Saint John of the Cross, Priest and Doctor of the Church Yrs 1 and 2 2024
Saints Homilies • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 9 viewsGod will surely bring justice, but before that he sends an Elijah to bring repentance and mercy. St John of the Cross was the Elijah of his day. But Elijahs are only partially successful, for all will not repent and Elijahs are persecuted. even by the leaders of God’s people. So remember that Elijahs have come and will come, for God does not want to bring strict justice but repentance and mercy, but despite their wonders they will often not be recognized. Our call is to keep our eyes open and listen to the Elijahs so that we are among the followers of such men and women and not among those whom God reluctantly judges.
Notes
Transcript
Title
Title
Elijah Must Come First
Outline
Outline
One sees evil in the world and wonders if God will suddenly judge?
One sees evil in the world and wonders if God will suddenly judge?
Will not God bring justice? Will he not judge the materialism of the USA and/or the violence of Russia and/or the viciousness on all sides in the Middle East and so on?
No, says our texts, Elijah will come first, but they may not recognize him. And in a number of ways St Joh of the Cross was the Elijah of his day, along with St Teresa of Jesus.
Elijah will come first, but he will be only partially successful
Elijah will come first, but he will be only partially successful
God does not want to bring strict justice, so he sends Elijahs first to bring repentance and mercy.
Elijah did call for famine, he did contest with the prophets and priests of Ba’al, he did call down fire a number of times (e.g. 2 Kgs ch 1 verse 10), and some surely did return to YHWH, but close to the end of his life he thought he alone was left as a YHWH server and had to be told there were 7000 others.
Again, remember that the Carmelite renewal did not cover 100% of the Carmelites, let alone all Catholics.
Elijah will come, but he was persecuted
Elijah will come, but he was persecuted
Jesus’ disciples think they have missed Elijah since they have seen the transfiguration. Jesus tells them, no you saw him, you followed him, and yet he languished in prison and was eventually beheaded. Nor were the a significant portion of the religious leaders unhappy at that result, for they did not follow him.
Likewise says Jesus, the one whom Elijah announced, the Son of Man, will “suffer at their hands,” the hands of the leaders of the Jews. Not all of them, but the majority.
Of course, we know that Carmelites imprisoned and tortured St John of the Cross, and that he was investigated by the Inquisition. He did not receive a universally warm welcome in the Church in his day.
So, Sisters, know that Elijahs will come and have come
So, Sisters, know that Elijahs will come and have come
They will be men and women of wonder, like St John of the Cross, “the greatest poet of the Spanish language,” whose spirituality we wonder at now. They may also announce God’s judgment.
They will bring about renewal and reformation in the Church and even significant evangelism, but it will not be universal and not all will recognize it for what it is.
And they will in their age often be unrecognized, rejected, and persecuted even by Church leaders, even as they prepare the way for Jesus.
Our call is to keep our eyes open, to listen to the Elijahs including St John of the Cross, and make sure we are among their followers and not among those whom God reluctantly judges.
