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The Angels
By
Nabil Semaan*
Copyright,
October 2003, (Vol. 47 No. 8) The Word, Pittsburgh, PA 15241, a monthly
publication of the autonomous Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of
North America. Used with
permission FEAST OF ARCHANGELS On the 8th of
November, the Orthodox Church celebrates the feast of synaxis of the
Archangels Michael and Gabriel and the rest of the archangels. The word synaxis
means the gathering of believers to celebrate a feast, or to make a
remembrance of a saint. This feast also has a special meaning; it is the
gathering of the humans with the angels, "their union, their gathering
and standing in fear in front of the creator."(1) After the fall of the devil and his
angels, this feast is the celebration of "sobriety and unity" of
the rest of angelic powers who stayed loyal to God. "We celebrate also
the contribution of the angels and archangels and their help and support in
the war against the dark powers and the devil."(2) We celebrate this feast of unity between angels and humans, and this unity is not in the "life to come" at the end of times — it starts in this world: the angels direct, guard the sons of God who are struggling in this world; they are glad with every sinner returning to God; they convey the prayers to God's throne. Hence, there is a common liturgical work between angels and humans. The angels offer a non-stop continuous doxology and mental worship with humans to God. They offer to the Holy Trinity the Trisagion: "with these holy powers, we sinners say the trisagion, 'Holy, Holy, Holy Lord of sabaoth, the heavens and earth are filled with Thy glory, hosanna in the highest, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, hosanna in the highest' ". They gather around the holy altar with the priest to serve with him the liturgy. So there is only one celebration, one feast common between humans and angels: "angels with humans celebrate together, earthly with heavenly speak,"(3) "through thy cross our Christ our God, the angels and humans become one church, heaven and earth are united, O Lord glory to Thee."(4) The angels are members of the Church, the body of Christ. The 8th of November is also a specific feast of Archangel Michael, going back in history in celebrating the memory of his church in Arcadia in Constantinople. WORK OF ANGELS From the book of Tobiah in the Old Testament, the Archangel Raphael reveals himself to Tobiah by saying: "I will not hide from you the mystery, when you were praying, you and Sarah, I was lifting your prayers to the Holy One … and now God sent me to heal your wounds …I am Raphael, one of the seven angels who lift the prayers of the saints and serve the Throne of the Holy One" (Tobiah 12:12-15). In this passage there is a description of the work of angels, which is mainly to lift the prayers of the saints and help God, and they are sent by God to the humans to help them. "And of the angels he saith, whom maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire" (Hebrew 1:7). The word angelos is Greek and means "who is sent" or "messenger." This name is given to them by God because of the function of serving the human race to be saved: "Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation" (Hebrews 1:14). CREATION OF ANGELS The holy scriptures do not mention exactly when the angels were created, but the Church in its holy tradition, through the writings of its holy fathers, chiefly St. John of Damascus, St. John Cassian, St. Basil the Great, St. Gregory the Theologian, St. Ambrose of Milan, St. Dimitri Rostov, St. Dionysios the Areopagite, all of them believe that they were created from "nothing" prior to the sensible material world and prior to humans. The angels were created by God to glorify Him and contemplate Him, "when the stars were created, all my angels were glorifying me and praising me" (Job 38:7). It is the Logos of God, Who created them because, "for by Him were all things created, that are in heavens, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities or powers, all things were created by Him and for Him" (Colossians 1:16). DIVISION OF ANGELS(5) According to St. Dionysios the Areopagite, the angels are
divided into three ranks; each rank is also divided into three groups. The
first rank is made up of the Seraphim, the Cherubim and Thrones. The second
rank is made up of Dominions, Hosts and Powers. Finally, the third rank is
made up of Principalities, Archangels and Angels. According to St. John of
Damascus, each group (and rank) differs from the others in hierarchy and
splendour, depending on their closeness to God.(6) The Seraphim are the highest rank, the closest to God. Seraphim
is a Hebrew word meaning "fire," and it symbolizes the heat of
their love of God. The Seraphim have six wings; "I saw the Lord sitting
on a throne high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple, above it
stood the seraphim: each one had six wings; with two he covered his face,
with two he covered his feet, and with two he did fly, and one cried unto
another, and said: 'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts: the whole earth is
full of his glory' " (Isaiah 6:1-3). Behind the Seraphim directly there are the wise
Cherubim, who are the "many-eyes" due to their unceasing contemplation
(theoria) of God. The word Cherubim is Hebrew and means
"abundance of wisdom;" it symbolizes perfection in knowledge of
God. St. John of Damascus says that the food of angels is the contemplation
of God.(7) Directly behind the Cherubim comes the Thrones, and
they are the angels on whom God rests, as their name indicates. All these angels stand around God's throne in fear and
great respect of His glory; they contemplate God and know His
"energy" and not his "essence" (oussia), since
they are creatures. They are in a continuous attraction (eros) and
"ecstasy" to God, to the extent that they forget themselves. Every
rank (and group) of angels, according to its closeness to God, partakes of
the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of wisdom and discernment, the
Spirit of power, fear of God. Furthermore, their communion with the Holy
Spirit is continuous. The angels do not have the feeling of jealousy and
competition between them; they all have one will, which is to serve God; the
angels of the lower ranks obey in love the angels of the higher ranks as if
in obedience to God. ARCHANGELS
The angels are also a "heavenly army." Their leader
and head is Archangel Michael, who is one of the seven spirits in front of
God's throne. "O Holy Archangel Michael glorified, God has placed you head of their Hosts, Powers, Angels
and Archangels, Dominions, and Principalities" (Exapostolarion of the
feast). The archangels or head of all the angels are seven in
number. According to St. Dimitri Rostov, they are Seraphim, the closest to
God. They are Michael (Missa-iil in Hebrew), which means "Who is
like God," Gabriel (Jibra-iil in Hebrew), which means "God's
power," Raphael (Roupha-iil in Hebrew), which means "God's
mercy," Salaphael (Salaata-iil in Hebrew), which means "prayer
to God," Orael (Oura-iil in Hebrew), which means "God's
light," Yajoudael (Yagoud-iil in Hebrew), which means "God's
glory," and Barakael (Baraki-iil), which means "God's
blessing."(8) NATURE
OF ANGELS
According to St. Dionysios the Areopagite, the angels were
created as humans in the "image and likeness" of God. According to
the "image" because they have an intellect (mind) that generates
thoughts (ideas), and to the "likeness" because the angels are
directed and attracted toward God.(9) St. John of Damascus says
they are creatures limited in space and time; they have their own specific
external appearance. Compared to humans, they are bodiless due to the human's
"heavy body," but compared to God they have a body. "We speak
about the angels as bodiless and immaterial compared to us, but in fact
everything is heavy and material compared to God, to Whom nobody can be
compared, because only the Divine is non-material and bodiless."(10) He continues to say that,
"God created the angels according to His own image and He created them
weightless and with heat" in order to be attracted to Him and to serve
Him. He adds: "the angel is always in motion, he has free will, gifted
with an immortal nature. This nature is intellectual, thus he has a free
changing will."(11) The
angels do not need a tongue or ears to communicate; they interchange
thoughts, and their food is the theoria. It is also important to note that St. John of Damascus
emphasizes that, "The angels are not subject to repentance because they
do not have a heavy body, while humans can repent because they have a body,
though it is weak," and he continues to say, "The angels are higher
than humans because they are bodiless and free from the passions of the body,
but they are not free from other passions because only God has absolute
impassibility."(12) St. Macarius the Great says that, "The angels have
a light body and an external appearance of humans,"(13) and St. John of Damascus
confirms this in saying that, "angels take different forms when they
appear to humans to convey to them the divine mysteries … if it is God's will
to an angel to appear to one of the saints, the appearance he takes differs
and depends on the capacity of the person to see."(14) St. Ignatius Brianchaninov
confirms that "our incapability to see angels is due to our fallen human
nature. Adam and Eve before the fall were participating with the angels in
giving glory to God, and they were living with them … That is why the saints
look forward to 'be like angels of God in heavens' (Matthew 22:30), and the
monastic rank is called an equal to the angelic rank."(15) Finally, the place or "home" of angels is
heaven, "in the third heaven where the
archangels stand before the throne of God, surrounded by a countless
heavenly army" (Isaiah 6; Revelation 4:5). THE FALL OF ANGELS(16) First of all, this event happened before the fall of man. The
cause of the fall of some angels is that they rebelled against God. Their
leader was one of the most beautiful Cherubim; he was gifted much more than the
others in divine grace, according to the prophet Isaiah: "How art thou
fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to
the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine
heart, 'I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of
God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the
north, I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most
High.' Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit"
(Isaiah 14:12-15). The prophet Ezekiel symbolizes the king of Tyre with
the fallen Cherubim: "Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom and
perfect in beauty, thou hast been in Eden the garden of God … Thou was
perfect in thy ways from the day that thou has been created until iniquity
was found in thee … therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain
of God, and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the
stones of fire … I will cast thee to the ground" (Ezekiel 28:12-18).
This fall was as fast as the lightning described by the Lord Jesus Himself in
the gospel of St. Luke: "I beheld satan as lightning fall from heaven" (Luke 10:18). This fallen Cherubim attracted to him a number of
angels of different ranks, some from the higher ranks, and he took them with
him. They were expelled from paradise, so they wandered on earth. The Archangel Michael resisted the
devil rebeller and his companions, and a war happened in heaven.
"Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought
and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was their place found anymore in
heaven" (Revelation 12:7-8). As St. Ignatius Brianchaninov describes it,
"the devil carried with him one third of the angels and threw them on
earth." Then, the Archangel Michael cried in a loud voice, "let us
attend" not to fall with the devil and his angels. He did not dare to
judge the devil, he just demanded attention and vigil once, and from that
time the relation between the angels loyal to God got stronger by grace and
they were not subject to evil. From that time, there is a strong war between
the angels loyal to God and the devil and his angels. All the gifts that were
for the demons were turned to evil. The devil was called "Satan," a
Hebrew word meaning "enemy," which parallels the Greek word diabolis,
which means "divider." The word demon is Greek and means
"the fallen angel." St. Ignatius Brianchaninov describes that, before the
fall of Adam, the devil was wandering
the sky having within him a feeling of great emptiness. God allowed him by
His great compassion and mercy to enter the paradise of Eden in order to
contemplate its beauty and give him a chance to repent. But he was jealous of
Adam and Eve, tried with all his force to cast them out of paradise, and
succeeded in casting Adam and Eve out of paradise and even bringing them
under his control. In that way the devil lost every hope of coming back to
God. From the instance of the fall of man, there is a great conflict within the human person between the angels of light and angels of darkness. The angels of light were sent by God to help the humans even from the era of the Old Testament. We see the Archangel Gabriel in charge of Israel when they left Egypt, Archangel Raphael helping Tobit, Michael sent to help Joshua, son of Nun, and arguing with the devil regarding the body of Moses. However, the devil was always trying to make humans sin, but without knowing he is doing the will of God, because every evil ends always with goodness. The devil, then, became an instrument of God's trial to men. GLADNESS OF ANGELS(17) "A
re they not all
ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of
salvation" (Hebrew 1:14). St. John Chrysostom comments on this verse by
saying, "Look how God loves man so that He created Holy creatures to
serve the man created according to His image." Humans, although heavier
than angels by their body and in a state of sin, death and corruption, when
they are deified become higher than the angels in divinity and holiness:
"What is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that
thou visited him? For thou hast made him a little lower than angels, and hast
crowned him with glory and honour" (Psalm 8:5-7). The example of this is
the Theotokos, the mother of God, who became "More glorious than the
seraphim …" The devil is jealous of the rank man took after the
incarnation. St.
Gregory of Nyssa says, "Angels kneel in front of every man who is born
again and celebrate the return of men to the original grace through the
Newborn, because they are glad for every man who is saved from sin. This
gladness of angels will not be complete until the second coming of Christ,
for which the angels are waiting." THE GUARDIAN ANGEL(18) "For He shall give his angels
charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways" (Psalm 90:11). The major
work of angels is to praise God, but their partial work is to guard humans
and the universe that surrounds humans. The holy fathers mention many cases
in the Old and New Testaments about angels helping humans. For example, when
St. Peter was delivered from prison, it was said: "This is his
angel" (Acts 12:15). St.
John Chrysostom says that "for every one of us has his angel;" St.
Basil the Great adds, "Beside every believer in God, sits his angel,
repent. Finally the angel of prayer is the
angel who helps us to pray. St. Clement of Alexandria says, "Even when a
person prays alone, he is accompanied by angels." Tertullian commands
the Christian not to sit when
he prays in respect for the angel of prayer standing beside him. Archangel
Raphael is one of the seven angels who "carry the prayers of the saints
to God" (Tobiah 12:15). Origen writes, "Angels gather close to the
person praying to be united to his prayer. Moreover, each angel contemplates
the face of the Father in Heaven and prays with us and works for us for all
our needs." ROLE OF ANGELS IN OUR SPIRITUAL LIFE
The angels have a major role
in the spiritual life of each person. First of all, they convey all the
spiritual gifts to the person and this according to their rank and depending
on the person's spiritual stage: purification, illumination or deification.
"The more we purify ourselves, the more we know God, and the more we
love Him" (St. Gregory the Theologian). The spiritual person resembles
the angels, as St. Gregory of Nyssa says: "The spiritual life allows the
spirit to enter the world of angels." During the purification stage,
"We need an angel to help us overcome our passions, since we are not
perfect," according to Origen. In the illumination stage, the soul
enters the angelic world, to attain finally a life of union with God. The
angels contemplate how the soul moves out of the darkness of sin to a state
of illumination and Grace and passes them over to the glory that the Logos
granted to humanity only in His union with the human nature. The angels wait
for a deified person to be united to his prayer and be lifted up more towards
God. That is why, "The angels wait for the death of martyrs to lead
their souls to its place," says St. Gregory of Nyssa, and "they
surround the martyrs on their way to God and they accompany them to the holy
of holies where the Holy Trinity is in the middle of Cherubim and
Seraphim," confirms St. John Chrysostom. CONCLUSION
What prohibits us from living
like angels, if the angelic life is granted for every true sincere faithful?
Many people ask why they cannot see angels, and why the angels do not help
them, but they do not question if they are really free from the passions that
darken the soul and the heart. The main goal is to free ourselves from
passions. We must ask of God Light and an angel of peace, who will direct and
protect our life and spirit and body. Through the intercessions of our Holy
angels, may our God enlighten us and save us. Amen. Nabil
Semaan, from Pierrefonds, QUE, is a student in the St. Stephen's Program of
theological studies. FOOTNOTES
3. Liturgy of the Feast of Archangels 4. Troparion of Wednesday Orthros 5. St. Ignatius Brianchaninov, "Homily on Angels,"
Periodical No. 14, Archangel Michael Monastery, Lebanon. All quotations of
the Holy Fathers from St. Ignatius are without references. 6. St. John of Damascus, "Homily on angels and demons,"
Periodical No. 2, Archangel Michael Monastery, Lebanon. 8. St. Ignatius Brianchaninov, "Homily on Angels,"
Periodical No. 14, Archangel Michael Monastery, Lebanon. 10. St. John of Damascus, "Homily on angels and demons,"
Periodical No. 2, Archangel Michael Monastery, Lebanon. 13. St. Ignatius Brianchaninov, "Homily on Angels,"
Periodical No. 14, Archangel Michael Monastery, Lebanon. 14. St. John of Damascus, "Homily on angels and
demons," Periodical No. 2, Archangel Michael Monastery, Lebanon. 15. St. Ignatius Brianchaninov, "Homily on Angels,"
Periodical No. 14, Archangel Michael Monastery, Lebanon. 17. Taken from "Les anges et leur mission, d'apres les
peres de l'Eglise," Chevetogne, Jean Danielou; Periodical No. 8,
Archangel Monastery, Lebanon. |
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