Today, we celebrate St Ephrem. Born in Mesopotamia in the year 306, Ephrem was baptized as a young man and became well-known in his community as a teacher. When his community taken over by the Persians, with the Christians losing control, he and many other Christians fled to another city, Edessa, where he brought great acclaim to the biblical school there and where he was ordained as a deacon. In the essays, poems, and hymns that he wrote, he showed great holiness and embodied orthodox doctrine, combating the heresies of his day. As a reflection of his simple humble austere faith, Ephrem spent his last days living in a cave outside of the city of Edessa. But even in the midst of living as a hermit, he left his cave to help victims of a terrible famine. He died in 373 AD. Ephrem was named as a Doctor of the Church by Pope Francis at the beginning of his papacy.
Ahab was the king of the northern kingdom in Ancient Israel. He and his people had strayed very far from their faith in God, even worshipping false idols. The prophet Elijah was raised up by God in order to confront King Ahab and to speak the truth as a spokesperson for God. As a part of this prophetic undertaking, God sent Elijah on a journey, providing for all of Elijah’s needs. Ravens even bring Elijah food out in the wilderness The reading from 1 Kings today tells how God sends Elijah to a poor widow and her son who were on the brink of starvation themselves. Yet, through Elijah, God provided the miracle of producing an endless supply of food from a small quantity of flour found in a jar to keep all of them alive. God can work miracles in our lives. We can help God enact those miracles through our own acts of mercy and love.
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