Belief in angels pre-dates Church

By Tony Staley
Compass Editor

	The Guardian Angels When: Belief in angels began before the time of Christ What: Protect each person from harm Feast: Oct. 2

One reason to look to the lives of the saints is for the example they offer in the hope that we might one day be one of them.

Guardian angels aren't saints in the way Francis of Assisi or Thérèse of Lisieux are and there is no way for us to become an angel. Rather, we see the role of these spiritual beings as one of guiding us to eternal life with God and protecting us from spiritual and physical harm.

The idea of angels is found among Jews and some pagans before the birth of Christ. There are references to angels in Tb 12:12,15, which speaks of God sending the archangel Raphael to help Tobias and Sara; Dn 10:13 and 12:1, when Michael assists the Chosen People; and Lk 1:11-21 and 1:26-38, when Gabriel told of the birth of John the Baptist and asked Mary to be the mother of Christ.

Our concept of angels gradually expanded to include guardian angels, whom God assigns to each person.

This idea probably grew from the words of Jesus: "Never despise one of these little ones; I tell you, they have their guardian angels in heaven, who look continually on the face of my heavenly Father" (Mt 18:10).

In Acts of the Apostles, after an angel saves St. Peter from King Herod, the apostle shows up at the door of Mary, the mother of John Mark, and the people inside, who can't believe it's Peter, say, "It must be his guardian angel" (Acts 12:1-15).

The passage from Matthew has led to the popular depiction in art of guardian angels protecting children from all types of harm.

Popular culture has picked up the idea of angels in movies such as It's a Wonderful Life (1946) and The Bishop's Wife (1947). And in the last several years, two popular TV series, Highway to Heaven and Touched by an Angel, have angels playing key roles. And who hasn't heard of - if not experienced - some rescue from disaster that could be attributed only to an angel?

The Church has had little to say about angels, though the Catechism of the Catholic Church (No. 336) accepts both their existence and traditional role. And their presence on the church calendar also acknowledges them.

References to the angels in the Mass go back to the early church. A special Mass of the Angels has been traced back to the time of Alcuin, who died in 804. By 1411 in Valencia, Spain, there was an observance for guardian angels for people, cities and provinces. A century later it was observed in Portugal and in 1670 Pope Clement X extended the observance to the entire church. The date was chosen because it was the first free day on the church calendar after the feast of St. Michael on Sept. 29.