DATE : 29/9/2020, Tuesday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time (A)
EVENT : Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael (Feast)
COLOUR : WHITE
READINGS : Dan. 7:9-10.13-14; Resp. Psalm 137:1-5; John 1:47-51.
THEME: THE ARCHANGELS ARE AT YOUR SERVICE
Greetings beloved people of God. I welcome you to "My Catholic Homily Digest". As the Church celebrates the feast day of the archangels, Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, I want to reflect with us on the theme "The Archangels are at your Service" Beloved, I am certain that we all have heard something about the archangels and what they did. But, I am not too sure how many of us know the nature, mode of operation and function of these angelic beings. According to the English Dictionary, 'an archangel is a powerful angel that leads many other angels, but is still loyal to a deity'. However, in Christian theology, an archangel is an angel from the third level or choir of angels, ranked above virtues but below powers. archangels are special messengers of God, usually identified with a particular function.
Beloved, we must realise that the word, "angel", signifies a function rather than a state of being. Angels are spirit beings, created by God to sing, adore, worship and extol him day and night. Hence, they can only be called angels when they are sent to deliver some message and usually from God. Thus, those who deliver messages of lesser importance are simply called angels while those that often bear messages of supreme importance and command other fellow angels in executing a given task are called archangels. Now these are the archangels mentioned in the Catholic Bible and their functions:
1. Archang Gabriel : The name could mean; God is mighty; God is my strength; my master is God; or strong man of God. He is often denoted as delivering messages of good news (Luke 1:27-30), or of horror (Dan. 9:21-27).
2. Archangel Michael: The name Michael means, who is like God. He is often denoted as engaged in battle especially against Satan and all evil spirit. He is also known to be the defender of the Church of Christ and all her faithful children. He and his legions are responsible for fighting all our unseen battles (Dan. 12:1).
3 . Archangel Raphael : Raphael could be translated as, God has healed; Healer from God; God's remedy; Or
it is God who heals. In the Deuterocanonical book of Tobit, he is the angel who healed Tobit of his blindness.
Beloved, from the above descriptions, we will realise that the archangels are mere messengers, sent from God to heal, defend and bring us messages from God. Unlike the Man who is made in the image and likeness of God, angels were not created in the image of God, they do not possess freewill like man, they are not mortals, hence they do not have soul and spirit. They exist to carry out the will of God, and the will of God is for us to be happy and to be reunited with him when we die. So, they exist to serve and help us to realise that supreme will of God.
I pray that through the grace of today's celebration, we may receive healing from Raphael, good tidings from Gabriel that will change us for the good, and be defended from the whims and caprices of our enemies. God bless you.
Oh that today you would listen to his voice harden not your hearts (Ps.95:7-8)
LET US PRAY : Lord Jesus, you are gracious, merciful, and kind in all that you do. I implore you to send the archangel holding my portion of blessing to locate me this season....Amen
@ Fada Emmanuel Nnamdi Megwara, MSP. ⛪
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