8TH JUNE 2022
Our today's reflection is based on our first reading 1Kings : 18:20-39
Elijah also known as Elia, Elias or Eliyyahu was a prophet of God who flourished in the 9thC BCE. He is known for saving the religion of Hahweh from being corrupted by the nature worship of Baal.
The name Elijah means "Yahweh is my God". Elijah prophesied during the reigns of Kings Ahab and Ahaziah. Ahab had married a Canaanite princess - Jezebel- who brought her native religion with her and built sanctuaries for Baal in the royal city of Samaria.She even imported Baal prophets in Israel and greatly influenced the people of Israel to turn away from their God and from their religion.
Elijah insisted on monotheism teaching that there is no reality except the God of Israel. He proclaimed a fraught as punishment for turning against God.
Our today's reading presents us with a contest between Elijah and the false prophets; indeed a contest between Yahweh and the Canaanite nature gods. At the end of it all, Elijah's God is proven to be the true God. Baal is just a false God.
We may laugh and condemn the Israelites as ungrateful and irreligious. But didn't we often find ourselves doubting God's love for us? At times we even doubt God's existence. A few times we are tempted to seek solutions to our problems elsewhere.... witchcraft and modern day prophets, prophetesses, oracles and seers who seem to have supernatural powers (some of which are not from God)!
Let us pray that we may have our total, immediate and unprecedented faith and trust in the Lord our God. He is the true and only God who answers to all our prayers and needs. He may not always answer us the way or the time we expect BUT He will always answer to our prayers. May He give us the gift of patience and endurance.
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