God is Faithful to God's Promises

Homily for Wednesday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

In order to fully appreciate the story we hear in the first reading today, we have to look back to the very beginning of chapter 17 in which we heard Elijah proclaim to Ahab that the Lord was going to bring about a drought over Israel. The drought lasted for three years before the Lord relented and brought rain to Israel. The story we hear today is a direct confrontation between Elijah and the prophets of Baal. This confrontation is really the result of the drought. Baal, who seemed such an attraction to the Israelites, was supposed to be the god which controlled such natural events as droughts, storms, and the fertility of the earth. Consequently, Elijah’s action was a defiant challenge to their faith in this pagan god.

Ordinarily, the Scriptures teach us not to test God. However, we can forgive Elijah for what can only be called an experiment. He is confident that the Lord will come to his aid and so he sets up this confrontation. The odds are stacked against him – 450 to 1 – even worse odds than the winning horse of the Kentucky Derby this year. It is one of the most dramatic moments in all of the stories of Elijah. Like all of the other Elijah stories, it reminds us of the faithfulness of God’s promises. Just as in the story of the widow of Zarephath that we heard yesterday, God delivers on his promise.

God’s faithfulness and closeness, God’s concern for us is something we can and must hold onto in our daily lives. Though no immediate excitement or miracle is promised, the Lord does say, “whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” In other words, we are to mirror God’s faithfulness through our faithful obedience to the commandments.

Our prayer at this Eucharist is the prayer for the gift of faithfulness and perseverance. At the breakfast table this morning, I learned of that faithfulness and perseverance through the example of Sr. Rose Marie. The Friars of Sacred Heart province also lost a brother yesterday, Brother Pauli Johnson. Together now they enjoy the fruits of their lives of faithfulness and perseverance.