Guardian Angels Series

Section 336 of the Catholic Church's Catechism, states: 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.

Okay, that sounds reasonable and might not be in conflict with the Bible, depending on how you interpret that last line. However did you know Catholics endorse specific prayers directed towards an individual person's personal guardian angel? They say your words and your prayer combined with God's help through his emissary, your guardian angel, can get you through times of darkness. Here is that prayer: Angel of God, my guardian dear, to whom His love entrusts me here, ever this day [night] be at my side to light and guard, to rule and guide.

As a side note, what I find amusing about that is if a picture is included with a printed, or image, copy of that prayer, 90 percent of the time it is a female angel. Now, I ask you, what is strange about that?

The concept of guardian angels can be seen in the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament. These records describe angels as God's emissaries who carry out His bidding and dispatch His messages. The word 'angel' means “messenger of God.” Yes, sometimes angels are merely messengers, but they can deliver earth shaking, momentous news. Like when God sent the angel Gabriel to deliver a message of comfort, clarity, and faithful conviction to the Virgin Mary. The angel prophesied that her Son, to be named Jesus, would be great and be called the Son of the Most High God.

The Bible speaks explicitly of only two angels by name. Gabriel in Luke 1:26 and Michael in Daniel 10:13. However, the Bible relates that various types of angels exist:

Archangels—like Michael, chief angels. (A position once held by Lucifer.)

Cherubim—as the angels placed in front of the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:24)

Seraphim—angels with six wings, known for praising God (Isaiah 6)

The three types above, plus Satan and his fallen angels, are explicitly recorded by Scripture. Some Christian theologies divine more categories like Thrones Angels, Dominion Angels, Principalities Angels, Powers Angels, and Virtues Angels.

At times, the Bible informs us that God's angels can be warriors. In Revelation 12:7-12, John provides the historical record of the first 'Battle of Angels'. And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”

Another biblical example of warring angels can be read from 2 Kings 6, where we read the King of Aram is at war with Israel, and decided to send his army to go after the prophet Elisha who was giving the King of Israel insights that literally revealed and sabotaged the King of Syria military strategies! “Therefore, King Joram sent horses and chariots and a great army to Dothan, where Elisha was based, and they came by night and surrounded the city. And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” So, he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” And Elisha prayed, and said, “Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”

When commanded to, God’s angels carry out swift judgment against those who are evil. On a single night, the angel of the LORD went to the Assyrian camp and killed 185,000 Assyrian soldiers. When the few surviving Assyrians woke up the next morning, they found corpses everywhere” (2 Kings 19:35). Imagine, if only one angel could accomplish that, how powerful would an army of angels be?