Angels among us

Four angels: enamel, 16th century

Father David Gornall on the reality and importance of the spirit world

Christmas without angels is hard to imagine! But what about now – in our Christmas, and in our lives? Where are they? What are they? And what do they do? Should we have a relationship to them? And is there one especially for me? Where do we learn about them? So many questions about these fascinating creatures!

Let’s begin: where do we find out about them? Most definitely in the Bible, both Old and New Testaments. The choir of angels heralding the birth of Christ is familiar to us (Lk 2:9-14), but we can start our investigation with the Old Testament: at the very beginning, in Gen 3:24, when Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden of Eden, God posted special angels, Cherubs, to guard the way to the Tree of Life. We begin to realise that angels are strong and powerful spiritual creatures, doing God’s will.

Also, in Genesis (18:1-15) we see the three visitors to Abraham – almost certainly angels – who foretell the birth of his son Isaac, despite his wife Sarah’s being barren and in old age. Similarly, an angel announces to the barren mother of Samson that she is to bear a son who will save Israel from the Philistines (Judg 13:3-5). The angels are God’s messengers, and appear often in bodily form in the Old Testament, which at times refers to them simply as ‘God’, for they bear God’s message. An interesting and amusing story is that of the pagan seer Balaam, who was on his way to curse Israel, and his donkey; they meet an angel with a drawn sword, and it ends with Balaam’s giving Israel a splendid blessing (Num 22:22-35).

Angels are also our helpers in times of need. Twice an angel comes to the help of Hagar, the Egyptian servant of Abraham’s wife, when she is in distress in the desert (Gen 16:7-12; 21:15-19). God’s people were at times guided by an angel on their journeys. So, the people of Israel were guided by an angel on their journey through the wilderness to the Promised Land (Exod 14:19; 23:23). But the most colourful story is that of Tobias: the angel Raphael became his companion, though he did not realise that he was an angel (Tob 5:4).

The Patriarch Jacob had an extraordinary dream where he saw a ladder between earth and heaven, and angels ascending and descending on it (Gen 28:10-17). Later, when alone in the wilderness, Jacob wrestled with a mysterious figure, who most take to be an angel, through the night until daybreak; there, he was given the name ‘Israel’ (Gen 32:24-30).

In the New Testament, too, angels abound. However, their relationship with us is somewhat different than in the Old Testament, where they are definitely superior to us. In the New Testament they are more like our brothers, for God’s Son has become man for us, and they serve and glorify Christ as they do God in heaven.

At the Annunciation, the Archangel Gabriel comes to the Virgin Mary, and greets her with great respect, seeks her consent, and announces the forthcoming birth of the Saviour (Lk 1:26-33). St Joseph, too, receives a vison of an angel, to reassure him and explain the situation of Mary to him (Mt 1:18-21).

At the birth of Jesus, a great throng of angels sang praises to God: ‘Glory to God in the highest, and peace to men who enjoy his favour’ (Lk 1: 9-14). When Herod plotted to kill the infant Jesus, an angel warned Joseph to flee into Egypt with his wife and the child. After some time, an angel appeared to him again, to tell him it was safe to return to Palestine. (Mt 2:13-21)

At times, during his ministry, Jesus himself referred to the angels; especially speaking of the final judgement he says the angels will separate the evil from the good, casting the evil into hell’s flames (Mt 13:40-42). When Christ returns at the end of time, it will be in the company of the angels (Mk 8:38). And Jesus promised the apostle Nathanael he, ‘will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man’ (Jn 1:51). Angels also came and ministered to Jesus, after his temptations in the desert (Mt 4:1). An angel comforted Jesus in his Agony in the Garden (Lk 22:43). Before his Passion, too, Jesus told his disciples that he could call upon his Father to send more than twelve legions of angels to defend him (Mt 26:52-54). And angels were also there at the tomb to announce Christ’s Resurrection (Lk 24:4-5).

Angels also assisted the early Church. An angel enabled Peter to escape from prison (Acts 12:7-11). And angels appear significantly in the book of Revelation of John. And the persecuted Christians would have remembered Jesus’ words, ‘if anyone openly declares himself for me in the presence of men, the Son of Man will declare himself for him in the presence of God’s angels’. (Lk 12:8)

The angels worship with us, as well. Just as the Old Testament worship was a shadow of the heavenly worship, so the Christian liturgy is an actual participation in the heavenly worship of the angels. At every Mass the angels are present and worship with us, as we express in the ‘I Confess’ prayer, the Gloria, and the Holy, Holy. It is a taste of heaven!

And of course, we have our Guardian Angels, with us always. Psalm 91 says, ‘He will give his angels charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.’ And Our Lord tells us, ‘do not despise any of these little ones, for I tell you that in heaven their angels always behold the face of my Father who is in Heaven’. (Mt 18:10) Our angels are there to guard us, to help and support us, so we should have a real relationship with them and often enlist their assistance. They are there to help us reach our heavenly goal. And in our dealings with others, it is good for us to beg the support of their angels, even those of folk we don’t get on with. The guardian angels always want the best for us, what is best in God’s eyes. And they are loving and powerful!

Especially powerful are the Archangels, and we have three whom Scripture introduces to us: St Michael, St Gabriel and St Raphael. These spiritual creatures took on bodily form to bring us special help, as the Bible tells us. Michael’s name means ‘Who is like God?’, and he is the defender of God’s people and his Church, and he has fought and defeated Satan (Rev 12:7-8). Pope Leo XIII penned the popular ‘Saint Michael the Archangel’ prayer, which is especially powerful.

Nativity by Gerard David. Early 16th century

St Gabriel appears to the prophet Daniel (Dan 8:15-17) – his name means ‘God is my strength’ or ‘the strength of God’, and he is the special messenger of God, as we see in his appearance to Our Lady at the Annunciation (Lk 1:26-38); and before that, to foretell the birth of John the Baptist (Lk 1:19). St Raphael’s name means ‘God has healed’ or ‘Healer of God’; he is the companion of Tobias in the Old Testament, and brings healing and good fortune (Tob 5:4-12:21).

Our Guardian Angels are our companions on our journey through life, and our protectors, for we are in a spiritual warfare with the devil and his evil spirits – ‘fallen angels’ who have rebelled against God. So we should cultivate a close friendship with our Guardian Angels, and not be shy to ask for their help at all times, especially in times of temptation, for our wellbeing and salvation is their great concern.

Angels have been somewhat controversial in recent times, as various people, some in positions of authority, influenced by the current Neo-Modernist ideas in the Church, have cast doubts on the reality of Angels. This, of course, casts doubt on the authority of Holy Scripture, and on the words of Our Lord himself. We might say that Angels are then a touchstone of Catholic Orthodoxy: for if they are doubted as being ‘spirits’, then what of our own immortal souls? And what of the ‘afterlife’ (for we know what happens to our bodies)? And even more seriously – what about God, for he is the Supreme Spirit?! So may we cling to the Faith!