When we recite the Nicene creed every Sunday, we profess God as the Creator of “all things visible and invisible.”
The visible part of creation is of course that which we can detect with our eyes—with our senses--He created the water, the earth, the stars, the planets, the rocks, the plants, the animals, and us. All that which can be seen with the naked eye, with a microscope, with a telescope, or with a scientific instrument can be traced back to the creative act of God.
The “invisible” part of creation refers to the nonmaterial, the creatures of pure spirit, known as angels. The Catechism says, “The existence of the spiritual, non-corporeal beings that Sacred Scriptures usually calls ‘angels’ is a truth of faith.” Angels really exist. They aren’t just metaphors. The angels were created by God as much as you and me.
And who are the angels? “As purely spiritual creatures angels have intelligence and will: they are personal (that means God calls each of them by name) and immortal creatures” and as the letter to the Hebrews puts it “ministering spirits” because “With their whole being the angels are servants of God”.
How many angels are there? The number of angels is nearly countless and they are arranged in a heavenly hierarchy. We mention the different ranks of angels in our Eucharistic prayers which reference the Angels, archangels, thrones, dominions and powers, cherubim, seraphim, principalities, and virtues.
As servants of God, they assist God in the orchestration of heaven and the physical universe, including God’s care for us. At the time of our birth, each of us was assigned a particular angel who is always at our side—called our guardian angel. We celebrate the feast of the guardian angels on October 2 every year. Our Guardian Angels protect us from harm, both physical and spiritual, including warding off demons who wish us ill. They strengthen us against temptation. That little voice that encourages us to remain faithful to God is often our guardian angel. They embolden us to do what is right and to live out our faith boldly.
I bring up the angels today because today on the liturgical calendar, September 29, is the feast of three very important archangels. We do not know the names of our guardian angels, but we do know the names of Archangels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael whose names are recorded in Sacred Scripture.
All Angels are ministering servants of God, but these three Archangels were entrusted with very special missions—missions that were so important that God wanted us to know about them.
It was an unknown angel that announced the message of the birth of Samson, but it was the Archangel Gabriel who announced the incarnation of the Son of God. Everyone of our guardian angels work to drive back the darkness of evil in our lives, but it was the Archangel Michael who was placed by God as Prince of the Heavenly army who drove Lucifer and the rebellious angels out of heaven. Many angels bring healing, cheer, inspiration, and protection, but it was the Archangel Raphael who brought healing to the blind Tobit and accompanied Tobias on his special journey.
Praying for protection and the defeat of evil, strength, and healing are common prayers. Daily we should be praying for these things for ourselves and others. And in the course of our prayers, it is very good to invoke the Holy Archangels. After all, God told us about them so that we can call upon them. We call upon St. Michael so that satan may be driven away from our midst. We call upon St. Gabriel in our mission of spreading the Gospel in word and deed. And we call upon St. Gabriel to bear God’s healing to those most in need of it.
Every Monday, Tuesday, and Friday morning, here at St. Ignatius after the final blessing at Mass, we offer the so-called Leonine prayers which include the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel. The St. Michael prayer was composed by the Pope himself, Pope Leo XIII, after the holy Pope had a terrifying vision of the demonic forces gathering against the church at the beginning of last century.
For, Pope Leo XIII lived in a time when Masonic, godless, anti-clerical, anti-church forces were congregating in Europe, spreading not only error, but physical violence toward Catholics. And so he composed the St. Michael prayer, which was to be invoked for the protection of the Church from the corrupt and the wicked.
In the Gospel today, the Lord Jesus speaks of those who are so corrupt and so wicked that they lead little ones astray. Instead of leading people to God like the angels, and protecting them from evil like the angels, the wicked leads souls away from God. Our culture today, in many ways, is bent on the corruption of young people. For the last sixty years especially, we have seen countless Catholic youth being led astray, rejecting religion, embracing the moral perversions of the world and living without Jesus as Lord.
So, to turn the tide in our culture, but more importantly to win back souls, it is good for us to call the angels to our side, to invoke their help. God has involved them in salvation history, and he will continue to involve them in answer to our prayers.
Call upon the angels to help parents, especially, protect their children from the corrupting influences in our society. If you have children our grandchildren, ask God to strengthen their guardian angels to help protect them, and assist them in leading holy lives. Invoke the angels of the little ones to help guard them against the evils that bombard them on the internet, in the media, and in many schools and universities. Pray that the angels may bring healing to those who have been scandalized or corrupted.
And pray daily, that powerful prayer to St. Michael: St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil, may God rebuke him we humbly pray, and do thou, o prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, cast into hell Satan and all of the evil spirits, who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen. For the glory of God and the salvation of souls.
