Prophet Elijah

No fixed feast day in the calendar

Prophet Elijah: the back of the card, with its short story, lesson and a QR code that opens it in the Catholic Information app. The full text is below.

Flip the card and scan the QR code on the back to open it in the app

Elijah, the prophet on fire with zeal, who defended the worship of the true God on Mount Carmel.

Who is he?

Elijah is one of the great prophets of Israel. He lived in the time of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel, when many people left God to worship the god Baal. The Book of Sirach says that “the prophet Elijah arose like a fire” (Sir 48:1).

Life story

He foretold a great drought. During those days, God told him to hide by a brook. “And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening” (1 Kgs 17:6). Then God sent him to a poor widow in Zarephath. She had only a little flour and a little oil left, but she still made bread for him first. All through the drought, her jar of flour did not run out and her jug of oil did not run dry (cf. 1 Kgs 17:8-16).

On Mount Carmel, he challenged the prophets of Baal: each side would prepare an offering, and the god who answered with fire would be the true God. The prophets of Baal shouted from morning until evening, but no one answered. Elijah simply prayed, and the LORD’s fire came down from heaven and burned up the offering. All the people fell on their faces and said: “The LORD is God!” (1 Kgs 18:39).

After that, chased by the queen, he fled, worn out, into the desert. An angel brought him bread and water, so that he had the strength to walk to Mount Horeb (cf. 1 Kgs 19:5-8). There, God was not in the wind, the earthquake or the fire, but after the fire came “a still small voice” (1 Kgs 19:12), and Elijah knew that God was passing by.

At the end of his life, “a chariot of fire and horses of fire” appeared, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind (2 Kgs 2:11).

Why does the Church honor him?

He spent his whole life defending the worship of the true God. The prophet Malachi announced that God would send Elijah “before the day of the LORD comes” (Mal 3:23), and Jesus told us that this came true in Saint John the Baptist (cf. Mt 11:14). When Jesus was transfigured, Elijah appeared and talked with him (cf. Mt 17:3). The Carmelite Order considers him its spiritual father and celebrates his feast on July 20.

A lesson for you

When friends invite you to do something wrong, bravely stand on God’s side, even when few people stand with you.
God often speaks to you in silence: each day, spend a few quiet minutes listening to him.
When you are tired and discouraged, remember that God sent an angel to bring bread to Elijah. God takes care of you too.

Identifying marks

A flaming sword: in the style of Carmelite statues, recalling the words of Sirach: he “arose like a fire, and his word burned like a torch” (Sir 48:1).
A raven: when he hid by the brook, God sent ravens to bring him bread and meat (cf. 1 Kgs 17:6).
A chariot of fire in the sky: he was taken up to heaven in a whirlwind, with a chariot and horses of fire (cf. 2 Kgs 2:11).
A hairy cloak and a leather belt: the Bible describes him: “He wore a hairy garment with a leather belt around his waist” (2 Kgs 1:8).
A scroll: the sign of a prophet, someone who speaks God’s Word.

The text on this page is the card in the Catholic Information app, word for word.