El-Muhraqa
Dear Friends,
When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, “Is it you, you troubler of Israel?”
And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel; but you have, and your father’s house because you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and followed the Baals. Now therefore send and gather all Israel to me at Mount Carmel, and the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”
So Ahab sent to all the sons of Israel, and gathered the prophets together at Mount Carmel. And Elijah came near to all the people, and said, “How long will you go limping with two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word. Then Elijah said to the people, “I, even I only, and left a prophet of the Lord; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men. Let two bulls be given to us, and let them choose one bull for themselves and cut in pieces and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it; and I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood, and put no fire to it. And you call on the name of your god and I will call on the name of the Lord; and the God who answers by fire, He is God.”
And all the people answered, “It is well spoken.”
Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire to it.” And they took the bull which was given them, and they prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they limped about the altar which they had made.
And at noon Elijah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is musing, or he has gone aside, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them. And as midday passed, they raved on and on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice; no one answered, no one heeded.
Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me”; and all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down; Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the Lord came, saying, “Israel shall be your name”; and with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed. And he put the wood in order, and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, “Fill four jars with water, and pour it on the burnt offering, and on the wood.” And he said, “Do it a second time”; and they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time”; and they did it a third time. And the Water ran round the altar, and filled the trench also with water.
And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel, and that I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that You, O Lord, are God, and that You have turned their hearts back.” Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, He is God; the Lord, He is God.”
And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape.” And they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and killed them there. ~1 Kings 18: 17–40
Why is this not a movie??? It has everything! Drama, tension, mocking people, a gruesome fight scene…
El-Muhraqa is Arabic for “it burns” or “holocaust.” As a side note, an Arab tried to teach me how to say “Muhraqa.” Apparently, there are three different levels of “h”s in Arabic going progressively deeper into your throat. There’s the regular English “h”, then the German “ch” type, and finally the “h” in “Muhraqa” which is the deepest in your throat (sadly, I can’t do or even hear it consistently).
Anyway, this place has always been associated with Elijah’s sacrifice but is currently a Carmelite monastery. The crusaders built a church on the site, and Muslims used to visit to light candles in honor of Elijah. For a long time, the church had the stones from the altar of Elijah’s sacrifice, but the stones disappeared sometime between 1830 and 1850. The crusader church was falling apart at that point, so in 1883, a new church was built with an altar of 12 stones to symbolize the ones lost. Then, about a century ago, the Carmelites obtained the property and have remained there ever since.
Apparently, every hill in the area except this one has a Roman or Byzantine period village. This indicates that El-Muhraqa has always been considered a sacred place. (All this information is from a pamphlet provided at the site).
El-Muhraqa commands a gorgeous view in all directions. From there, you can see the Mediterranean Sea, catch glimpses of the Jerusalem, and look into the Galili region. Or rather, all of this would have been possible if it had not been cloudy.
Well, Friends, I hope you are all happy and healthy! Israel is taking all sorts of precautions with the coronavirus. This is an adventure in itself, but not a very photogenic one since my ability to go places is becoming limited. I’ll keep you posted.
Pax and Salus!
DS
