Introducing St. Elijah

We begin with an exercise in what is called lectio continua (meaning “continuous reading”). It is a typical way of reading the scriptures with a monastic mind and heart. It takes commitment and a patience which is grounded in obedience. I keep going to the text even if I do not want to, even if I don’t like what it has to say because it challenges or find that it is not particularly inspiring. It is an intentional choice which helps to settle thoughts on one passage over a long period of time, allowing for a more profound experience of enrichment in the faithful reading of the Sacred Scriptures. Instead of reading short passages from different parts of the Bible in a haphazard manner, a particular book is chosen which is then read from start to finish.

Our focus now will zero in on what is called the Cycle of Elijah in the books of Kings (1 Kgs 17 – 2 Kgs 2). It is not a whole book from the Bible but it is a significant portion of the narrative in the two books of Kings. In fact, it is at the heart of the narrative. There is a reason for that: Elijah and Elisha appear as charismatic leaders who will guide Israel in the vacuum of responsible leadership. In this and following articles, we will enter into the exciting story of Elijah’s ministry as a prophet in the northern kingdom of Israel. I suggest that you read the whole story for yourself so that you will get the most out of these reflections.

We are not choosing these passages at random. Elijah is the spiritual father and leader of Carmelites. For centuries, his story has provided inspiration for all who number themselves among the sons of the prophets, that is every Carmelite. In praying with Elijah, we hope to receive some portion of his spirit in our own service of the Lord God.

The narrative in 1 Kings 17 commences with Elijah’s sudden appearance before king Ahab… His presence startles us! Pause and let the experience of the surprise wash over your consciousness. Where did he come from and who is this mysterious figure who boldly confronts the king of Israel without any apparent provocation?

1 Kings 17,1 narrates only the details of his personal name and origins. He is “Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead.” The suddenness of the prophet’s appearance gives the impression that this is a peculiar kind of intervention – a divine intervention, God acting directly in the history of his people through the instrumentality of his prophet. This is God reaching out to correct… to chastise and punish the sin of his straying children, but the Lord is also reaching out to heal, lift up and strengthen. God is a Father and a physician.

Standing before Elijah in the place of Ahab, I ask myself how do I feel knowing that God can act so directly in my own life? Maybe, I didn’t know that he could, or would want to act, so immediately in my own life. On the one hand, the interruption could be annoying but on the other hand it is a deeply reassuring reality to know that God cares enough to approach me in love, to confront my sinfulness and call me back to himself. Now, that is the security of true love! Having this kind of God and Father, I know that I am safe! My heart rests in this truth for a moment…

Prophets are not usually our favorite people in the world. They challenge us and call us to reform. Who are the prophets in my life? A family member, a friend, someone in the workplace, a complete stranger? Maybe, the prophet was a priest who said something in a good confession that completely changed my way of thinking. I pray, “help me God to receive your messengers of grace when they come.”

Elijah from the Hebrew means: “My God is the Lord.” In his own person and by the name that the prophet bears, Elijah makes a statement before Ahab and the kingdom of Israel. Elijah himself is God’s prophetic utterance – God’s own response to his people. God sends Elijah to tell the king and Israel that the Lord is their God. The prophet is sent to bring about a conversion, a change of mind and heart. God, Father to “his firstborn son” (Ex 4, 22), must touch the hearts of all his sons and daughters, turning them to him. He will do so through Elijah who “arose like a fire,” and whose “word burned like a torch!” (Sir 48, 1).

Let’s review for a moment the nature of an intervention. An intervention is “the act or an instance of intervening; such as: the act of interfering with the outcome or course especially of a condition or process (as to prevent harm or improve functioning); the interference of a country in the affairs of another country for the purpose of compelling it to do or forbear doing certain acts; and finally an occurrence in which a person with a problem (such as a drug addiction) is confronted by a group (as of friends or family members) whose purpose is to compel the person to acknowledge and deal with the problem.” (Intervention, Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary).

God, in sending Elijah to Ahab, is doing all of the above. Ahab, by marrying a foreign queen from a pagan nation, has allowed the people to stray into idolatry by his example. It is worth noting that in the history of God’s people, the way that the king prays is the way that the people will pray. If the king is a faithful king, his people will remain faithful. If the king is unfaithful, then the whole nation is likely to break covenant with the Lord.

God is intervening in the process of secularization consequent of Israel’s idolatrous behavior – behavior, which in the end, will lead to exile. God does not want his people to go down that path of self-destruction, of annihilation. God is interfering in the politics of his people. They are supposed to be a nation peculiarly his own – a kingdom of priests. Elijah will eventually have to confront and deal with the prophets of Baal who enjoy favor in the royal court and eat at the table of queen Jezebel, the king’s wife. Ahab, in short, has problems and God wants him to deal with them. Elijah is cutting Ahab off at the pass…

Why Elijah? A man from Tishbe? Where is Tishbe in Gilead anyway? (It might help to look at a map at this point.) Who is Elijah but an apparent nobody? The logic in the choice of Elijah seems to display God’s perennial wisdom in choosing the foolish and what is weak to shame the wise and those who consider themselves strong. The apostle Paul explains:

“For consider your call, brethren; not many of you were wise according to the flesh, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth; but God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong, God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no flesh might boast in the presence of God.”

                                                                                                                                                                                                         – 1 Cor 1, 26 – 30

We now come full circle. Elijah’s name means: “My God is the Lord”. A prophet from an obscure region of Israel will bring the powers that be in the northern kingdom to a standstill. No one will be able to boast in the presence of God. Elijah will prove forcefully in the events to now unfold in his ministry that the Lord, he is God! A God in whose presence all Israel stands. The text moves me to stand and to quietly acknowledge the presence of God. I resolve to carry this reverence of mind and heart with me as I move into the business of the day.

Like Elijah we must be prophets in our own time. Today, I am going to remind myself of this need to witness by repeating continually in my heart the words “My God is the Lord”. Today consider your call – a call to proclaim Jesus as the Lord of your life! He is God!