggest in the region. The ceremony was attended by Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad as envoy of King Abdullah. In an interview on the eve of the inauguration of the new Baptism Church, Archbishop Giovanni Pietro Dal Toso, the Apostolic Nuncio to Jordan, praised the government's efforts to promote the Christian presence in the territory.[27] Earlier King Abdullah received Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin who presided over the consecration of the new church. Cardinal Parolin thanked the King for his support for the Christian community in Jordan.[28]
In February 2025, Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa praised Jordan’s efforts in supporting religious tourism in Jordan, stressing that Jordan represents a model of common living and hospitality.[29] In February 2025, Jordanian Queen Rania, accompanied by Italian First Lady Laura Mattarella, visited the “Jordan: Dawn of Christianity” exhibition in Rome. The Queen called on Europeans to visit Jordan.[30]
In February 2025, Iyad Twal was ordained as Auxiliary Bishop of Jerusalem at the Church of the Baptism of Our Lord Jesus Christ at the Baptism Site in Jordan. Bishop Twal had earlier been appointed as Latin Patriarchal Vicar in Jordan by the Pope.[31]
Prospects for freedom of religion
As Islam is the State religion, Jordan does not have comprehensive religious freedom. However, members of recognised non-Muslim religious communities enjoy extensive freedom of worship. Members of non-recognised religious communities such as the Bahá'í face a variety of legal difficulties. The social pressure on apostates from Islam is also high. The coexistence of Christians with the conservative Islamic-majority society is generally good. The royal family in particular is actively trying to ensure a good and peaceful coexistence between Muslims and Christians.
Nevertheless, anti-Christian attacks have continued. In this context, the emergence of a branch of the Muslim Brotherhood in the 2024 parliamentary elections is cause for concern. This development has been largely driven by the renewed conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. The royal family, which remains committed to the peace treaty with Israel, is facing mounting pressure. Overall, the situation of religious freedom during the period under review remained unchanged. Although freedom of worship for most Jordanians is guaranteed within known limits, there are no indications for a substantial improvement towards full religious liberty.
Jordan