Anyway, I suspect the challenge is that John specifically denies being Elijah, rather vehemently. (See John 1:21-27). However, Jesus seems to say that he is (see Matthew 11:14)… but even then Jesus appears to be less vehement (“if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come” is an odd way to say unequivocally that John is Elijah).

The way I understand Msgr. Pope’s argument, I’ll offer an example from my own life. My wife’s name is Nikki Vrtis (she kept her maiden name after we got married). So, she’s often asked, “Are you Mrs. Marsh?” There are two answers to that question. No, she’s definitely not Mrs. Marsh; if you look at her identification, that name isn’t close to what’s on there, and neither is that name on any of her legal paperwork.

However, if the questioner is asking, “Are you Mrs. Marsh?” — meaning, “Are you married to Mr. Marsh?” — then the answer is yes. That is, she’s fulfilling the role of my wife, the mother of my child, etc. She is Mrs. Marsh in all but name.

So, both Bible passages can be correct if John the Baptist is answering the question one way (about his personage), while Jesus is answering the question another way (about his role in God’s divine plan).

There are other ways to interpret the whole situation — as there are many Biblical questions — but any answer that seeks to address if John the Baptist is actually Elijah needs to take into account John’s own assertion that he isn’t.