WHAT IS AN ANGEL

Introduction
Recent years we have heard many things about angels. Have angels become a
fad? A trend, or are they real? From our childhood we have been infused the idea of
angels in our lives. Angel seem to appear in so many aspects of our lives, today in
YouTube, articles, news reports stories, television shows, literature, historical
anecdotes, art, religious practice, biblical studies. Attention to angels seems to be
everywhere. Angels are no myth. They are a very evident and significant part of
history and spirituality. And in this chapter I have briefly exhibited the origin and
existence of angels.

1 Etymology and Meaning

The word “Angel” is from Greek, “messengers”. In the New Testament they
are found, on the one hand, as divine messengers or ministers and on the other hand,
as among the demonic world rulers.1

2 Do Angels Exist?
People who believe in the existence of Angels can really convince those who
do not believe and vice versa. The parties to the debate cannot persuade one another
because they cannot agree about what I should not count as evidence for Angels”
reality2. There can be no doubt, as we shall see that the Church teaches the existence
of angels, and this is sufficient for us. The Holy Ghost guides the Church in all it tells
us about the facts concerning our salvation, and the Church teaches us to pray to the
angels as guardians of salvation. There are many passages in the New Testament, as
we shall also presently see, which show very clearly that angels really exist.3 Yet it is
a fact that modern man cannot think of angels with the simplicity or subtlety of the
ancients. In order that faith may give him something, which will perfect him and take

1
L. Bouyer, “Angel,” A Dictionary of Christian Theology, 1969, p. 8.
2
S.R. Garrett, No Ordinary Angel: Celestial spirits and Christian claims about Jesus, London,
Yale, 2008, p. 2.
3
P.R. Regamey, What is an Angel, London, Oxford, 1960, p. 7.
him beyond himself, he needs first to recognize its claim upon him.4 Whatever idea
may be felt about the meaning of many of the passages there are some particular
passages in the Gospel so simple and direct that we are compared to believe without
doubt that Angels exist.5

3 Who are Angels?

St. Augustine says: “Angel” is the name of their office, not of their nature. If
you seek the name of their nature, it is “spirit”; if you seek the name of their office, it
is “angel”, from what they are, “spirit”, from what they do, “angel”. With their whole
beings the angels are servants and messengers of God. Because they “always behold
the face of my Father who is in heaven” they are the “mighty ones who do his word,
hearkening to the voice of his word.” As purely spiritual creatures angels have
intelligence and will: they are personal and immortal creatures, surpassing in
perfection all visible creatures, as the splendor of their glory bears witness.6

4 Story of Fallen Angel

One of the stories of Satan’s fail is told in the apocryphal work the Life of
Adam and Eve. According to this work, Satan was one of God’s angels, created on the
first day of creation. When God created human beings, the angels were told to fall
down and do homage to Adam, created in God’s image. So the archangel Michael
worships God first and then pays homage to Adam. But when Michael summons
Satan to do the same, he refuses, saying, “I was created before him; I will not worship
him.” For this reason Satan and his followers were cast out of heaven. His main goal
since then has been the temptation of human beings, so that they too will be banished
from heaven.7 Origen, the third-century Christian theologian, tells another story of the
fall of Satan. He begins by arguing that God did not create anything bad or wicked in
the beginning, so Satan must originally have been good. He then takes Ezekiel’s
condemnation of the prince of Tyre (Ezek 28) and interprets it as a condemnation of

4
Regamey, What is an Angel, p. 10.
5
Regamey, What is an Angel, p.15.
6
Catechism of Catholic Church (CCC), nos. 329-330, Bangalore, TPI, 2013, p. 67.
7
I.H. Alfred, “The Fallen Angel,” in J.B. Green, S. McKnight, eds, Dictionary of Jesus and
the Angels, 1992, p. 72.

2
Satan. The Prince of Tyre is described in such glowing terms that Origen cannot
believe this is a human being; rather, he must be a heavenly creature. He was
“stamped with the seal of perfection, of complete wisdom and perfect beauty,” and
covered with precious jewels (Ezek 28:12-13). But pride corrupted this marvellous
creature. He said, “I am a god" (Ezek 28:2). Therefore he was driven out of paradise
and made a horror to all who see him (Ezek 28:15-19). Origen says that this passage
refers to an adverse power that was formerly holy and happy. But “it fell from this
state of happiness from the time that iniquity was found in it, and was hurled to the
earth.” He believes that these words are spoken of a certain angel. Origen identifies
this angel as Satan or the devil.8

5 Hierarchy of Angels
A Hierarchy of Angels is a belief or tradition found in the angelology of
different religions, which holds that there are different levels or ranks of angels.
Higher ranks may be asserted to have greater power or authority over lower ranks,
and with different ranks, having differences in appearance, such as varying numbers
of wings or faces. The Hierarchy of Angels is as follows:

5.1 Seraphim - are the supreme choir, and “were made for one thing alone – to love
the God of Love.”

5.2 Cherubim - are the “swords of God, Four of the Cherubim stand before the
throne of the Holy Father, One of these angels is often stationed at very holy
sanctuaries.

5.3 Thrones - “The seventh choir, the Thrones, is the choir of authority. Every
diocese, every kingdom, every religious community has its own angel taken from this
choir.” They are mentioned in the “Preface” of many Masses, along with
Dominations, Powers, and other orders.

5.4 Dominions - In the middle hierarchy, the sixth choir is called the Dominations or
“Dominions.” “God assigns angels of this choir to persons who must give spiritual
guidance as teachers in higher schools of learning, from the pulpit, or in the
confessional.”

8
I. Nowell, 101 Questions and Answers on Angels &Devil, Mumbai, St Pauls, 2012, pp. 54-
55.

3
5.5 Virtues - “Some great sinners receive Virtues after their conversion. All persons
inclined to the contemplative life should call on this choir.”

5.6 Guardian Angels- will always “be at our side in heaven.” Characteristics: “Some
appear more active and energetic than others. Some are more reserved, I might almost
say, more timid, and these are assigned to persons who are called to suffer much.” If
souls are lost, their guardians are reassigned to a “special Guard of the Queen of
Angels.”9

6 The Angels in the life of the Church

In the meantime, the whole life of the Church benefits from the mysterious
and powerful help of angels?”In her liturgy, the Church joins with the angels to adore
the thrice-holy God. She invokes their assistance (in the funeral liturgy’s In
Paradisumdeducantteangeli…[“May the angels lead you into Paradise...”]).
Moreover, in the “Cherubic Hymn” of the Byzantine Liturgy she celebrates the
memory of certain angels more particularly (St. Michael, St. Gabriel, St. Raphael, and
the guardian angels). From its beginning until death, human life is surrounded by their
watchful care and intercession. “Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and
shepherd leading him to life.” Already here on earth the Christian life shares by faith
in the blessed company of angels and men united in God.10

7 Guardian Angel
Each one of us is given into the protection of an Angel is a truth which is
declared plainly in Holy Scripture and is universally thought by the theologians. But
as the guardian angel is given the task, above all, of watching over the salvation of our
souls, so is their chief care and their special vigilance directed toward this end.11 With
loving solicitude, the Angels endeavor to divert us from evil and induce us to do
good. By warnings of conscience, by pious impulses, by enlightenment and holy

9
H. Kainz, Angels and Their Hierarchies, December 31, 2015, https://www.thecatholicthing.
org/2015/12/31/angels-and-their-hierarchies/print, accessed 09 September 2019.
10
CCC, nos. 334-336.
11
B.H. Throckmorton, ed., Gospel Parallels: A Synopsis of the First Three Gospel, 4th ed.,
Bangalore, TPI, 2019, p. 34.

4
incentive, by favorable conditions which they arrange, they are incessantly striving to
attain their end.12

8 Angels in Bible
Angels appear in the Bible from the beginning to the end, from the Book of
Genesis to the Book of Revelation. The Bible is our best source of knowledge about
angels. Let us see some the appearance of Angels in bible:
8.1 Garden of Eden
He drove out the man; and at the east of the Garden of Eden he placed the
cherubim, and a sword flaming and turning to guard the way to the tree of life.
(Genesis 3:24)
8.2 Jacob’s Ladder
He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top
reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on
it.(Genesis 28:12)
8.3 God Sends an Angel to Lead Moses
See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to
bring you to the place I have prepared. Pay attention to him and listen to what he says.
Do not rebel against him; he will not forgive your rebellion, since my Name is in him.
(Exodus 23:20-21)
8.4 Eschatology of the world
Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to
the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of
God.”(Revelation 19:9)

9 Belief in Angels according to Islam (Mala’ika)

The word mala’ika is the broken plural of a Semitic word mal’ak which means
“Messenger.” The Qur’an mentions the activity of angels very often, but says nothing
about their origin and nature. The Qur’an speaks about the different duties of angels,
such as, to praise Allah and to carry his throne (69:39;75), to be His messenger
(22:74/75; 35:1), to guard the Holy Quran in heaven (80:15/16), to be the guardians of
man (13;11/12), to help the believers (3:125/121), to write man’s deeds (82:10-12), to

12
C. Corsi, “The Guardian Angels,” Christ to the World 53, 2008, p. 225.

5
receive sinners and punish them (8:50/52), to guard hell (66:6; 74:31), to pray for the
prophets and believers (33:56;33:42/43), and to ask forgiveness for man (4:97/99;
16:28/30). Among the many angels there are four are archangels. They are Jibrail or
Jibril (The angel of revelation), Mika’il or Mikal (The angel who gives sustenance),
Israfil (The angel who will sound the trumpet on the last day) and Izrail or Azrail (The
angel of death). According to Islamic tradition they believe that men are protected by
guardian angels: ten by day, ten by night: thus there are 400 of them to guide man
from birth till death.13

Conclusion
While being open to the good news conveyed by the angels, we too are invited
to become messengers/angels to the world. We are called to participate in the new
evangelization as like angels proclaiming the good news to everyone. While the Holy
Scripture did focus more on heavenly figures, it also recognizes that we can be angels
and we are called to be angels in the lives of others to announce the Good news to the
poor, oppressed, downtrodden etc and this should be our mission.

13
L. Joseph, “The Articles of faith in Islam,” Published Lecture Notes, Faculty of Religion,
IGNOU, 2017, p. 9.

6
 Bibliography
Primary Source
Scripture
The Holy Bible (NRSV), Bangalore, TPI, 2013.
Church Documents
Catechism of Catholic Church (CCC), Bangalore, TPI, 2013.

Secondary Source

Books
Corsi, C.C, “The Guardian Angels,” Christ to the World 53, 2008 pp. 225-228.
Garrett, S.R. No Ordinary Angel: Celestial spirits and Christian claims about Jesus, London,
Yale, 2008.
Nowell, I. 101 Questions and Answers on Angels & Devil, Mumbai, St Pauls, 2012.
Regamey, P.R. What is an Angel, London, Oxford, 1960.
Throckmorton, B.H. ed., Gospel Parallels: A synopsis of the first three Gospel, 4th ed.,
Bangalore, TPI, 2019.
Articles
Bouyer, L. “Angel,” A Dictionary of Christian Theology, 1969, pp. 8-10.
Corsi, C.C. “The Guardian Angels,” Christ to the World 53, 2008.
I.H. Alfred, “The Fallen Angel,” in J.B. Green, S. McKnight, eds, Dictionary of Jesus and the
Angels, 1992, p. 72-74.

Dictionaries
Green, J.B. and S. McKnight, eds, Dictionary of Jesus and the Angels, New York, Robert
Applenton,1992.
Richardson, A. ed., A Dictionary of Christian Theology, Great Britain, SCM, 1969-
1976.
Internet Source

7
Kainz, H. Angels and their Hierarchies, December 31, 2015, https://www.thecatholicthing.
org/2015/12/31/angels-and-their-hierarchies/print, accessed 09 September 2019.

Published Notes
Joseph, L. “The Articles of faith in Islam,” Published Lecture Notes, Faculty of Religion,
IGNOU, 2017.

TABLE OF CONTENTSWHAT IS AN ANGEL

Introduction .................................................................................................. 1

1 Etymology and Meaning ......................................................................... 1

2 Do Angels Exist? ..................................................................................... 1

3 Who are Angels? ..................................................................................... 2

4 Story of Fallen Angel .............................................................................. 2

5 Hierarchy of Angels................................................................................. 3
5.1 Seraphim .......................................................................................................................... 3

5.2 Cherubim.......................................................................................................................... 3

5.3 Thrones ............................................................................................................................ 3

5.4 Dominions ........................................................................................................................ 3

5.5 Virtues .............................................................................................................................. 4

5.6 Guardian Angels ............................................................................................................... 4

6 The Angels in the life of the Church ....................................................... 4

7 Guardian Angel........................................................................................ 4

8 Angels in Bible ........................................................................................ 5

8.1 Garden of Eden ................................................................................................................ 5

8.2 Jacob’s Ladder .................................................................................................................. 5

8
 8.3 God Sends an Angel to Lead Moses ................................................................................. 5

8.4 Eschatology of the world ................................................................................................. 5

9 Belief in Angels according to Islam (Mala’ika) ...................................... 5

Conclusion .................................................................................................. 6

Bibliography ............................................................................................... 7