THE 25 STOPS OF JESUS AND THE HOLY FAMILY IN THEIR FLIGHT TO EGYPT

 On December the 25th Christmas around the world commemorates the events surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ and His early years as the Holy Family's flight into Egypt.    

The story of Mary, Joseph and infant Jesus fleeing to Egypt to escape from King Herod's Massacre of the Innocents as recounted in the Gospel of Matthew as well as the New Testament apocrypha. 

For the first time the traveller to Egypt can follow what is supposed to be the flight of the Holy Family in this foreign land thanks to the completion of the long-anticipated project of Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. 

The project which connects 25 locations connected to the Holy Family's through the country had been d0 developped since 2003 and launched in 2022 when the first trails of the site were open to the public. 

According to the Gospel of Matthew, when the Magi came in search of  Jesus they went to Herod the Great in Jerousalem to ask and find the new-born King of the Jews. 

Herod became paranoid that the child could threaten his throne, and sought to kill him, but he didn't know where the child was and he ordered the execution of all male childern two years old and younger.within the visinity of Bethlehem.

An angel then appeared to Joseph in a dream and warned him to take Jesus and his Mother to Egypt outside the dominion of King Herod.

Although the authenticity of the events are often disputed, and cannot be confirmed, the assumed flight of the Holy Family survived in the collective memory through the Armenian and Coptic Church tradition.  

The journey of Joseph, Mary and infant Jesus across Egypt is believed to have started through nothern Sinai until reaching Farama,  Churches and Monasteries were built on the landnark, where legend has it that the Holy Family stayed in passing through the Delta of the Nile and continued across Upper Egypt/ 

Well blessed by Jesus, a footprint of the Holy Infant and a granite through used by the Virgin Mary are some  of the most significant landmarks along the trail. 

The 3.500 kilometres journey of the Holy Family from Asuyat to Sinai connects their 25 stations mentioned in the Armenian and Coptic Christian tradition.