Oldest Christian church found, archeologists say

A team of archaeologists in Jordan claim to have discovered the oldest Christian church, which they believe was used by Christ's followers who fled Jerusalem after crucifixion.

Led by Dr. Abdul Qader al–Hassan, director of the Rihab Center for Archaeological Studies, the team had found a mosaic in church that described these Christians as “the 70 beloved by God and Divine”.

"We have evidence to believe this church sheltered the early Christians – the 70 disciples of Jesus Christ," al–Hassan told The Jordan Times.

The cave discovered beneath the St. George's Church, one of the world's oldest known churches, in the northern Jordanian city of Rihab, had pieces of pottery that date back to the third and seventh centuries, but more important, according to Mr. Hassan, was the unearthing of a circular area, believed to be the area where altar stands.

The Bishop Deputy of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, Archimandrite Nektarious, described the discovery as an "important milestone for Christians all around the world".

Jordan Times quoted him saying: "The only other cave in the world similar in shape and purpose is in Thessalonika, Greece."

In the cave there is also a tunnel that leads to a cistern that supplied water to the dwellers. Dr Al–Hassan says that excavation of the tunnel and the cistern may yield yet more evidence about the lives of these early Christians.

"From the tunnel to the cistern is very important. We want to clean it and make an excavation inside it. We found a very old inscription beside it and coins also, and crosses made from iron."

Meanwhile, critics have dubbed the claims as "ridiculous." Christian experts widely believe that organized churches didn’t exist until at least the third century A.D.

“It sounds rather anachronistic,” National Geographic quoted Biblical scholar Stephen Pfann, president of the University of the Holy Land in Jerusalem, as saying.