Feasts for Angels
Angels have feasts on September 30 (the Archangels St. Michael, Raphael, and Gabriel) and on October 2 (the Guardian Angels), so I was going to blog about angels this week. However, then I discovered I already have seven blogs about angels! These contain several fascinating stories about how they came to the rescue for various people as well as information about them. Consequently, after a list of angel facts, you will find the links to a few of these blogs. Click on the title to open the blog.
The digital editor of the National Catholic Reporter posted this today:
“St. Michael is one of my patrons (my Confirmation Saint!), so I am celebrating today’s feast by making my blackberry cobbler. Why blackberries? According to an ancient tradition, St. Michael’s Day is the last day that blackberries can be picked and eaten because when Michael cast out the “evil one” from Heaven, he apparently landed in a blackberry bush.”
Ten Facts about Angels
- Angels are pure spirits. They are not bound by time or space. Although they are invisible, they can assume human form. G.K. Chesterton wittily noted, “Angels fly because they take themselves lightly.”
2. The main job of angels is adoring God. Some of them also serve as God’s messengers.
3. These heavenly spirits play important roles in Scripture stories, for instance, St. Gabriel at the Annunciation.
4. The nine choirs of angels is deduced from Scripture references to them.
5. From the book of Revelation we learn that some angels rebelled and a war broke out in heaven. The conquered angels we know as devils were consigned to hell. Jesus said, “I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning” (Luke 10:17). The devils still war against God by trying to turn us humans against him.
6. Artists depict angels with wings because Scripture describes them this way. Plus wings symbolize that angels can travel swiftly.
7. Often the holy spirits in artwork are playing instruments. As the most disembodied of the arts, music is fitting for angels.
8. The Sadducees denied any sort of spiritual beings, while the Pharisees, like Jesus, believed in angels.
9. Seraphs have visited a number of saints. Among them are Saints Frances of Rome, Joan of Arc, Teresa of Avila, and Padre Pio.
10. The appearance of an angel to a human being is called an angelophany.
One Rescue Story
This Monday, Bishop Robert Barron recounted this story in his daily email: A man was flying a single-engine plane during a severe storm. At one point, his communication system failed, and he had no means to make it to the airport. Just as he was about to give up hope, a strong voice came through the radio. It gave directions to an airport the pilot knew nothing about. The voice guided him to its runway. When he landed, he realized that the airport was abandoned. No personnel were on the ground or in the tower.
More Blogs about Angels
Have you ever had a close encounter with an angel?
Has a person been a good angel to you?
Do you pray the “Angel of God” prayer? If so, when?
