Mount Carmel, Vineyard of God – Podcast

In this podcast, an excerpt from a radio interview, Dr. Italy discusses Mount Carmel, Elijah, and why Mary is known by the title Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

In the Northwestern part of what is now the state of Israel is a long ridge known as Mount Carmel.  This twenty four mile ridge separates the interior of the Holy Land from the Mediterranean sea.  A magnificent view of the Mediterranean is afforded by several places along the top of the ridge, especially from the northwestern tip or head of the ridge.  In this podcast, Dr. Italy, who has visited this spot thirty times in the last twenty years, describes the beauty of this garden spot in the Holy Land.

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In this spot, we find a beautiful church dedicated to Mary, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the Star of the Sea (Stella Maris).  It is built over the cave of Elijah, where he prayed fervently for an end to an almost three year drought that was punishment for Israel’s idolatrous devotion to Ba’al.  On the summit of Mt. Carmel, Elijah proved to the Israelites that the prophets of Ba’al were false prophets, and that Yahweh, the Lord, was truly God (1 Kings 18)..  After doing away with the false prophets, Elijah retired to his cave to pray for rain.  His servant, looking out over the Mediterranean from this marvelous view point, saw the clouds beginning to form in the West.

Carmel

Image by Dr. Italy. All rights reserved.

Carmel

Image by Dr. Italy. All rights reserved.

This magnificent, unforgettable spot is one of the last stops in every Holy Land pilgrimage.  It is also one of the places where Jesus, the Way, the Truth and the Life Video series was filmed, with spectacular shots of the views of the Mediterranean from the summit of Mt. Carmel.

Carmel

Image by Dr. Italy. All rights reserved.

Carmel

Image by Dr. Italy. All rights reserved.

Anyone wanting to travel to Nazareth from the coastal road would have to traverse Mt. Carmel by means of one of the three mountain passes that cut Mount Carmel.  The Holy family, returning from exile in Egypt, would have crossed one of these passes.  Tradition has it that Mary and Joseph stopped and rested in the shadow of the mountain, and ever since Mary has been known as Our Lady of Mount Carmel.  Of course, Carmel, literally meaning vineyard, orchard or garden of God, also suggests for that reason an identification with Mary, who was the true vineyard of God in which Jesus, the true vine (John 15) was planted.

Dr. Italy appears weekly on the Sonrise Morning show, a production of Sacred Heart Radio.  You can listen to this show broadcast live Monday through Friday via the EWTN Global Catholic Radio, a network of over 120 local affiliate stations in the US.  You can find podcasts from the Sonrise Morning on both Sacred Heart radio site and www.crossroadsinitiative.com.

To learn more abnout pilgrimage to the Holy Land with Dr. D’Ambrosio, visit the PILGRIMAGE SECTION of the Crossroads Initiative Website.

To subscribe to Dr. Italy’s weekly podcast and never miss an episode, visit http://crossroadsinitiative.libsyn.com/ or visit Catholic Heritage with Dr Italy on Apple Podcast.

Banner/featured image by Sheikh Abreik. Public domain.

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