Strongly present in the Christian tradition, it is not always easy to understand the difference between archangels, angels and guardian angels.
The latter are part of what is called the invisible, as mentioned in the Creed, since the Council of Nicea: "the visible and invisible universe".
For the Church, these spiritual beings without physical bodies are creatures and servants of God.
What are the differences between archangels, angels and guardian angels? This is the question we will answer.
Archangels
Mentioned by Saint Paul, the archangels are likened to the heads of the angels (1st letter to the Thessalonians 4:16). Of the seven archangels mentioned in the Bible, only three are recognised by the Catholic Church: Michael, Gabriel and Raphael.
Here is the definition given by Saint Gregory the Great, 64th pope of the Church in the 6th century: "It is necessary to know that the word 'angel' designates their function: messenger. And those who announce the greatest events are called "archangels".
The power of the archangel Michael
The name of this archangel means "who is like God". This archangel is mentioned several times in the Old Testament. When they are mentioned together in the Bible, Michael is always mentioned first, which gives him primacy over all others.
In Revelation, Michael with his angels fights and defeats the dragon representing Satan.
This image in Revelation represents an important situation in the life of every Christian: it is the representation of the struggle of good against evil and against the temptations we face every day.
This is why the archangel Michael is the defender, the one who brings help against the devil's snares. The prayer to Saint Michael is a powerful request for intercession.
The Archangel Gabriel, messenger of God
Gabriel means "strength of God".
Present in the Old and New Testaments, the archangel Gabriel is the bearer of good news from God. He is the incarnation of the Word, i.e. he is the voice of God.
In the New Testament, he appears to Zechariah, husband of Elizabeth, to announce that his prayers have been answered and that he will have a son named John (the future Saint John the Baptist).
He later appears to Mary during the Annunciation and tells her that she will bear the son of God.
Gabriel is the patron saint of ambassadors, diplomats, messengers and postmen.
Archangel Raphael, the healer
The name of the Archangel Gabriel means "God heals". He is mentioned in the book of Tobias (Old Testament). Raphael is the one who is sent to heal Tobias of his blindness and then he will accompany Tobias on his journey.
Raphael is a benevolent and healing archangel, patron of travellers on land, sea and air.
Archangel Saint Michael Bracelet with semi-precious stones 14,30€
120 sticks of incense of the 7 Archangels 9,90€
Novena candle of the 7 archangels - 17,5cm 4,90€
The angels
Like the archangels, the angels are pure spirits and creatures of God. As such, they are intelligent and free beings. St Augustine says of them that they are God's servants and messengers. They surpass in perfection all God's creatures.
Present in the Old Testament as well as in the New, they accompany the heavenly glory and transmit the word of God.
When were angels created?
There is no sentence in the Bible that explicitly mentions the creation of angels. The first angelic creature to appear in Genesis is Satan (fallen angel) in the form of the serpent.
St. Dionysius the Areopagite in the fourth century established a hierarchy of angels comprising nine degrees. Some of their names are still familiar to us, such as the cherubim and seraphim.
In The City of God (Book XI, Chapter IX), St Augustine equates the creation of angels with the word of God: "God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light. He considers that angels are the light that was created on the first day, before the light of the Sun was created on the fourth day.
Angels today from protecting angels to guardian angels
In the Catechism of the Catholic Church angels are spiritual beings without physical bodies. Their winged, luminous and white-clad image is a visualization that allows us to better represent them; they are part of our collective imagination. It is not intended to feed folklore or fantasy literature. For the Church, the existence of angels is a "truth of faith".
There are many references to them in the Old Testament, the New Testament and also in the history of Catholicism.
Those who are mostly named today are the guardian angels. In Catholicism, we are often encouraged to address them in prayer.
Who are our guardian angels, how do we pray to them?
The term "guardian angel" is very present in our society, and has even taken over our everyday language by being translated into expressions. We find the term guardian angel in films, stories and company names. Calling oneself someone's guardian angel is a way of saying that one guides, accompanies and protects them.
Where does this strong anchoring in our tradition and in our daily life come from?
Guardian angels in the writings
In the Bible, there is no mention of guardian angels, but rather protector angels, although guardian angels exist in all the religions of the Book.
Little by little the idea of a guardian angel accompanying each person made its way and guardian angels have been officially celebrated since the 15th century. The existence of guardian angels is still part of the cult of Catholicism and they are celebrated every year on October 2nd.
The popes tell us how to address the guardian angels
Whether it is John Paul II, Benedict XVI or Pope Francis, they all mention guardian angels.
John Paul II recommended: "Feel the presence of the angels near you, dear ones, and let them guide you".
Benedict XVI spoke of the protection provided by our guardian angel: "The invisible presence of these blessed spirits is a great help and comfort to us: they walk beside us, they protect us in every circumstance, they defend us in dangers, and we can have recourse to them at any time.
Pope Francis calls them "a fellow traveller", an "ambassador of God with us" and encourages us to listen to them and follow their advice.
H3 Praying to Guardian Angels today
Many people today place great importance on their guardian angel. They place great trust in them.
As Pope Francis advises, they maintain a real dialogue with their guardian angel. There are books to guide Christians in their prayers to their guardian angel, as well as novenas to the guardian angel.
There is also a traditional Catholic prayer to the guardian angels, Angele Dei.
Angel of God,
who are my guardian,
and to whom I have been entrusted by the Goodness of God,
enlighten me, defend me,
lead me and direct me.
Amen.19
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