“To bear witness to the gospel of God’s grace”

Bishop Iyad Twal was ordained a bishop on February 28, 2025, at Al-Maghtas, the Baptism Site of Christ. The new bishop was born on July 15, 1973, in Amman, the capital of Jordan. He studied Philosophy and Theology at the Seminary of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem and was ordained a priest in Madaba on July 9, 1998. From 2016 to 2019, he served as Director of the schools of the Latin Patriarchate in Palestine and Israel, during which time the Order worked closely with him on peace education initiatives. In Jordan, Christians – Catholics (Melkite, Latin, and Armenian), Orthodox, and Protestants – make up about 4% of the approximately 11 million total population. Under the authority of the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, the Patriarchal Vicar for Jordan coordinates the pastoral care and activities of 32 parishes and oversees the management of the University of Madaba. In addition, he coordinates the operations of a wide network of Catholic schools at various levels, where both Christian and Muslim students study together.

Bishop Iyad Twal, how have you been experiencing the new mission entrusted to you by the late Pope? Do you have a plan?
I welcome this episcopal mission as a grace, with boundless trust in Divine Providence. My experience as a priest of the Latin Patriarchate is mostly tied to Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Beit Sahour, although I was born in Jordan. Following my appointment as Bishop and Patriarchal Vicar in Jordan, I have spent my time visiting parishes, which are far more numerous than in the rest of the Latin Patriarchate’s territory in either Palestine, Israel, or Cyprus. We have more than thirty parishes, and religious life is a very important reality. The relations with the Muslim community and with the State are excellent. My episcopal ordination, which took place in the Church of the Baptism of Christ, consecrated this year by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was a message of joy, and a testimony to a vibrant Catholic community.

What coat of arms and Episcopal motto have you chosen?
On my coat of arms, I wanted to depict the places that are central to my Christian life, which are located not far from the city of Madaba where I was born, and linked to two biblical figures who inspire my ministry in the service of truth: Mount Nebo, which recalls Moses and the Promised Land to which he led God’s people; and the Jordan River, where John the Baptist and his disciples performed baptisms; and finally, the fortress where the prophet was beheaded. My motto is a phrase taken from the Acts of the Apostles (20:24): “to bear witness to the gospel of God’s grace.”

How does the Church’s pastoral work in the Holy Land remain coherent, given the vastly different contexts from one country to another, with the tragedy in Palestine on one hand, the discrimination in Israel on the other, and the serenity of ecclesial life in Jordan? What unites the mission of the Latin Patriarchate operating across this vast biblical territory?
The Holy Places constitute the biblical, theological, and spiritual unity of the pastoral work of the Latin Patriarchate, as do the Arabic language and culture. Jordan is part of the Holy Land. Jordanian priests have served in Palestine and Israel for a long time, even before the Six-Day War in 1967. Jordan is a welcoming country, and the many descendants of Palestinian refugees, who are well integrated, maintain fraternal and friendly ties on both sides of the Jordan River.

What message would you like to address to the Members of the Order?
I would like to thank the Knights and Dames for their regular spiritual and material support, for their faithful friendship, which they express in the name of the universal Church. I invite them all to come on a pilgrimage to Jordan, to rekindle their mission at the roots of our Christian faith. In agreement with the Grand Master of the Order, I wish to encourage and support the establishment of a new Lieutenancy in Jordan, which we must create to gather the few Knights and Dames already present in the Country and to recruit many more.

Interview conducted in the Holy Land,
by François Vayne

(June 2025)