FEAST DAY: September 29
ABOUT ARCHANGELS:
- celestial beings entrusted with extraordinary missions
- "And I saw seven Angels standing in the sight of God..." - Revelation 8:2
- "And from the throne, lightnings and voices and thunders went forth. And there were seven burning lamps before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God." - Revelation 4:5
- "Bless Yahweh, all His Angels, mighty warriors who fulfill his commands, attentive to the sound of His words." - Psalm 103:20- the Liturgy to Seven Archangels has been confirmed and was still in practice around the year 1800, it has not been abolished, just not in practice (source: http://catholicfaithwarriors.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-seven-archangels.html)
- 7 Archangels: (source: http://catholicfaithwarriors.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-seven-archangels.html)
- Michael - his name means "who is like unto God"; patron of the Holy Eucharist; the Leader of the Armies of Heaven; he defends our souls against the infernal enemy when we call on him, but he also defends our Lord who is helpless in the Blessed Sacrament
- Gabriel - his name means "God conquers", "man of God", or "God has shown Himself mighty"; patron of the Sacrament of Baptism and of communications workers; Archangel of the Annunciation and the Incarnation's triumph over sin and death; usually depicted with lillies
- Raphael - his name means "God heals"; patron of the Sacrament of Penance; usually depicted holding a jug of oil for anointing or a fish which represents the soul and the oil of healing of it's ailments through the Sacrament of Confession
- Uriel - his name means "Fire of God", "Flame of God", "Light of God", or even "Sun of God"; patron of the Sacrament of Confirmation; carries the Sword of Truth for Soldiers of Christ; enlightens the minds and the hearts of the faithful with the light of divine truths and the fire of divine love; often depicted carrying either a book or a scroll, both of which represent wisdom...an open hand holding a flame which represents God's truth
- Jehudiel - his name means "Praise of God";patron of the Sacrament of the Sick (Old Term: Extreme Unction, the anointing of the sick and dying); St. Jehudiel carries the flaming sword of salvation (a symbol of God's mercy) and the crown of the victory of grace which awaits the saints in the next life. It is also a reminder of the crown of sufferings to be endured in this life imitation of our Lord.
- Sealtiel or Selaphiel - his name means "Prayer of God"; patron of the Sacrament of the Holy Orders; carries an incenser which is the symbol of the prayers and offerings of the Divine Sacrifice of the Mass, only through the actions through the ordained.; In the Eastern Orthodox Tradition, Archangel Salaphiel is also our primary teacher of prayer. We can pray to Archangel Salaphiel for the Lord to grant us this gift of divine prayer.
- Barachiel - his name means "Blessings of God"; patron of the Sacrament of Matrimony; carries an abundant basket of bread, the staff of life (symbolizing Christian parenthood and its grave responsibilities both spiritual and temporal) to protect and provide for the children God desires of married couples; a powerful intercessor for the barren as well as for troubled marriages; he carries in his hand a book (reminder of the wealth of instructions in the Holy Scripture, the writings of the saints and Papal encyclicals for husbands, wives and children concerning marriage and family life); in iconography, he is sometimes shown holding a white rose against his chest, or with rose petals scattered on his clothing; is the Archangel who was assigned by God to keep watch over His adopted children
ABOUT ARCHANGEL MICHAEL:
- the warrior Angel
- one of the great Archangels
- from the Hebrew <Mikha'el>, meaning: <Who is as God>? His name is a battle cry; both shield and weapon in the struggle, and an eternal trophy of victory
- The name "Archangel" is given only to Saint Michael, even though sacred tradition and the liturgy of the Church attribute the same title to Saint Gabriel and Saint Raphael: "When Michael, the archangel, disputing with the devil, contended about the body of Moses, he durst not bring against him the judgment of railing speech, but said: The Lord command thee." In spite of such an explicit testimony of the Scripture, a few writers have maintained that Saint Michael, because of his exalted position among the Angels, must belong to a much higher order, perhaps to that of the Seraphim, rather than to the order of Archangels. We do not believe that this opinion can be defended.
- the Church calls Saint Michael "Prince of the heavenly hosts"- <Princeps militiae caelestis>
- the heavenly protector of God's own people against both human and diabolical enemies
ABOUT ARCHANGEL GABRIEL:
- the Archangel of the Annunciation
- was given special charge of the Holy Family of Nazareth
- composed of the Hebrew words, <gebher>: man, and <'el>: God. It means, therefore, <Man of God> or <Strength of God>
- Practically all the missions and manifestations of this Archangel are closely connected with the coming of the Messias. The most accurate prophecy regarding the time of the coming of Christ was made by Saint Gabriel through the prophet Daniel.
- before the coming of Christ we meet the Archangel Gabriel in the temple of Jerusalem, announcing to Zachary the birth of a son, John the Baptist, the precursor of Christ: "I am Gabriel, who stand before God, and am sent to speak to thee, and to bring thee these good tidings."
- the greatest and by far the most joyful message ever committed to an Angel from the beginning of time, was the one brought by the Archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary, announcing to her the Incarnation of the Word of God and the birth of Christ, the Savior of mankind
- Gabriel's conversation with the Virgin Mary: "The Angel being come in said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee."
- was sent from God into a city of Galilee, called Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man, whose name was Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary."
- Gabriel's duties towards the Messias did not come to an end with his birth. Gabriel was probably the Angel who "appeared in sleep to Joseph," first in Bethlehem when he warned him saying: "Arise, and take the child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be there until I shalltell you. For it will come to pass that Herod will seek the child to destroy him." After the death of Herod the Angel appeared to Joseph again in Egypt to tell him to bring the child and his mother back into the land of Israel.
ABOUT ARCHANGEL RAPHAEL
- from the Hebrew <rapha'>: to heal, and <'el:> God, means "God heals" or the "Divine healer"
- the Divine healer of physical infirmities, spiritual afflictions and diabolical vexations
- The history of Tobias, father and son, contains the grandest angelophany of the whole Bible, and it all revolves around the manifestation of the Archangel Raphael under the assumed name and form of a beautiful young man named Azarias.
- had been sent by God to cure and comfort two afflicted souls, old Tobias and Raguel's young daughter Sara, the widow of seven husbands, all of whom had died on the first night following their wedding to her
- The health-giving ministry of Saint Raphael may still be seen in the miraculous cures that have taken place up to our own times in many of the sacred Shrines throughout the Christian world.
LINKS/ SOURCES:
- "St. Michael, St. Gabriel & St. Raphael, Archangels" (source: EWTN):
http://www.ewtn.com/saintsholy/saints/A/archangels.asp
- "St. Michael, St. Gabriel & St. Raphael" (source: Catholic Culture):
http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2014-09-29
- "Michael, Gabriel and Raphael: Archangels and Powerful Allies" (source: Catholic Online):
http://www.catholic.org/news/national/story.php?id=34517
- "Sts. Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael" (source: American Catholic):
http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/saint.aspx?id=1153
- "Sts. Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Archangels" (source: Catholic News Agency):
http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint.php?n=609
- "Seven Archangels" (source: Wikipedia):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Archangels
- "The Seven Archangels" (with prayers) (source: Catholic Faith Warriors):
http://catholicfaithwarriors.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-seven-archangels.html
- About Angels: http://angels.about.com/
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i saw a flash of white light on the left side of my eye as i browsed the web for images of Archangels, Angels and real Angels over a couple of weeks ago. i don't know what that was about. the left side of my computer is a wall. based on eyewitness accounts/photos found on the web, these celestial beings can take on a human form and/or a glowing light with a silhouette of a winged human-like being...
