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Michael D. O'Brien
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Father Elijah: An Apocalypse Paperback – January 1, 1998

by Michael D. O'Brien (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 1,219 ratings
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Michael O'Brien presents a thrilling apocalyptic novel about the condition of the Roman Catholic Church at the end of time. It explores the state of the modern world, and the strengths and weaknesses of the contemporary religious scene, by taking his central character, Father Elijah Schafer, a Carmelite priest, on a secret mission for the Vatican which embroils him in a series of crises and subterfuges affecting the ultimate destiny of the Church.

Father Elijah is a convert from Judaism, a survivor of the Holocaust, a man once powerful in Israel. For twenty years he has been "buried in the dark night of Carmel" on the mountain of the prophet Elijah. The Pope and the Cardinal Secretary of State call him out of obscurity and give him a task of the highest sensitivity: to penetrate into the inner circles of a man whom they believe may be the Antichrist. Their purpose: to call the Man of Sin to repentance, and thus to postpone the great tribulation long enough to preach the Gospel to the whole world.

In this richly textured tale, Father Elijah crosses Europe and the Middle East, moves through the echelons of world power, meets saints and sinners, presidents, judges, mystics, embattled Catholic journalists, faithful priests and a conspiracy of traitors within the very House of God. This is an apocalypse in the old literary sense, but one that was written in the light of Christian revelation.

Previous page
  1. Book 4 of 6
    Children of the Last Days
  2. Print length
    597 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Ignatius Press
  5. Publication date
    January 1, 1998
  6. Dimensions
    5.25 x 1.5 x 8 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    0898706904
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0898706901
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"I've read thousands of books, and this is one of the great ones. I hope tens of thousands read it, and are shaken as I have been. It's a novel that grips one like a thriller -- indeed it is a thriller, but also something far deeper. There are love and friendship, interwoven with drama, but what it is essentially is faith, faith in the Christ." 
 Sheldon Vanauken, Author, A Severe Mercy

Father Elijah is that rare thing, a great novel which is also a testimony to orthodox Catholicism. But it is more even than this. Basing himself squarely on Scripture and human experience, O'Brien has produced a prophetic work and a manual of spiritual warfare. This compelling masterpiece will stretch your imagination in the right direction. Read it and pray." 
Stratford Caldecott, Centre for Faith and Culture, Oxford

"I guarantee you that once you take up this book you will not put it down until the end of the world. Here is a meaty page-turner with the pace of a thriller, beautifully written, and that something more that turns entertainment into literature."
 Ralph McInerny, Author, Fr. Dowling Mysteries

"… offers up a tale that is satirical, sly, and fast-paced." 
Booklist

"A joy to read. Smoothly crafted, the characters came to life for me. It is a classic story, told in an inspired, inspirational way … wonderfully uplifting." 
 Larry Bond, Author, Red Phoenix

About the Author

Michael D. O'Brien, iconographer, painter, and writer, is the popular author of many best-selling novels including Father Elijah, Strangers and Sojourners, Elijah in Jerusalem, The Father's Tale, Eclipse of the Sun, Sophia House, The Lighthouse, and Island of the World. His novels have been translated into twelve languages and widely reviewed in both secular and religious media in North America and Europe.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Ignatius Press; First Edition (January 1, 1998)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 597 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0898706904
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0898706901
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.4 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 1.5 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 1,219 ratings

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Michael D. O'Brien

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Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
1,219 global ratings
Tremendous Tale!
5 Stars
Tremendous Tale!
Reads like a thriller and yet inspires like a spiritual guide. Second time through, I took notes to aid in my own prayer life. Would be an excellent story for an ambitious book club! A classic in Catholic Christian literature and a wake-up call for our times.
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Top reviews from the United States

Sheldon
5.0 out of 5 stars deep
Reviewed in the United States on February 16, 2024
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A holy read. Thoughtful, powerful and very unusual. Very relevant to our time. The strength of the current Pope, does not appear to match the one in this book.
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Lovee
5.0 out of 5 stars Therapeutic, Challenging, Amazing
Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2015
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This was my third time I read this book. I was amazed at the depth of this book. The first time, it was a faith-filled page turner that could be read again, because it was written on more than one level. The second time, I could see the depth, but I was reading it with my husband, so I was interested in what he thought of it. This time, I decided to reread it before reading Elijah in Jerusalem. I can't believe all that I missed.

The plot is excellent, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. On the surface, it would seem that the subject matter is dated. The book was written twenty years ago when people were speculating on what would happen at the turn of the millennium. However, Michael D. O'Brien has written a timeless story where the characters struggle with faith in the real world. Father Elijah has suffered the loss of his family in childhood and lost faith. He has experienced conversion yet he still struggles with keeping the Faith when confronted with evil. His friend, Anna has lost the Faith, because it seems incompatible with the modern world. Other characters within the Church struggle with good and evil.

Ultimately, what amazed me the most was the recurring themes of free will, salvation, and trust in God rather than our own strength, especially in the face of evil. Seemingly minor characters, such as the Holy Father, Father Prior, and Don Matteo, are a great source of wisdom for Father Elijah, because they remind him that everyone, even the President of the EuroParliament, is a child of God, who was free will to love and follow God or to reject Him. We must also remember this when dealing with souls who choose evil over good causing others pain and loss. We must forgive. That is a big challenge. Realizing that we are not expected to do this without God is therapeutic. The book is so well researched and well written that I can only scratch the surface in this review. That's what is so amazing. Read the book. Read it!
42 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars amazing!
Reviewed in the United States on April 9, 2024
Verified Purchase
On my faith journey, I have read many novels and books dealing with the end times. First as a protestant and then as an eastern orthodox Christian, but now as a member of the Roman Catholic Church. Father Elijah was suggested as one of the best and times books by a Catholic podcast that I listen to, and so I took up the challenge and started to read it. It moved a little slow in the beginning, and I put it down a number of times, but kept coming back to it. As I got about halfway through the book, I just couldn’t put it down. It got really good and the last chapter was definitely my favorite. I will immediately start reading father Elijah in Jerusalem next. I recommend this book for anybody who loves Christian novels about the end times. It beats anything written by any protestant author and really holds true to what a lot of the early church fathers have said on the subject.
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R. Pennoyer
4.0 out of 5 stars An Evangelical Reads O'Brien
Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2005
Verified Purchase
For me, the nearly 600 pages of this book went very quickly. In fact, I wanted more! The story is engrossing and well-told. More than that, there is real spiritual wisdom in this work. It is not, however, the superficial spirituality of many self-help books, but rather the deep spiritual wisdom of the classic Christian tradition - including perspectives on suffering, humility, temptation and true spiritual power.

The author is a Roman Catholic, but this work should appeal to evangelical-style Christians and seekers of all types. Sure, O'Brien occasionally gets a bit partisan when in the course of the narrative we are treated to explanations of the mass, the role of relics, and even the significance of statues of Mary. But I found that those elements did not finally detract from the work but actually helped me to understand those particular Catholic distinctives.

But why FOUR stars and not FIVE? Back to the narrative: There is one especially endearing character in the work who dies early on and without much fanfare. O'Brien's web site offers an explanation for this authorial choice, but I do not find the explanation entirely compelling. I think, rather, that here we find a momentary lapse in the story-telling skills of this otherwise great author.
11 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Jodw
5.0 out of 5 stars One of Michael O'Brien's triumphs!
Reviewed in Canada on December 26, 2023
Verified Purchase
This is a gripping book that covers a lot of ground and a lot of years and leaves the reader with plenty to think about.
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Jane
5.0 out of 5 stars Muy interesante
Reviewed in Spain on November 30, 2023
Verified Purchase
Autor Católico que revela en forma de novela grandes verdades sobre la lucha espiritual que se está librando en el mundo y cómo estar preparado.
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Janet T.
5.0 out of 5 stars Prophetic
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 29, 2022
Verified Purchase
Reading this for the first time in 2022, I appreciate how the author’s imagination has tackled the events depicted in the Apocalypse. He couldn’t have foreseen how Covid would arise and change the political, medical and social scene, but the way he depicts greed for power and secretive ruthless machinations is spot on. I look forward to reading more books by O’Brien.
2 people found this helpful
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Liliuokalani
5.0 out of 5 stars amazing!
Reviewed in France on May 4, 2018
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C'est un livre visionnaire et captivant. De ceux qui aident à voir clair, tout simplement, sur le siècle actuel. Bonne immersion!
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Kevin Reginald
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome!
Reviewed in India on February 2, 2016
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Finally, a Catholic answer to the rapture trap of protestantism.
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