The Byzantine Eastern Church celebrates the feast of Saint Elijah (Mar Elias) every year on July 20. Many monasteries and churches bearing the name of this great prophet have been built in Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. Perhaps the most important is the Monastery of Mar Elias in Maarat Saydnaya, which contains the cave where the living prophet Elijah took refuge to escape the persecution of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel; the Bible records that he fled to “the wilderness of Damascus” (1 Kings 19:15). Elijah is one of the prophets of Israel mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, in the Book of Kings, where he appears during the reign of King Ahab. The New Testament mentions him at the Transfiguration of Christ, and it is believed that he will come before Christ’s Second Coming.
In the Hebrew text of the Old Testament he is called “Eliyahu”, which means “the Lord is my God”. The Bible also calls him “the Tishbite”, after Tishbe in the land of Gilead.
