In the Byzantine period, it was customary to build chapels to St. Elijah in mountainous places, presumably so he could aid those who fared in those places by his prayers. In old Rus, his help was sought both in droughts and in dangerous storms. In the present day, it is not uncommon for priests to bless vehicles on St. Elijah’s feast, since he is famed for riding in a chariot of fire. But these are no mere quaint superstitions: St. Elijah was taken up and seen no more, but he has not abandoned the world. One day he will return, and pass through death as we all must do, bearing witness to God as revealed to John, but in the meanwhile, he remains ready to help the people of God who sojourn amid the perils, tempests, and turns of this life.
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