The Catholic Church acknowledges the name of three of the seven Archangels: St. Michael, St. Gabriel and St. Raphael. These three Archangels are the only angels named in Scripture. The remaining four Archangels appear in Christian and Jewish sources outside the canon of Sacred Scripture. They are: Uriel, Raguel, Zerachiel and Ramiel. The Greek meaning of angels is “messengers”; the meaning of arch is”highest”.
St. Michael
St. Michael’s name means “Who is like God.” St. Michael’s four responsibilities:
- To combat Satan;
- To escort the faithful to heaven at their hour of death;
- To be a champion of all Christians and the Church itself; and
- To call men from life on earth to their heavenly judgment.
On October 13, 1884, Pope Leo XII had a diabolical vision. After celebrating Mass in a private Vatican Chapel, attended by members of the Vatican staff and a few Cardinals, Pope Leo stopped at the foot of the altar and fell into a trance. He heard the voice of Satan speaking to God about destroying the Church. After the vision Pope Leo went immediately to his office and composed the St. Michael’s prayer. This prayer is to be recited after every low Mass.
St. Michael the Archangel,
defend us in battle.
Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the Devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray,
and do thou,
O Prince of the heavenly hosts,
by the power of God,
thrust into hell Satan,
and all the evil spirits,
who prowl about the world
seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.
St. Michael is the patron saint of soldiers, police officers, grocers, mariners, sickness and doctors.
St. Gabriel
St. Gabriel’s name means “Power of God.” St. Gabriel the Archangel is found by name three times in the Catholic Bible; once in the Old Testament and twice in the New Testament. In the Book of Daniel, St. Gabriel foretold the coming of the Messiah. In the New Testament St. Gabriel first appears to Zechariah to announce the birth of St. John the Baptist, who was chosen to prepare the way of the Lord. He is then sent to the Virgin Mary to announce the birth of Jesus Christ.
St. Gabriel is the patron saint of messengers, telecommunication workers, and postal workers.
My Angelic Encounter
Whenever I traveled to the Holy Land, I always collected prayer requests. Some of these petitions came with specific instructions as to where the person wants them left. I had several prayer requests that needed to be left at the Church of The Holy Sepulcher in the Old City. I was sharing this information with my friend Pat, she mentioned that she had some petitions for the same place. It was our last night in Jerusalem, and we were leaving for the airport around noon. The Church of The Holy Sepulcher opens at 6:30 a.m., so Pat and I devised a plan. We decided to get up early and take a taxi to the Old City. We were on a mission to pray and leave the prayer requests at the Tomb of Jesus. We did not share this with anyone on the team. When the taxi driver arrived, we told him where we needed to go. The man did not understand any English, and between Pat and me, we only knew one Arabic word. The driver dropped us off at the Damascus Gate, which is the main entrance to the Muslim quarters. This gate was unfamiliar to us, the gates we use and are familiar with are: the Jaffa Gate, the Lions Gate and the Dung Gate.
It was early morning, so I could smell the strong Arabic coffee brewing in private homes. Both Pat and I know the Old City pretty well, but this gate was throwing us off. We walked in deeper and still had no real direction as to where we were or where we were headed. Suddenly, a loud, rowdy group of young Arab men coming in from a late night were headed our direction. We were sitting ducks and did not know where to turn to avoid this uncomfortable encounter. Then suddenly a man appeared from out of nowhere. “What are you doing here?” he asked. I told him that we needed to go to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Without hesitation, he said, “Follow me.” Without consulting or questioning, Pat and I followed the man.
The Angel
The man led us out of the Damascus Gate, and we walked a distance outside the city walls until we reached the New Gate. From there we followed him through the fresh meat section of the Old City. When we reached the end of the corridor the man raised his arm and pointed to the right. He said, “This is where you turn to get to the church, this is as far as I can go.” The Arabic man then disappeared. Both Pat and I came to the realization that we had had an encounter with an angel. We walked into an almost empty church, where we prayed for several hours. We completed our mission by leaving the prayer requests at the Tomb of Jesus.
Torie’s Angels
Our nephew Torie suffers from cluster headaches. This type of headaches are also referred to as “suicide headaches.” These headaches are a lot more intense than a migraine. To seek refuge from this pain, Torie would look for the darkest room of his house; even the slightest light would intensify the pain. These headaches cause vomiting. Torie was in the bathroom and laying on the floor after vomiting, He was praying the Hail Mary, and could not get up on his own will. Suddenly he felt his arm was being pulled; he counted seven angels. The angels led him to his bed where he slept until the pain subsided. Please pray for Torie, he has not experienced a cluster headache in six years.
My Prayer
Thank You, Lord, for sending Your holy angels to assist us in daily matters. Lord, I pray that we could experience the sound of Your holy choir and feel Your holy presence as they worship You. I ask special protection over our country. Bring unity and restore this wonderful nation. Amen.
