| Have you ever
wished for the protection of a Guardian Angel that
was good, generous and strong? Have you ever longed for a
being to give you hope when you were feeling weak, vulnerable
and confused? If so, you are not alone. The belief in angels
has a rich spiritual background that has been shared by many
cultures and religions.
The word "angel" is derived from
the Greek word angelos, and is the equivalent of the
Hebrew word meaning "messenger". It was in the Old
Testament that angels first appeared as messengers of truth
coming from God. Angelology and demonology became more highly
developed after the period of the Babylonian exile (6th-5th
centuries BC) when contacts were made with the Persian religion,
Zoroastrianism. In the Old Testament, Yahweh (Jehovah) is
known as the Lord of hosts; these hosts are the heavenly army
that fights against the forces of evil and performs
various missions, such as guarding the entrance to Paradise,
punishing evildoers, protecting the faithful and revealing
God's word to man. Four archangels are named: Michael,
the warrior leader, Gabriel, the heavenly messenger, Raphael,
God's healer and helper and Uriel, the watcher over the world
and the lowest part of Hell. There are also numerous unnamed
archangels, cherubim and seraphim. Christianity, influenced
by the angelology of Jewish sects, further developed beliefs
in angels and demons. To protect themselves from the powers
of the demons and unclean spirits Jews as with Christians
later often carried amulets calling forth the powers of the
angels and archangels. In this era of science, many of us
have discovered that we have a greater kinship than is generally
realized with previous cultures in our attempt to gain a rapport
with the transcendent, social and psychological realms of
everyday life.
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