AN ANGEL WITH WINGS AND HALO
There are many interpretations available to answer the question, What is an angel? The narratives in early books of Scripture portray angels as mere extensions of God, emotionless and featureless. But later texts indicate they are capable of feelings and have individual personalities. For example, the angel who wrestles with Jacob and the angel who foretells of Samson’s birth and mission both refuse to identify themselves. These angels lack personality and warmth; they seem more like robotic minions sent to carry out a job. However, more personalized images of angels are found later, such as the stories about Michael and his special duties, or Luke’s narrative about Gabriel and Mary.
Originally, angels were not described in any one particular way, neither in form nor appearance, nor in function. Says G. Don Gilmore in Angels, Angels, Everywhere: “An angel is a form through which a specific essence or energy force can be transmitted for a specific purpose.”
The more we study how angels are, or were, perceived by different cultures, the more infinitely variable they become. For example, the Gnostics, who were influenced by Persian traditions, believed that angels lived in a world of mystical light between the mundane world and the “Transcendent Causeless Cause”; in other words, between heaven and earth.
Despite the different ideas about how they looked and what they were, angels were part of people’s everyday life until the Middle Ages. But their influence upon the general populace began to wane after the thirteenth century. With the coming of Protestantism, angels took a back seat; Protestants had no need of intermediaries between themselves and God. In fact, that was one of the main reasons for getting rid of Catholicism, so that the individual worshipper could contact God directly without having to go through a priest or other intermediary, including the Virgin Mary and angels.
Although the great Renaissance painters depicted angels as fluffy, friendly winged creatures and as adorable little cherubs floating about the heads of beautiful women with cute children on their laps, angels lost their previous importance for everyday folk. And by the time of the Enlightenment—with its emphasis on science and rational thought—angels had been relegated to the level of fairies (the stuff of poetry, romantic fancy, and children’s stories).
Christians believe that God made angels at or about the time He made the world (Saint Augustine thought the two acts of creation were simultaneous), but before He created human beings. They were given minds and wills, like us, but had no bodies. At some point, according to the Book of Revelation, some of the angels wished to be gods and there was a terrible battle in heaven. The defeated angels then became evil spirits, headed by Satan, who roam the world to this day.
—JOAN WESTER ANDERSON, WHERE ANGELS WALK
The word “angel” is derived from the Greek angelos, which comes from the Hebrew mal’akh, translated literally as “messenger,” and the Latin angelus, also translated as “messenger.” Other roots for the word “angel” come from angiras (Sanskrit), meaning “a divine spirit,” and from angaros, a Persian word meaning “courier,” another term for “messenger.”
However, the image of the angel as messenger, which is the most common that we have, limits angels considerably. From earliest times, angels were never seen as single-purpose beings, even though they did carry out messenger duties.
In the original languages of the Old and New Testaments, the words translated angel literally and simply to mean messenger. And this is how we most often find angels at work in the Bible: carrying a message. When they poke their celestial heads into stories of the Bible, more often than not it is to say something, guide a wandering nation, trumpet astonishing news, or set somebody straight.
—TIMOTHY JONES, CELEBRATION OF ANGELS
As angelology was originally developed in ancient Persia, from where it was absorbed into Judaism and Christianity, and as the medieval church was extremely disputatious as to what exactly an angel is, there is considerable latitude available to the modern person in answering the question, What is an angel?
Whatever you think an angel is might just be the right answer. For people today continue to experience angels through visions, dreams, and meditative states—or altered states of consciousness—just as they have throughout history.
No single description fits all angels. As you’ve learned, biblical accounts tell of angels appearing as ordinary men, or as radiant light, or dressed in shining white garb. Some have wings, some don’t. Angels with wings only occasionally appear in the Bible. Generally speaking, wings were a later addition, dating from the conversion of Constantine the Great.
However, you’ll recall one early description of winged angels. The Old Testament prophet Isaiah described seraphim. These angels stand above the throne of God and are awesome indeed. They have lots of wings—six of them in fact. Two are used to cover their faces, some say against the glory of God, others for shame at human sinfulness. Another two wings were used to cover their feet in a reverential gesture (because they stand before the Highest Holy of Holies). The third pair of wings was used for flying, according them swiftness in delivering God’s messages.
Because He is love in its essence, God appears before the angels . . . as a sun. And from that sun, heat and light go forth; the heat being love and the light, wisdom. And the angels [become] love and wisdom, not from themselves but from the Lord.”
—EMANUEL SWEDENBORG, ANGELIC WISDOM
The biblical story of Adam and Eve describes the cherubim, whom God placed at the east end of the Garden of Eden to keep Adam and Eve from returning to eat the fruit of the second tree, the Tree of Immortal Life: “Cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.”
In later medieval symbolism, seraphim are shown as red, with three pairs of wings, and carrying swords of fire, emblematic of their duty to inflame the hearts of humans with love of God.
Toward the end of the fourth century, angels acquired halos, and it wasn’t long before a halo became regulation attire for angelic appearances, especially in paintings and stained glass windows in churches. This is despite the fact that the word halo doesn’t even appear in the Bible, and in which there is nothing to suggest that angels possess them. However, since the halo is a great symbol to suggest out-of-the-ordinary beings and holiness (the Virgin Mary usually wears a halo as well), and since biblical angel appearances often involve the effect of radiant light, the halo makes sense.
AN ANGEL WITH WINGS AND HALO
The wingless angels seen in the tomb of Christ soon sprouted wings, superseding the literal gospel account of how angels appeared to humans. Wings became a distinguishing characteristic of angels, making them easy to recognize as such.
Wings feature as standard equipment for angels especially after the Renaissance period, during which the great painter Raphael and others displayed angels with enormous feathery wings and benign countenances, marking the beginning of the era of the “nice” angel.
The names of angels are numerous. The least bit of research into this subject reveals not dozens but hundreds of recorded names of angels, and variations of the names of different angels. For example, the archangel Raziel is also known as Akraziel, Saraqael, Suriel, Galisur, N’Zuriel, and Uriel. The seraph Semyaza’s variations are Samiaza, Shemhazai, Amezyarak, Azael, Azaziel, and Uzza. Metatron had a mystery name—Bizbul—but he had over a hundred other names as well.
In Hebrew terms and lore, there are seven heavens, as well as seven archangels:
Other texts reference different names and realms, but most mention the four most popular archangels: Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, and Uriel.
Michael (“who is as God”) ranks as the greatest of all angels, whether in Jewish, Christian, or Islamic lore and writings. Michael is chief of the order of virtues, chief of archangels, prince of the presence (of God), angel of repentance, righteousness, mercy, and sanctification. In early times, he was also the guardian of Jacob and the conqueror of Satan, who was still alive and well and causing mischief among humans.
Michael’s “mystery name” is Sabbathiel, and in Islamic texts, his name is Mika’il. He has been described as the angel who destroyed the armies of Sennacherib (but this feat has also been credited to Gabriel, Uriel, and Ramiel, so take your choice). Michael is supposed to be the angel who stayed Abraham’s knife-wielding hand at the throat of his young son Isaac, forbidding the sacrifice of the child. (This deliverance has also been described as the work of other angels, especially Tadhiel and Metatron.) In Jewish lore, Michael is identified as the burning bush that guided Moses in the desert. Talmudic comment Berakot 35, on Genesis 18:1–10, claims that Michael was one of the three “men” who visited Sarah to announce she would have a child.
Michael has also been equated with the Holy Ghost and the third part of the Trinity; early Muslim tradition places Michael in the seventh heaven, with brilliant green wings the color of emeralds. To Christians, St. Michael is the benevolent angel of death, delivering the souls of the faithful to the immortal realm and the eternal light.
Michael was heard by Joan of Arc. According to the court testimony at her trial, Michael inspired the Maid of Orleans to raise an army and go to the aid of the dauphin of France, who became Charles VII largely due to Joan raising the siege of Orleans.
ST. MICHAEL (BARTOLOMÉ ESTÉBAN MURILLO, C.1665–66)
The number seven is an ancient symbolic number. There were seven Akkadian elemental spirits or deities, which may have been protypical of later cultures having seven rulers or creators in their cosmological systems. These are given as An (heaven); Gula (earth); Ud (sun); Im (storm); Istar, also Ishtar (moon); Ea or Dara (ocean); and En-lil (hell). It has been suggested by some that the original models of the seven archangels were the moon and six planets (the three outer planets, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, were discovered only recently). All of the planets were Babylonian deities.
Gabriel (“God is my strength”) is the second highest ranking angel in the literature of all three of the major monotheistic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The angel of annunciation, resurrection, mercy, vengeance, death, and revelation, he is an extremely busy angel with status to match. In Midrash Eleh Ezkerah, for example, Gabriel is a major figure in the tale of the ten martyrs (Jewish savants). One of these, Rabbi Ishmael, travels to heaven to inquire of Gabriel why they must die. He is told that they must atone for the sin of the ten sons of Jacob, who sold Joseph into slavery.
In the Judaic tradition, Gabriel was the Angel of Judgment, and he could be fierce indeed. However, under the aegis of Christianity, he became transformed into the Angel of Mercy. Such is the power of religious revision of history!
In addition to having been the angel of the annunciation to Mary of her impending pregnancy, Gabriel presides over Paradise. As the ruling prince of the first heaven, he is said to sit on the left-hand side of God. (Presumably, Michael, who is a bit higher in importance, sits at the right-hand side of God, although this position is later given to Mary upon her assumption into heaven.)
Mohammed claimed that Gabriel—or Jibril in Islamic—was the angel who dictated the Koran to him. Mohammedans consider Gabriel to be the spirit of truth. Jewish legend views Gabriel as an angel of death and destruction to sinful cities, Sodom and Gomorrah being especially vivid examples of this angelic fury. And Talmudic lore has it that Gabriel was the angel who smote the armies of Sennacherib “with a sharpened scythe which had been ready since Creation” (Sanhedrin 95b).
THE ANNUNCIATION (LORENZO DI CREDI, C. 1480–85)
Raphael (“God has healed”) is known as the healer, not only of humans but of earth itself. His first appearance is in Tobit. Raphael guides Tobit’s son Tobias on a journey from Nineveh to Media, acting as a companion. At the end of the trek, the angel reveals himself by name as one of the seven holy angels who stand at God’s throne in heaven.
Raphael is a seraph who is also the head of all the guardian angels. He is also known as the Angel of Providence, and in that capacity he watches over all of humanity. This is an extension of his supervisory capacity of the guardian angels, each of whom looks after only one human. He is a sort of angelic CEO of the Guardian Angel Division.
The dossier of Raphael is an inexhaustible file. But one legend stands out; it is taken from the Testament of Solomon. Solomon prays to God for assistance in the building of the temple, and his prayer is answered in the gift of a magical ring, delivered to the Hebrew king personally by Raphael. This ring was engraved with a pentagram—a five-pointed star—and it had the power to summon and control demons. So it was with this God-given demon-labor (free of charge, naturally) that King Solomon completed the building of the great temple. It may be from this tale that we get the common expression, “working like a demon.”
As one who accompanies travelers, Raphael is related to the Greek god Mercury, the patron god of travel and all communications. As usual, these attributes are derived from a long line of historical and mythological connotations that have come down through the ages.
Raphael is especially concerned with pilgrims traveling to some holy site or, metaphysically speaking, on the path toward God. Thus, he is seen walking with a staff, wearing sandals (angels often are barefooted), carrying a water gourd, and with a backpack. Raphael is a friend to the traveler as well as others.
According to the Kabbalah, Raphael was one of the three angels that visited Abraham and Sarah. Another Jewish legend credits Raphael with giving Noah a “medical book” after the flood. It is postulated that this pharmaceutical tome may have been the famous Sefer Raziel (The Book of the Angel Raziel).
The Book of Raziel is an ancient Kabbalah grimoire. The legend of the book is that it encompasses what the Angel Raziel revealed to Adam. It contains a large angelology, information on the planets in the solar system, protective spells, names of God, a method for writing healing amulets, and gematria, among other things.
Not only is Raphael a seraph, but he also belongs to three more celestial orders, including cherubim, dominions, and powers. As such an important archangel, Raphael has many high offices, including regent of the sun, chief of the order of virtues, governor of the south and guardian of the west, ruling prince of the second heaven, overseer of the evening winds, and guardian of the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden, to name some of the more impressive ones. He is also numbered among ten holy sefiroth of the Hebrew Kabbalah.
ARCHANGEL RAPHAEL WITH ADAM AND EVE
In Jewish legend, Uriel (“flame of God”) was the angel of hailstorms (presumably with lightning, since he is called fire), which would relate him to the Greek god Zeus, who had a habit of hurling thunderbolts of lightning when annoyed.
Moses encountered Uriel in the second heaven, and he is said to bring the light of the knowledge of God to humans. Milton named him a regent of the sun (along with Raphael) in Paradise Lost.
The soul at its highest is found like God, but an angel gives a closer idea of Him. That is all an angel is: an idea of God.
—MEISTER ECKHART
Uriel manifests as an eagle, and in the Book of Protection, he is described as a “spell-binding power” and is associated with Michael, Shamshiel, Seraphiel, and other powerful angels. The Zohar I says that Uriel governs the constellation of Virgo. He is said to be 300 parasangs tall and to be accompanied by a retinue of fifty myriads of angels. This entire multitude of attendant angels is made out of water and fire. It’s not clear if some are water and some fire, or each a little of both, which seems a contradiction in terms—but, then, much of biblical lore and heavenly constructions is a contradiction in terms.
Uriel was indeed a grand form to behold. He was said to be 300 parasangs tall. A parasang is an ancient unit of measure that equates to about 3.5 miles. That means that Uriel stood about 1,050 miles tall! And Uriel was acoompanied by fifty myriads of angels. In Ancient Greek, a “myriad” was technically the number ten thousand, making Uriel’s entourage 500,000 angels. Truly, this sight must have been something to behold.
Every visible thing in this world is put in the charge of an angel.
—ST. AUGUSTINE, EIGHTY-THREE DIFFERENT QUESTIONS