My interest in angels has changed a lot over the years. Also what I knew about them. For example, the only thing I knew about Archangel Michael was that he was going to fight Satan, and hopefully defeat him!
As a child I didn’t really think about angels. I was raised in a Presbyterian culture and angels didn’t seem important, at least they didn’t feature much in our book of Bibles stories for children. Well, the Archangel Gabriel brought an important message to Mary of course, and there were cherubim and a flaming sword stopping Adam and Eve from coming back to the Garden of Eden. Not much to go on really!
Traditional Ideas about Angels Most of what I heard about angels seemed to be that they were in heaven, singing and playing harps and other not so modern instruments.
I wasn’t quite sure what kind of music they played, but my impression was it would be church music and they would be singing hymns. Given that the hymns we sang as a child were rather depressing (except for Christmas carols, always my favorites) this wasn’t a totally attractive picture.
In more recent years, however, I have come to know a lot more about angels. There are lots of different kinds of angels, and so many of them! One book that really taught me a lot, is Angels in My Hair: The True Story of an Irish Mystic by Lorna Byrne which a friend kindly let me borrow.
Guardian Angels
The first kind of angels I became aware of is our Guardian Angels. I learned that we each have a guardian angel assigned to us. And they really do “guard” us. They are there when we are in danger, and they support us through our lives. But of course, we human beings have free will, which means we can ignore their guidance and make bad decisions. How disappointing for our angels!
I believe our guardian angels have great hope for us when we are born, perhaps like we feel about our children. But then, they have no control over how we turn out – for better or worse. I wonder if they compare notes on their person with other guardian angels, and give each other advice on how best to take care of us? There are many books that help us understand how to work with the angels in our lives, not disappoint them.
One important point is that angels can only get involved in our lives when we ask them to. If we ignore them, and don’t ask for help, our lives may go badly, and even end prematurely.
Helped by Angels
Reading these types of books reminds me of an experience I had several years ago. I was on a trip with some friends, and one evening, in the pouring rain, we were on a highway and realized we were close to running out of gas. Somehow, we hadn’t filled up at our last stop and now we were in trouble! There were none of those helpful signs saying how far to the next Services. Someone suggested we should pray.
Finally, an exit appeared and we decided to take it. Arriving at the junction off the exit, the driver hesitated not knowing which way to turn. None of us could figure it out – no cell phones, Google maps, or GPS navigation available in those days! As we sat there, in the rain, suddenly a red pickup truck appeared and stopped beside us. There were two men inside, one older than the other, perhaps father and son, or older and younger brother. We felt no threat from them. One of them opened his window and asked if we needed help. When we said we were looking for a gas station, they said follow us!
Sure enough, in a few minutes we arrived at a gas station, which was open even though it was late. One of my friends jumped out to get the gas. The rest of us were just so relieved.
Then, someone said we should thank the men who led us to this gas station. But when we looked around, the pickup truck was gone. It had vanished! No-one heard it drive off, or saw it leave. It had disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared. Someone said, they must have been angels. Looking back, I believe that was the case. They came to help us in our time of need, and left as soon as we were OK. I’m grateful.
Messages from Angels
There are many books written by people who have received messages from the spiritual realm, usually from their loved ones. Perhaps not so many receive actual messages from angels. Recently a friend shared with me some messages she had received from Archangel Michael at a challenging time in her life.
The content of the messages was a bit difficult to understand, but there was something truly special about them. I had no doubt they were from Archangel Michael. I was so impressed by him! His guidance was truly wise, reflecting great knowledge and concern for my friend. It came to me that this being, this archangel, was wise and knowledgeable because he had existed for a very long time! We are used to thinking God is the eternal being who has been in existence throughout human history, from the beginning of time. But I did not realize that if the archangels were around at the time of the first human beings, and presumably before that – they have existed for a very long time! It is one thing for God to have endured all of human history, the good, but mostly the bad and the ugly. But for this angel to have to suffer through it all too, that kind of blew my mind.
Do Angels Suffer?
I wrote that Michael suffered through human history, and there is the image above of the mourning angel. This made me think, do angels suffer? And my answer is, I believe so. Yes, they are spiritual beings and therefore can’t die a physical death. Maybe they don’t feel physical pain. But can they feel emotional pain? Surely, they are not like robots that just do their assigned jobs taking care of their assigned people, without any emotional attachment.
Goodness, so many animals on the earth express emotion towards us and each other! Anyone who has had a pet, like a dog or a cat, has felt that emotional connection. Not to put down dogs and cats, but the Archangel Michael was clearly a higher order being, and therefore must have complex emotions that go along with all that wisdom.
Then, Michael is the one who is supposed to fight the last battle against Satan. I assume he will not be alone. So there might be a lot of “wounded angels” being carried off the battlefield. I hope not.
So, what do I think about angels now? Well, for starters, I’ve decided they are real! And, by the way, I don’t think they always have those wings that appear in all the works of art. I believe I have met some, looking just like normal human beings, with no wings. Angels can be very helpful. So, it’s a good idea to build a relationship with them, and invite them to be involved in our lives, in a positive way. Who knows where that will lead? We might even solve some of the world’s problems with a bit of help from the angels!
Jennifer P. Tanabe 