Prayer to the Holy Elijah, the Glorious Prophet of God
Prayer to the Holy Elijah, the Glorious Prophet of God
O all-laudable and most wondrous Elijah, prophet of God, who in thy manner of life, which equaled that of the angels, didst shine forth upon the earth with flaming zeal for the Lord God Almighty, and yet more with most glorious signs and wonders; and then, in accordance with God's exceeding good will toward thee, wast supernaturally caught up to heaven in thy flesh on a fiery chariot, wast vouchsafed to converse on Tabor with the transfigured Savior of the world, and now dost ever abide in the mansions of paradise, and standest before the throne of the heavenly King! Hearken unto us, who are sinful and unprofitable, who at this hour stand before thy holy icon and earnestly have recourse to thy mediation. Entreat God, who loveth mankind, in our behalf, that He grant unto us the spirit of repentance and contrition for our sin and help us with His all-powerful grace to depart from ungodly ways and to prosper in every good work; that He strengthen us in the battle against our passions and lusts; that He plant in our hearts the spirit of humility and meekness, the spirit of brotherly love and innocence, the spirit of patience and chastity, the spirit of zeal for the glory of God and for the salvation of our neighbor. By thy supplications, O prophet, set at nought the evil ways of the world and, moreover, the pernicious and destructive spirit of this age, which afflicteth the Christian race with irreverence for the divine Orthodox Faith, for the goodly order of the Holy Church and for the commandments of the Lord, with disrespect for parents and the ruling authorities, and casteth the people down into the abyss of ungodliness, subversion and perdition. By thine intercession, O most wondrous prophet, turn thou the righteous wrath of God from us, and deliver all the cities and villages of our land from drought and famine, from fearsome tempests and earthquakes, from deadly plagues and pestilence, from the incursion of enemies and from evil strife. By thy supplications, O most glorious one, strengthen thou our civil authorities in the great and onerous task of governing the nation, and cause them to abound in every good work and undertaking that leadeth to the establishment of peace and justice in our land. Aid thou our military forces in battle against the foe. O prophet of God, beseech the Lord that He grant: to our pastors—holy zeal for God, heartfelt concern for the salvation of their flock, wisdom in teaching and correction, piety and strength amid temptations; to our judges—impartiality and detachment; to the oppressed—justice and sympathy; to all in authority—concern for the governed, and mercy and justice; to the governed—obedience to the authorities and ready fulfillment of their obligations: that living in this age in peace and piety, we may thus be vouchsafed to partake of the eternal blessings in the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to Whom is due honor and worship, with His unoriginate Father and the all-Holy Spirit, unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Prayer to the Holy Prophet Elijah in Time of Drought
O most glorious Elijah, great prophet of God, who, in thy great zeal for the glory of God, couldst not bear to look upon the idolatry and ungodliness of the children of Israel, who didst denounce the iniquitous king Ahab, and entreat the Lord by thy supplications to send down three years of famine upon the land of Israel for their chastisement, that, having cast aside their abominable idols and forsaken unrighteousness and iniquity, they might return to the one, true God and the fulfillment of His holy commandments; who, during the famine, didst most wondrously feed the widow of Zarephath and raise up her dead son through thy supplication; and after the appointed time of the famine had passed didst assemble on Mount Carmel the people of Israel who had fallen into apostasy and impiety, and who then by thine entreaty called down fire from heaven upon the sacrifice and by this wonder didst turn Israel again to the Lord, and didst put to shame and slay the shameful prophets of Baal, whereafter, by thy supplication, thou didst again open the heavens, didst ask that abundant rain fall upon the earth, and didst make glad the people of Israel. To thee, O most wondrous favorite of God, do we, the sinful and lowly, earnestly flee, tormented by drought and burning heat. We confess that we are unworthy of the mercy and beneficence of God, and truly deserve the fearsome threat of His wrath, tribulation and want, and every evil and disease. For we have not walked in the fear of God and in the ways of His commandments, but after the lusts of our depraved hearts, and have committed all manner of sins without number; our iniquities have gone over our heads, and we are not worthy to appear before the face of God or to look upon heaven. We confess that we too, like Israel of old, have forsaken the Lord our God, if not in faith, then in our transgressions; and though we do not worship Baal and other abominable idols, we serve our passions and lusts, ministering to the idol of gluttony and love of pleasure, the idol of avarice and of love of honor, the idol of pride and of vainglory, and we follow after alien practices and the pernicious spirit of this age which is opposed to God. We confess that for this cause the sky hath been shut up and hath become like brass, just as our hearts have been closed to mercy and true love for our neighbor; for which cause the ground hath become hard and been rendered barren, for we do not offer our Lord the fruit of good works; wherefore, there is neither rain nor dew, for we have neither tears of compunction nor the life-creating dew of the knowledge of God, and for this every herb and grass of the field hath withered, for within us every good feeling hath wasted away, for our mind hath been darkened with shameful thoughts and our hearts have been defiled by iniquitous lusts. We confess that we are unworthy to entreat even thee, O prophet of God. For thou, a man of passions like unto ours, didst become like an angel in thy manner of life, and like one of the bodiless ones wast thou caught up into heaven; and we, by our shameful thoughts and deeds, have made ourselves like dumb beasts and have rendered our souls carnal. Thou, by fasting and vigil, didst astonish angels and men; but we, giving ourselves over to incontinence and love of pleasure, have become like dumb animals. Thou, with surpassing zeal, wast ever aflame with the glory of God; but we are ashamed to confess His right worshipful name. Thou didst uproot impiety and evil customs; but we serve the spirit of this world, setting the ways of this world, which are opposed to God, above the commandments of God and the precepts of the holy Church. What sin and unrighteousness have we not committed, wretches that we are? We have exhausted the longsuffering of God with our iniquities. Wherefore, the Lord, the righteous Judge, hath been angered against us, and in His wrath hath punished us. Yet, knowing thy great boldness before the Lord, and trusting in thy love for the human race, we dare to beseech thee, O all-praised prophet: be thou merciful to us, the unworthy and unprofitable; entreat the munificent and all-compassionate God, that He be not utterly wroth with us, nor destroy us in our iniquities, but that He send down an abundant and gentle rain upon the dry and thirsty earth, that He grant it fertility and seasonable weather. Incline the King of heaven to mercy by thine active mediation, if not for the sake of us who are sinful and defiled, then for the sake of His chosen servants who have not bent the knee before the Baal of this world, for the sake of the innocent and foolish babes, for the sake of the dumb cattle and the birds of the sky that are suffering because of our transgressions and are wasting away through hunger, heat and thirst. By thine acceptable supplications in our behalf, ask of the Lord the spirit of repentance and heartfelt compunction, the spirit of meekness and abstinence, the spirit of the fear of God and piety, that thus turning from the ways of ungodliness to the straight path of virtue, we may walk in the light of the commandments of God and attain the blessings promised us, through the goodwill of God, the unoriginate Father, through the love for mankind of His only-begotten Son, and through the grace of the all-holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.