A Multiplicity of Conversions:
A Reflection on Elijah and Dorothy Day
First Presbyterian Church of Ark City (Kansas) – August 13th , 2023
Kings 19:9-18
I recently read a biography of Dorothy Day by D.L. Mayfield called Unruly Saint. In it, Mayfield tells of the life and work of this soon-to-be-canonized Catholic Saint.
Throughout her life, Dorothy Day was consistently committed to folks on the margins. As a child, she often wandered around and out of her neighborhood. And as she did, she made her way to the neighborhoods of people different than her. For example, she walked through Chicago’s meat packing district and noticed the lives of the laborers and recent immigrants of the city. Lives that were filled with much more weariness and anxiety than her own comfortable middle class life.
Given this proclivity of hers to notice those who others would rather not see, her commitment to the gospels’ commandment to care for the least of these, and her love of writing, it makes sense that Day later became journalist. And in her work, she wrote often about the lived experiences of everyday people and the harsh realities they were often faced with.
Eventually she joined together the threads of all her passions by starting a newspaper. She and her fellow co-laborer, wrote passionately about the gospels mandate to act with radical care, generosity, and loving-kindness. She shared the stories of individual lives and the collective struggles of the poor, of widows, orphans, immigrants, and workers. And with help from many others, she created Houses of Hospitality where all who were in need of shelter we welcomed, housed, and fed. And in all these things and more, she amplified the voices of her neighbors and was committed to their wellbeing and flourishing.
Given this, it makes sense that in a speech before the US Congress, Pope Francis referred to her, alongside with Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, as one of the greatest Americans who built a better future for this country.
So after reading the Elijah story for today, my mind directly went to her. And while Day, unlike Elijah, obviously isn’t an ancient Israelite prophet on the run from her enemies, she is somewhat similar to him. In fact, these two very different people do have several things in common.
But first, let’s recap where we are in the scriptures.
In this passage from 1 Kings, we meet Elijah as he’s on the run from his enemies—why people are chasing him and are set on killing him is a story for another sermon and another Sunday. Elijah eventually finds himself on Mount Horeb. And it’s here where the word of the Lord comes to him and asks, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
Surely shaking, Elijah tells God that he is the only prophet left in all of Israel and that he is hiding from those who seek to kill him.
Then God, as God often does, does something strange. Instead of comforting Elijah in this moment or giving him some sort of divine pep-talk, God tells Elijah to leave his hiding place. Which,if that were me, would be the last thing I would want to do if I were him. Despite that, God tells Elijah to go out of the cave he’s in and stand by the mountain because They, the Lord, are about to pass by.
And according to scripture this is what happens
There was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind, and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake, and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire, and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.
And God again asks Elijah, “What are you doing here?”
And again Elijah tells God that he is the only prophet left in all of Israel and that he is hiding from those who seek to kill him.
And again, God’s response to Elijah is “Go.” Go and do what I command.
TRANSITION: Now that we have a better sense of both Dorothy Day’s and Elijah’s lives, it might be easier to now see what these two people—from two drastically different times and places—have in common.
Some of the similarities between them include their intense passions for their calling and the bouts of deep loneliness they experienced at different points in their respective lives. But today I’ll just focus on one. Both Elijah and Day had lives of multiple conversions.
While hearing the earlier brief account of her life, it may seem like Day was certain in her faith and committed to the work from day one. At a glance it looks like she was an energizer bunny on a one-woman campaign who let nothing stand in her way. And that she kept the flames of that fire burning strong and bright until the day she died. And while that is somewhat true, it’s definitely not the whole story.
In Unruly Saint, Mayfield writes:
[Day] committed herself to what she understood as a flawed institution and to a life of service but that didn’t mean she was done converting herself or others. No, she had her whole life to keep trying, and failing, and trying again. To point out the evils in society and to say thanks to God for whatever bit of goodness she could find. She wanted to do both, all the time. She wanted to be fully who she was, without apology. And so she entered the Catholic Church, bringing her whole self with her—much to the chagrin of nearly everyone in her life.
I think the same could be said about Elijah. He committed himself to a life of service to God and to God’s people—every single, flawed one of them. And he, too, spent his whole life trying and failing and trying again. He wanted to point out the evils in society and give thanks to God whenever he could. He wanted to do both, all the time. Much to the chagrin of those he encountered.
If we reflect on Elijah’s experience on Mt Horeb through the lens of Dorothy Day, I think we could understand it as a conversion experience. While it may not seem like the typical conversion story we’re used to—like those we see in Act like the Ethiopian Eunuch or the Philippian Jailers—it is a conversion just the same. Even those most zealous prophets of God need another conversion every now and then.
In what we read today, Elijah has an experience with the divine and is given a new direction for his life and work. He is truly turned around like the Greek word for conversion, metanoia, implies. He sees God, himself, and his work in a new light—from a different angle. His recent experiences don’t cloud or negate his calling but add to it. They give more reason, more motivation, more passion for the work God has tasked him with.
What Dorothy Day realized—and what Elijah’s story implies—is that conversion isn’t just a onetime event. Instead, conversion is a lifelong process. In fact, both of their lives are a testimony to the fact that we are always converting to something. That we are in perpetual conversion.
Similarly, the multiplicity of conversions we experience in our lives don’t negate our past beliefs or actions. They’re not an indicator of failure. But instead, theyre a gift. Conversions aren’t like the shots we get when we’re babies where we get them once and we’re good to go for the rest of our lives. No, conversions happen—even to you cradle presbyterians--, and they happen again, and they happen again. And they happen becuase God doesn’t just call us once. God calls us continuously. And because we are called continuously, we are converted continuously.
Like a wave lapping against the shore of the ocean. We come back. We come back. We come back. And when we do we bring different things—different experiences, different points of view, different expectations—with us. Just like a wave might bring in a boat that has been out at sea all day. Or a seashell from an entirely different coast. Or a piece of sea glass that has tumbled around the churning currents of the ocean for days on end. Each time we bring something new, something we didn’t have before.
And in the same way waves can look different from one another, so can our conversions. It may look like a transcendent experience in nature that reminds you of the great beauty of Creation and the tenderness of God . It could be reading a beautifully written novel or poem that opens your eyes to new ways of being in the world. It may even just look like a reunion you have with a friend who has known the many versions of you over the years and has loved each one along the way. Whatever it may be, whatever it may look like, we are continually called and continually converted.
As we are called to worship every Sunday, as we are called remember our baptism, as we are called to take the eucharist, as we are called to God and as we are called to one another, we are also called to conversion. To be continually renewed. To be drawn deeper into who we are. And to be drawn closer to the one who created it all.
So like Dorothy Day, like Elijah, let us be committed to each other and to a life of service. And may we spend our whole lives trying, and failing, and trying again. May we point out the evils in society and give thanks to God for whatever bit of goodness we can find. May we do both, and may we do both all the time.
Amen.