On October 13, when the crowds saw the ball of fire leave its orbit and race down towards them, their reaction was immediate. They didn't go into a subtle exegesis to convince themselves that this 'sign in the sky' was purely symbolic. Instead, they realized that this fire, if it approached only a second longer, would annihilate them. Just as the people of Israel had seen the fire from heaven race down over Elijah as its holocaust and consume him in the blink of an eye, these people fell on their knees and cried out: 'My God, I believe in you! ' And they asked for forgiveness, pity and mercy.
In their own way they were saying anew: 'It is Yahveh who is God! It is Yahveh who is God! ' (1 Kings 18: 39). Through their conversion and their supplication, they obtained that the chastisement be averted: the sun resumed its place in the sky. And they found, along with faith, the peace and the joy of being reconciled with God.
"The Virgin of Mount Carmel" by Joseph Lethielleux (after 'A Moment with Mary')
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