Monica Miller
Humanities 300
Individual Research Paper
Archangels Angels are creatures of celestial beauty and glory. The angel which appeared in a vision to Daniel is described as wearing “linen clothing, with a belt of pure gold around his waist. His body looked like a precious gem. His face flashed like lightning, and his eyes flamed like torches. His arms and feet shone like polished bronze, and his voice roared like a vast multitude of people” (Daniel 10:5-6). They are so glorious that when John saw them in their true beauty and majesty, he bowed down before them. But the angel said to him, “No, don’t worship me. I am a servant of God, just like you and your brothers the prophets, as well as all who obey what is written in this book. Worship only God!” (Revelation 22:9) There are many orders of angels which serve different purposes, however they all worship and were created by God the Father. Some of the jobs which they fulfill include: worshipping and praising, revealing, guiding, providing, protecting, delivering, strengthening and encouraging, answering prayer, and caring for believers at the moment of death (ANGELS- What Does the Bible Teach About Angels?).
Angels are assigned sometimes to a specific region or group of people which they watch over and protect. The most recognized type of angels is the archangels or “chief angels.” They serve as messengers between God and people and also are protectors of Heaven. These angels look after the affairs of men and important world leaders. They deliver the most important messages from God to man.
There are seven archangels who are amongst the Lord according to the book of Revelation. In Revelation 1:20 Jesus revealed the meaning of the seven stars and seven gold lampstands to John. “The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.” The most common archangels who appear the most in the Christian Bible are Gabriel and Michael. Raphael is also a commonly acknowledged archangel and he is portrayed in the Catholic Bible with the addition of the Apocrypha. The archangel Uriel is also mentioned in the book of Enoch found in the Catholic Apocrypha. These are the only four of the seven archangels which are ever mentioned in the Old Testament. The remaining three archangels are not known by name but their identity is debated between scholars and various religions. For instance, in the Judeo-Christian faith they accept Raguel, Jophiel, and Chamuel as the remaining archangels. There are other possibilities which remain as candidates to the unknown identities of the archangel order. Because there are many angels, the answer to the debate on how many archangels there actually are is unknown. One reason which many names of possible archangels are not as familiar as others is due to the removal of some of the recognized angels by the Church in the eighth century. This was done under Pope Zachary when the church became concerned at the growing adoration which Christians adorned angels with (Dionysius Hierarchy of Angels).
Each archangel’s name has a meaning and a purpose according to their ministry. Archangel names can mostly be seen to end in the suffix “el” which means “in God.” The first half of the name represents the specific task which each angel is assigned to. Michael means he “Who is like God.” Raphael means the “Healing Power of God” or “God Heals.” The name Gabriel means “Strength of God” or “God is my Strength.”
There are two archangels who do not follow the pattern of the “el” suffix. Their names and their origin are of debate which is why they are not accepted by everyone to even be archangels. They are the archangels Metatron and Sandalphon. Metatron, whose name meaning is unclear, is speculated to mean “he who occupies the throne next to the Divine throne.” Sandalphon is the angel of power who guides us to release our fears which hold us back from reaching and claiming our personal power. Metatron and Sandalphon are the only angels who were originally men. Sandalphon was the prophet Elijah and Metatron was his brother Enoch. These men were transformed into angels and given their immortal assignments and made into archangels as a reward for their good service and work while on Earth. This allowed them to continue their service from Heaven. On Earth Enoch (Metatron) was a wise prophet and scribe who received “the Book of the Angel Raziel” which was a textbook concerning God’s works which was also given to Noah, Solomon, and Adam. Because of his skills on Earth of keeping records as a scribe, Metatron is in charge of keeping all the records of Earth and keeps the Akashic records or the “Book of Life” along with recording and organizing all records of Heaven. His brother Elijah was taken to Heaven in a chariot of fire. After becoming the archangel Sandalphon, he accepted the task of carrying prayers to God so that they may be answered. He is also believed to help parents determine the gender of their expected children (Dionysius Hierarchy of Angels).
Michael was the first angel created by God and is known as the leader of all of the archangels. His job is to oversee us mentally, physically, and emotionally. In 1950 he was canonized and became St. Michael the “patron of police officers” because he looks after those who do heroic and brave services. However his main purpose is to expel fear from the earth and mankind. He possesses and carries a flaming sword which he uses to protect us from Satan and his negative entities. Known as the protector of Israel
One of the few other archangels who is mentioned by name in the Old Testament is Gabriel. Often in art and literature Gabriel is depicted as a female. This may be because angels are said to appear in a form which is comforting to those who they encounter which led the artist to represent Gabriel that way. Gabriel appeared twice to Daniel, note as a male, to help him interpret his dreams. From the book of Daniel 8:17 we see these occurrences and the scripture says “As Gabriel approached the place where I was standing, I became so terrified that I fell with my face to the ground. ‘Son of man,’ he said, ‘you must understand that the events you have seen in your vision relate to the time of the end.’” Gabriel helped Daniel make sense of his dreams, “I have come here to give you insight and understanding” (Daniel 9:22 ). In the gospel of Luke Gabriel appears to Zechariah to bring him the news of the birth of his son, John the Baptist. When Zechariah has trouble believing the news that his wife is pregnant the angel says, “I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. It was he who sent me to bring you this good news! But now, since you didn’t believe what I said, you will be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time” (Luke 1:19 -20). Gabriel is also the messenger who delivered the message to the virgin Mary saying “ You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus” (Luke 1: 31 ). Gabriel is the constant defender for the Jewish people. He caused the baby Moses to cry so that Pharaoh’s daughter would feel compassion for him, he pushed Moses’ hand toward the coals to prove a loyalty test for the Pharaoh, and rescued Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace.
The archangel known as the healer of the mind, body, and the spirit is Raphael. He can grant rapid healing if called upon. Raphael is also known to work with Michael in order to clean out discarnate entities and to clear out bad energies from people and places. He is the “patron of travelers,” an example of this is his help to the traveler Tobias, the story which is found in the apocrypha of Tobit. Here Raphael appears as a man and helps Tobias safely along his journey. Tobias repelled a demon by the knowledge of his fellow traveler. “Tobias remembered the words of Raphael, and he took the fish’s liver and heart out of the bag where he had them and put them on the embers of the incense. The odour of the fish so repelled the demon that he fled to the remotest parts of Egypt 12:15 ).
After reading of the many instances where angels protect, guide, interpret, and heal it is unusual to consider the many images which typically come to mind when one would think of an angel. Generally an angel sitting in the clouds, smiling at children, or playing a harp are all ideas which come to mind. However we view angels, the truth remains, “he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go. They will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone. You will trample upon lions and cobras; you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet” (Psalm 91:12-13).
Works Cited
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