"I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you." ~ Luke 10:19
"A sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. " ~ Revelation 12: 3-4
"In that day the LORD will take his terrible, swift sword and punish Leviathan, the swiftly moving serpent, the coiling, writhing serpent. He will kill the dragon of the sea." ~ Isaiah 27:1
"The Archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" ~~ Jude 9
"And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book." ~~ Daniel 12:1
"And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought his angels and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." ~~ Revelation 12:7-9
"An angel came and stood at the altar in heaven with a golden censer; and he was given much incense to mingle with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne; and the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God" - Revelation 8:3–4
Some are skeptical about angelic invocation during prayer time. Some consider angelic prayer, or praying to or with the saints, superstitious necromancing. I find this dispiriting and the way I see it, if one is going to believe in the Almighty Father, as one should, then all of us believers who believe in the Father need to acquire a better understanding of His heavenly, familial, righteousness. God is a father and everyone and everything within His kingdom is there because He wills it. No one is dead if they are in Christ. Angels, for us, are a gift from God. Devotions to God's Messengers are a gift also; a tool to be used to combat evil and find protection. The angels are pure spiritual beings who have a free will and an intellect that is far superior to ours.
"Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, hearkening to the voice of his word! Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers that do his will!" (Ps. 103:20–21). And in the opening verses of Psalms 148 we pray, "Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his host!" Not only do those in heaven pray with us, they also pray for us.
Whoever is in heaven is a saint. God uses angels as messengers, guardians, and all-around helpers to us ... as well as to reflect his glory. In the Book of Tobit 12:12, the Archangel Raphael said to Tobias, "So now when you and Sarah prayed, it was I who brought and read the record of your prayer before the glory of the Lord, and likewise whenever you would bury the dead." In Tobit 12:14-16, we read, "And at the same time God sent me to heal you and Sarah your daughter-in-law. I am Raphael, one of the seven angels who stand ready and enter before the glory of the Lord. The two of them were shaken; they fell face down, for they were afraid."
They neither marry nor are given in marriage (Matt. 22:30). They have no worries about the future either, and no fear of death. For, though God created them before man, they are neither aged nor aging, but unchangingly youthful, beautiful and strong. They have no anxiety about their salvation and no struggle for immorality, being already immortal (Luke 20:36). Unlike men, they are not faltering between good and evil, being already good and holy as when God created them.
"The guardian angel will not retreat from us, unless we drive him away by our evil deeds. As the smoke drives bees away, and stench the doves, even so our stinking sin drives away from us the angel who protects our life." Saint Basil the Great
"An angel, then, is an intelligent essence, in perpetual motion, with free will, incorporeal, ministering to God, having obtained by grace an immortal nature. The Creator alone knows the form and limitation of the angelic essence; but all that we can understand is that it is incorporeal and immaterial. For all that is compared with god, Who alone is incomparable, we find to be dense and material. For in reality only the Deity is immaterial and incorporeal." Saint John of Damascus
At Mass we join the angels in invoking the thrice-holy God. Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God of Hosts! (Sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth) ~ This is the angelic hymn, first noted in Isaiah 6:3!
Following Scriptural passages, Christian tradition gives to St. Michael four offices: (1) To fight against Satan. (2) To rescue the souls of the faithful from the power of the devil, especially at the hour of death. (3) To be the champion of God's people, the Jews in the Old Law, the Christians in the New Testament; therefore he was the patron of the Church, and of the order of knights during the Middle Ages. (4) To call away from earth and bring men's souls to judgment
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” - St. Paul the Apostle
The Chaplet of Saint Michael
Promises of St. Michael
"Whoever would practice this devotion in his honor would have, when approaching the Holy Table, an escort of nine angels chosen from each of the nine Choirs. In addition, for the daily recital of these nine salutations, he promised his continual assistance and that all the holy angels during life, and after death deliverance from Purgatory for themselves and all their relations."
How to say this Chaplet
The chaplet can begin with the invocation on the medal. Then say one Our Father and three Hail Marys after each of the nine salutations in honor of the Nine Choir of Angels as follows:
Invocation on the Medal
O God, come to my assistance! O Lord, make haste to help me! Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.Amen.
First Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of Seraphim, may it please God to make us worthy to receive into our hearts the fire of his perfect charity. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Second Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of Cherubim, may God in his good pleasure, grant us grace to abandon the ways of sin, and follow the path of Christian perfection. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Third Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the sacred Choir of Thrones, may it please God to infuse into our hearts the spirit of true and sincere humility. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Fourth Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of the Dominions, may it please God to grant us grace to have dominion over our senses, and to correct our depraved passions. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Fifth Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of the Powers, may God vouchsafe to keep our souls from the wiles and temptations of the devil. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Sixth Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the admirable heavenly Choir of the Virtues, may it please God to keep us from falling into temptation, and may He deliver us from evil. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Seventh Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of Principalities, may it please God to fill our souls with the spirit of true and sincere obedience. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Eighth Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of Archangels, may it please God to grant us the gift of perseverance in the faith, and in all good works, that we may be thereby enabled to attain the glory of paradise. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Ninth Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of all the Angels, may God vouchsafe to grant us their guardianship through this mortal life, and after death a happy entrance into the everlasting glory of heaven. Amen
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
1 Our Father In honor of St. Michael.
1 Our Father In honor of St. Gabriel.
1 Our Father In honor of St. Raphael.
1 Our Father In honor of our Guardian Angel.
O glorious Prince St. Michael, chief and commander of the Heavenly Hosts, guardian of souls, vanquisher of rebel spirits, servant in the house of the Divine King, and our admirable conductor, you who does shine with excellence and superhuman virtue, vouchsafe to deliver us from all evil, who turn to you with confidence, and enable us by thy gracious protection to serve God more and more faithfully every day.
Prayer
Almighty and Eternal God, who in Your own marvelous goodness and pity did, for the common salvation of man, choose the glorious Archangel Michael to be the prince of the Church: make us worthy, we pray You, to be delivered by his beneficent protection from all our enemies, that, at the hour of our death, none of them may approach to harm us; rather do Thou vouchsafe unto us that by the same Archangel Michael, we may be introduced into the presence of Your Most High and Divine Majesty. Through the merits of the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Blessed Virgin, Queen of Heaven
Prayer
Majestic Queen of Heaven and Mistress of the Angels,
you did receive from God the power and commission to crush the head of Satan;
wherefore we humbly beseech you, send forth the Legions of Heaven, that, under your command,
they may seek out all evil spirits, engage them everywhere in battle, curb their insolence,
and hurl them back into the pit of hell. “Who is like unto God?”
O good and tender Mother, thou shalt ever be our hope and the object of our love.
O Mother of God, send forth the holy Angels to defend me and drive far from me the cruel foe.
Holy Angels and Archangels, defend us and keep us. Amen.
ANGELS and WHAT THEY DO
HIERARCHY of ANGELS
The rich imagery of Isaiah reveals that the Seraphim are closest to the throne of God. This means that they perceive God in the richest way possible for a created being and thus they have an unmatched intellect, will and love.
+
FIRST CHOIR
1. Seraphim, 2. Cherubim, 3. Thrones - closest to heaven concern themselves with contemplating the glory of God. It is the 6-winged Seraphim who sing the Sanctus, "Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of Hosts" (Isaiah 6:3).
++
++ 1. SERAPHIM ++
Seraphim (singular "Seraph"), mentioned in Isaiah 6:1-7,[3] serve as the caretakers of God's throne and continuously shout praises: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. All the earth is filled with His Glory." The name Seraphim means "the burning ones." It is said that the charity of the Seraphim burns like white heat in a flame. The Seraphim have six wings; two covering their faces, two covering their genitals ("feet"), and two with which they fly.++ 2. CHERUBIM ++
Cherubim have four faces: one of each a man, an ox, a lion, and a griffon vulture. They have four conjoined wings covered with eyes, and they have ox's feet. Cherubim guard the way to the tree of life in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:24,4 and the throne of God (Ezekiel 28:14-16).5 -- The cherubim are mentioned in Genesis 3:24;4 Exodus 25:17-22; 2 Chronicles 3:7-14; Ezekiel 10:12–14,[6] 28:14-16;[5] 1 Kings 6:23–28;[7] and Revelation 4:6-8. Cherubim are also the angels often depicted as babies with wings in Christian art.
++ 3. THRONES ++
The "Thrones" or Elders, are a class of celestial beings mentioned by Paul of Tarsus in Colossians 1:16 (New Testament). They are living symbols of God's justice and authority, and have as one of their symbols the throne. These high celestial beings appear to be mentioned again in Revelation 11:16. Also seeEzekiel 10:17, and vision of Daniel 7 - 9). The Thrones are said to be the way by which God accomplishes his judgements (St. Gregory).
+
SECOND CHOIR
4. Dominations, 5. Virtues, 6. Powers. The second order of angels are charged with governing and ordering the laws of the created universe.
+
++ 4. DOMINATIONS ++
The "Dominions" are presented as the hierarchy of celestial beings "Lordships" in the De Coelesti Hierarchia. The Dominions, regulate the duties of lower angels. It is only with extreme rarity that they make themselves physically known to humans and are believed to look like beautiful humans with feathered wings as shown in art. They are also the angels who preside over nations.++
5. VIRTUES ++
The "Virtues" or "Strongholds" lie beyond the ophanim (Thrones/Wheels). Their primary duty is to supervise the movements of the heavenly bodies in order to ensure that the cosmos remains in order. The term also appears to be linked to the attribute "might", from a Greek root. In Ephesians 1:21, which is also translated as "Virtue". They are charged with giving the power with which to accomplish the ordering of Nature.
++ 6. POWERS ++
The "Powers" or "Authorities", from the Greek exousies, (see Greek root in Eph 3:10) appear to collaborate, in power and authority, with the Principalities (Rulers). They are bearers of conscience and keepers of history. They are also the warrior angels created to be completely loyal to God. Their duty is to oversee the distribution of power among humankind, hence their name. Finally, the choir of Powers are given the duty to order out how to execute what has been commanded. The choir of Powers direct the lower choirs on how to order creation.
+
THIRD CHOIR
7. Principalities, 8. Archangels, 9. Angels (closest to earth) concern themselves with creation and are the most familiar to us.
+
++ 7. PRINCIPALITIES ++
"Principalities" also translated as "Princedoms" and "Rulers", from the Greek arche (see Greek root in Eph 3:10), appear to collaborate, in power and authority with the Powers (Authorities). Shown wearing a crown and carrying a sceptre, their duty is also said to be to carry out the orders given to them by the Dominions and bequeath blessings to the material world. Their task is to oversee groups of people. They are the educators and guardians of the realm of earth. Like beings related to the world of the germinal ideas, they are said to inspire living things to many things such as art or science. Principalities are the leaders of the last order, and direct the actual implementation of God’s will.++ 8. ARCHANGELS ++
The word "arch-angel" comes from the Greek (archang?l?s), meaning chief angel, a translation of the Hebrew (rav-mal'ákh) [9] It derives from the Greek arch?, meaning to be first in rank or power; which means messenger. The word is only used twice in the New Testament: 1 Thessalonians 4:16 and Jude 1:9. Only archangels Michael and Gabriel are mentioned by name in the New Testament.
++ 9. ANGELS ++
The "angels", are the lowest order of the angels, and the most recognized and are most concerned with the affairs of living things. In this category of angels, there are many different kinds with different functions. Archangels and Angels actually carry out and execute what is to be done. They are the messengers to mankind. This is why angels (such as Gabriel and Raphael) are the choir sent to communicate with man.
"In that day the LORD will take his terrible, swift sword and punish Leviathan, the swiftly moving serpent, the coiling, writhing serpent. He will kill the dragon of the sea." ~ Isaiah 27:1
"The Archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" ~~ Jude 9
"And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book." ~~ Daniel 12:1
"And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought his angels and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." ~~ Revelation 12:7-9
"An angel came and stood at the altar in heaven with a golden censer; and he was given much incense to mingle with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne; and the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God" - Revelation 8:3–4
Some are skeptical about angelic invocation during prayer time. Some consider angelic prayer, or praying to or with the saints, superstitious necromancing. I find this dispiriting and the way I see it, if one is going to believe in the Almighty Father, as one should, then all of us believers who believe in the Father need to acquire a better understanding of His heavenly, familial, righteousness. God is a father and everyone and everything within His kingdom is there because He wills it. No one is dead if they are in Christ. Angels, for us, are a gift from God. Devotions to God's Messengers are a gift also; a tool to be used to combat evil and find protection. The angels are pure spiritual beings who have a free will and an intellect that is far superior to ours.
"Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, hearkening to the voice of his word! Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers that do his will!" (Ps. 103:20–21). And in the opening verses of Psalms 148 we pray, "Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his host!" Not only do those in heaven pray with us, they also pray for us.
Whoever is in heaven is a saint. God uses angels as messengers, guardians, and all-around helpers to us ... as well as to reflect his glory. In the Book of Tobit 12:12, the Archangel Raphael said to Tobias, "So now when you and Sarah prayed, it was I who brought and read the record of your prayer before the glory of the Lord, and likewise whenever you would bury the dead." In Tobit 12:14-16, we read, "And at the same time God sent me to heal you and Sarah your daughter-in-law. I am Raphael, one of the seven angels who stand ready and enter before the glory of the Lord. The two of them were shaken; they fell face down, for they were afraid."
They neither marry nor are given in marriage (Matt. 22:30). They have no worries about the future either, and no fear of death. For, though God created them before man, they are neither aged nor aging, but unchangingly youthful, beautiful and strong. They have no anxiety about their salvation and no struggle for immorality, being already immortal (Luke 20:36). Unlike men, they are not faltering between good and evil, being already good and holy as when God created them.
"The guardian angel will not retreat from us, unless we drive him away by our evil deeds. As the smoke drives bees away, and stench the doves, even so our stinking sin drives away from us the angel who protects our life." Saint Basil the Great
"An angel, then, is an intelligent essence, in perpetual motion, with free will, incorporeal, ministering to God, having obtained by grace an immortal nature. The Creator alone knows the form and limitation of the angelic essence; but all that we can understand is that it is incorporeal and immaterial. For all that is compared with god, Who alone is incomparable, we find to be dense and material. For in reality only the Deity is immaterial and incorporeal." Saint John of Damascus
At Mass we join the angels in invoking the thrice-holy God. Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God of Hosts! (Sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth) ~ This is the angelic hymn, first noted in Isaiah 6:3!
Following Scriptural passages, Christian tradition gives to St. Michael four offices: (1) To fight against Satan. (2) To rescue the souls of the faithful from the power of the devil, especially at the hour of death. (3) To be the champion of God's people, the Jews in the Old Law, the Christians in the New Testament; therefore he was the patron of the Church, and of the order of knights during the Middle Ages. (4) To call away from earth and bring men's souls to judgment
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” - St. Paul the Apostle
The Chaplet of Saint Michael
Promises of St. Michael
"Whoever would practice this devotion in his honor would have, when approaching the Holy Table, an escort of nine angels chosen from each of the nine Choirs. In addition, for the daily recital of these nine salutations, he promised his continual assistance and that all the holy angels during life, and after death deliverance from Purgatory for themselves and all their relations."
How to say this Chaplet
The chaplet can begin with the invocation on the medal. Then say one Our Father and three Hail Marys after each of the nine salutations in honor of the Nine Choir of Angels as follows:
Invocation on the Medal
O God, come to my assistance! O Lord, make haste to help me! Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.Amen.
First Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of Seraphim, may it please God to make us worthy to receive into our hearts the fire of his perfect charity. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Second Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of Cherubim, may God in his good pleasure, grant us grace to abandon the ways of sin, and follow the path of Christian perfection. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Third Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the sacred Choir of Thrones, may it please God to infuse into our hearts the spirit of true and sincere humility. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Fourth Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of the Dominions, may it please God to grant us grace to have dominion over our senses, and to correct our depraved passions. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Fifth Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of the Powers, may God vouchsafe to keep our souls from the wiles and temptations of the devil. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Sixth Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the admirable heavenly Choir of the Virtues, may it please God to keep us from falling into temptation, and may He deliver us from evil. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Seventh Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of Principalities, may it please God to fill our souls with the spirit of true and sincere obedience. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Eighth Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of Archangels, may it please God to grant us the gift of perseverance in the faith, and in all good works, that we may be thereby enabled to attain the glory of paradise. Amen.
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
Ninth Salutation
By the intercession of St. Michael and the heavenly Choir of all the Angels, may God vouchsafe to grant us their guardianship through this mortal life, and after death a happy entrance into the everlasting glory of heaven. Amen
(1 Our Father and 3 Hail Marys)
1 Our Father In honor of St. Michael.
1 Our Father In honor of St. Gabriel.
1 Our Father In honor of St. Raphael.
1 Our Father In honor of our Guardian Angel.
O glorious Prince St. Michael, chief and commander of the Heavenly Hosts, guardian of souls, vanquisher of rebel spirits, servant in the house of the Divine King, and our admirable conductor, you who does shine with excellence and superhuman virtue, vouchsafe to deliver us from all evil, who turn to you with confidence, and enable us by thy gracious protection to serve God more and more faithfully every day.
Prayer
Almighty and Eternal God, who in Your own marvelous goodness and pity did, for the common salvation of man, choose the glorious Archangel Michael to be the prince of the Church: make us worthy, we pray You, to be delivered by his beneficent protection from all our enemies, that, at the hour of our death, none of them may approach to harm us; rather do Thou vouchsafe unto us that by the same Archangel Michael, we may be introduced into the presence of Your Most High and Divine Majesty. Through the merits of the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Blessed Virgin, Queen of Heaven
Prayer
Majestic Queen of Heaven and Mistress of the Angels,
you did receive from God the power and commission to crush the head of Satan;
wherefore we humbly beseech you, send forth the Legions of Heaven, that, under your command,
they may seek out all evil spirits, engage them everywhere in battle, curb their insolence,
and hurl them back into the pit of hell. “Who is like unto God?”
O good and tender Mother, thou shalt ever be our hope and the object of our love.
O Mother of God, send forth the holy Angels to defend me and drive far from me the cruel foe.
Holy Angels and Archangels, defend us and keep us. Amen.
ANGELS and WHAT THEY DO
HIERARCHY of ANGELS
The rich imagery of Isaiah reveals that the Seraphim are closest to the throne of God. This means that they perceive God in the richest way possible for a created being and thus they have an unmatched intellect, will and love.
+
FIRST CHOIR
1. Seraphim, 2. Cherubim, 3. Thrones - closest to heaven concern themselves with contemplating the glory of God. It is the 6-winged Seraphim who sing the Sanctus, "Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of Hosts" (Isaiah 6:3).
++
++ 1. SERAPHIM ++
Seraphim (singular "Seraph"), mentioned in Isaiah 6:1-7,[3] serve as the caretakers of God's throne and continuously shout praises: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. All the earth is filled with His Glory." The name Seraphim means "the burning ones." It is said that the charity of the Seraphim burns like white heat in a flame. The Seraphim have six wings; two covering their faces, two covering their genitals ("feet"), and two with which they fly.++ 2. CHERUBIM ++
Cherubim have four faces: one of each a man, an ox, a lion, and a griffon vulture. They have four conjoined wings covered with eyes, and they have ox's feet. Cherubim guard the way to the tree of life in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:24,4 and the throne of God (Ezekiel 28:14-16).5 -- The cherubim are mentioned in Genesis 3:24;4 Exodus 25:17-22; 2 Chronicles 3:7-14; Ezekiel 10:12–14,[6] 28:14-16;[5] 1 Kings 6:23–28;[7] and Revelation 4:6-8. Cherubim are also the angels often depicted as babies with wings in Christian art.
++ 3. THRONES ++
The "Thrones" or Elders, are a class of celestial beings mentioned by Paul of Tarsus in Colossians 1:16 (New Testament). They are living symbols of God's justice and authority, and have as one of their symbols the throne. These high celestial beings appear to be mentioned again in Revelation 11:16. Also seeEzekiel 10:17, and vision of Daniel 7 - 9). The Thrones are said to be the way by which God accomplishes his judgements (St. Gregory).
+
SECOND CHOIR
4. Dominations, 5. Virtues, 6. Powers. The second order of angels are charged with governing and ordering the laws of the created universe.
+
++ 4. DOMINATIONS ++
The "Dominions" are presented as the hierarchy of celestial beings "Lordships" in the De Coelesti Hierarchia. The Dominions, regulate the duties of lower angels. It is only with extreme rarity that they make themselves physically known to humans and are believed to look like beautiful humans with feathered wings as shown in art. They are also the angels who preside over nations.++
5. VIRTUES ++
The "Virtues" or "Strongholds" lie beyond the ophanim (Thrones/Wheels). Their primary duty is to supervise the movements of the heavenly bodies in order to ensure that the cosmos remains in order. The term also appears to be linked to the attribute "might", from a Greek root. In Ephesians 1:21, which is also translated as "Virtue". They are charged with giving the power with which to accomplish the ordering of Nature.
++ 6. POWERS ++
The "Powers" or "Authorities", from the Greek exousies, (see Greek root in Eph 3:10) appear to collaborate, in power and authority, with the Principalities (Rulers). They are bearers of conscience and keepers of history. They are also the warrior angels created to be completely loyal to God. Their duty is to oversee the distribution of power among humankind, hence their name. Finally, the choir of Powers are given the duty to order out how to execute what has been commanded. The choir of Powers direct the lower choirs on how to order creation.
+
THIRD CHOIR
7. Principalities, 8. Archangels, 9. Angels (closest to earth) concern themselves with creation and are the most familiar to us.
+
++ 7. PRINCIPALITIES ++
"Principalities" also translated as "Princedoms" and "Rulers", from the Greek arche (see Greek root in Eph 3:10), appear to collaborate, in power and authority with the Powers (Authorities). Shown wearing a crown and carrying a sceptre, their duty is also said to be to carry out the orders given to them by the Dominions and bequeath blessings to the material world. Their task is to oversee groups of people. They are the educators and guardians of the realm of earth. Like beings related to the world of the germinal ideas, they are said to inspire living things to many things such as art or science. Principalities are the leaders of the last order, and direct the actual implementation of God’s will.++ 8. ARCHANGELS ++
The word "arch-angel" comes from the Greek (archang?l?s), meaning chief angel, a translation of the Hebrew (rav-mal'ákh) [9] It derives from the Greek arch?, meaning to be first in rank or power; which means messenger. The word is only used twice in the New Testament: 1 Thessalonians 4:16 and Jude 1:9. Only archangels Michael and Gabriel are mentioned by name in the New Testament.
++ 9. ANGELS ++
The "angels", are the lowest order of the angels, and the most recognized and are most concerned with the affairs of living things. In this category of angels, there are many different kinds with different functions. Archangels and Angels actually carry out and execute what is to be done. They are the messengers to mankind. This is why angels (such as Gabriel and Raphael) are the choir sent to communicate with man.
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