{"id":62748,"date":"2019-09-11T17:23:13","date_gmt":"2019-09-11T14:23:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=62748"},"modified":"2023-04-05T17:25:40","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T14:25:40","slug":"elijah-vs-prophets-of-baal-on-the-carmel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/elijah-vs-prophets-of-baal-on-the-carmel\/","title":{"rendered":"Elijah vs. Prophets Of Ba\u2019al On The Carmel"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[929,476,858],"acf":{"old_id":"62748","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":42746,"related_cahpter":"305","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"With a surprising cameo appearance...","content":"

I learned to walk on Mount Carmel, and right around where Elijah\u2019s statue is standing, waving his sword up high, is a favorite area.\u00a0 Elijah has always been associated with the mountain, so much so that one of its names is Jabal Mar Elyas, Mount Saint Elias, or Elijah. The place where the famous act is said to have taken place, is known today as <\/span>El-Muhraqa or Keren Carmel and sits off the winding road between the town of Yoqne\u2019am and the Druze village Dalyat El-Carmel at the very top of the mountain with a glorious view all around which is a must-see for tourists. El-Muhraqa means \u201cthe Sacrifice\u201d, and although there are no archeological findings to substantiate the story, in 1868, a monastery was built here to commemorate Elijah\u2019s miracle, described in Kings I, chapter 18.<\/span><\/p>\n

After three years without rain, Elijah invites 450 prophets of Baal, the Canaanite god of fertility and rain, to a challenge: whose god will be able to light a sacrifice by fire (18:19)? The Baal worshipers \u201ctook the bull that was given them; they prepared it, and invoked Baal by name from morning until noon, shouting, \u201cO Baal, answer us!\u201d But there was no sound, and none who responded\u2026\u201d (18:26). This went on with dancing around the altar, until by noon, Elijah mocked them saying, \u201cShout louder! After all, he is a god. But he may be in conversation, he may be detained, or he may be on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and will wake up\u201d (18:27).<\/span><\/p>\n

What happens next is what\u2019s so surprising: the Baal worshipers actually \u201cshout louder, and (even) gash themselves with knives and spears\u2026 (18:28). And the question is, why did they yell? Did they actually think that their god is asleep and they can wake him up? Rather, explains the midrash, they left someone under the altar to light the fire, and this person, indeed, feel asleep, or perhaps was bitten by a snake and died, \u201cfailing\u201d their plan. Who was that person?? Chi\u2019el Beit Ha\u2019eli, whom we met at the end of yesterday\u2019s chapter, when Ahab and Elijah went to visit him at his children\u2019s <\/span>shiv\u2019a<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Was Chi\u2019el one of Baal\u2019s followers? Not necessarily, but he was the greatest opposition to Elijah. Namely, it is more important to him to prove Joshua and later Elijah wrong than to save his children or his own life. This is a sort of scary fanaticism that is hard to bear. And yet, he is a fitting adversary to Elijah. Elijah too is a zealot. His view on the world is black and white: he is absolutely right and terribly wrong; he cannot find his place in the world. The Torah has a very cautious attitude towards zealots. They are like a strong spice: a tiny bit might be ok, but not too much. This is one reason to invite Elijah back to every Pesach seder and every bris so he can gain compassion and respect.<\/span><\/p>\n

Image: The statue of Elijah from the roof of the St. Elias Monastery, Keren Carmel (Muhraka) \/ he.wikipedia<\/span><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":62750,"id":62750,"title":"1kings18-muhraka","filename":"1kings18-muhraka.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/1kings18-muhraka.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/elijah-vs-prophets-of-baal-on-the-carmel\/1kings18-muhraka\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"1kings18-muhraka","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":62748,"date":"2019-09-11 14:23:02","modified":"2019-09-11 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