How the Fatima Miracle Connects to Elijah on Mt. Carmel

And what that can tell us today -
 

Fatima and the Brown Scapular

 

How does the Brown Scapular connect to Fatima? 

 

The answer seems easy at first. During the last apparition, which occurred on October 13th, 1917, Mary held a Brown Scapular and appeared as Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. During the apparition, she told Lucia that she wanted everyone to wear the Brown Scapular as a sign of devotion to her Immaculate Heart. 

 

We talk about that a lot at the Scapular Apostolate because it’s one of our main motivations for spreading the Brown Scapular devotion. Our Lady has said that she wants everyone to wear the scapular - so we want to do everything we can to make that happen. 

 

But how else is the Brown Scapular connected to Fatima?

 

What can the miracle at Fatima tell us about the Brown Scapular? 

 

More importantly, why does that matter to you?

 

Elijah and the Great Fire

 

In the Book of Kings, Israel was punished with a great drought because of its idolatry. When Israel cried out for mercy, the prophet Elijah held a contest with the prophets of Ba’al on Mt. Carmel.

 

The contest was about whose God was true - the God of Israel or Ba’al? 

 

After building an altar, Elijah created a moat around the altar and filled it with water. He also drenched the altar with water before offering a sacrifice to God. Of course God responded to Elijah’s sacrifice instead of the prophets of Ba’al, and God sent a great fire on Carmel to consume Elijah’s sacrifice before later sending a great rain to end the drought. 

 

That’s why Elijah drenched the altar. That’s why he built the moat. To prove that the altar and his sacrifice could only be consumed by a fire sent from God. 

 

There are more details to the Elijah story which you can read about here, but there are a few details that are relevant to the Fatima story. 

 

God chastised Israel for its idolatry. God performed a miracle in the form of a great fire from above. This great fire was proven to be from God because it dried up the water that had been poured out. God then followed this with a great act of mercy (and a prophecy of greater mercy).

 

The Miracle of the Sun

 

What happened at Fatima? Mary had promised a great miracle before the last apparition. Over 100,000 people had gathered to witness the miracle that Our Lady would perform. The entire area was soaked after hours of rainfall. And what did Our Lady perform?

 

The sun appeared to dance in the sky. Eyewitnesses described it as a ball of flame that appeared to fall towards the earth. The people cowed in fear as the sun danced in the sky, and when the miracle had finished, an image of Mary as Our Lady of Mt. Carmel appeared in the sky. 

 

Most notably, the ground that had been soaked from hours of rainfall was now perfectly dry. 

 

Lest anyone should doubt, Our Lord provided a lasting proof that the miracle was, in fact, real. And few people did doubt. The Miracle of the Sun is one of the greatest recorded miracles ever with thousands upon thousands of eyewitnesses, and it’s even been attested to by those who question the apparitions as a whole. 

 

What that means is that even those opposed to the message admit that it occurred. 

 

Like the story of Elijah on Mt. Carmel, much has been written about Fatima that you can (and should!) read about elsewhere. But for now, let’s focus on the similarities. 

 

God chastised his people. God performed a miracle in the form of a great fire from above. This was proven to be from God because it dried the wet, sodden earth. God then followed this with a great act of mercy.

 

God chastised his people

 

The miracle of Fatima happened in Portugal, which was deeply affected by atheism at the time. The Communist Revolution had just taken place in Russia. The world was suffering the effects of the Great War and would soon experience the Second World War which Our Lady predicted. 

 

Our Lady asked Catholics to do penance and pray the Rosary. Just as Elijah had asked the Israelites to choose God or Ba’al, Mary asked Catholics to choose God and return to faith in her Son as opposed to the errors that many were falling into at the time. 

 

God performed a miracle

 

Mary’s promised miracle happened with what would later be known as the miracle of the sun. She gave us a clear sign that God was acting and she promised an era of peace and the triumph of her Immaculate Heart. 

 

And she did this while appearing as Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and asking that everyone wear the Brown Scapular. 

 

Has Fatima been satisfied?

 

A lot of ink has been spilled over whether or not the consecration to Russia has taken place as Our Lady requested. This is an important question, but it's not one that we can answer here, nor is it something over which we have any control. 

 

But we do have control over Our Lady's other requests: that we do penance, say the daily Rosary, and wear the Brown Scapular. 

 

As Catholics, we're called to do penance for our sins. We're called to say the Rosary. And we're called to wear the Brown Scapular as part of our devotion to Our Lady. 

 

These are all things that we can do…today. These are all ways that we can work for the triumph of her Immaculate Heart and experience the victory that she has promised. 

 

Say the Rosary. Do penance. Wear the Brown Scapular. 

 

And if you can, help us spread the devotion to the Brown Scapular, so that more people can take advantage of Mary's promises and protection.