LESSON 6
ANGELS
"Adore Him, all you His angels." (Psalms 96:7)
DIRECTIONS TO THE STUDENT
Everything in God's world is either material or spiritual. You must give up the notion that the only real things are material- things you can see and touch. Spiritual things are just as real as material things. Angels are spiritual beings.
Christ has told us that angels exist; therefore in order to be a Christian, you must believe that angels exist. We must believe what Christ tells us because it is God who tells us.
A. ANGELS ARE REAL The creatures most like God are the angels. Angels are the most perfect images of God. They show forth His goodness, His majesty, and His glory .The angels are spirits; they are persons without bodies. To deny that angels exist because you cannot see them is the same as denying that you have thoughts because you cannot see your thoughts.
The number of angels is staggering. The stars visible in the summer skies are a mere handful compared with the number of the angels. All the men living in the world today are perhaps few in comparison with the any of heavenly spirits. It was not difficult for Almighty God to fill the heavens with large numbers of angels on the first Christmas night. The prophet Daniel gives us a hint of their number when he says: "Thousands of thousands ministered to Him. and ten thousand times a hundred thousand stood before Him."
Angels are spirits: they do not grow or eat food or feel pain; they do not get sick, become old or die. Angels are neither men nor women, neither tall nor short, neither fat nor thin; they are not old or young, sick or healthy. Angels have no bodies-they are spirits. Don't worry about how an angel gets his clothes on over his huge wings-he has no wings, no clothes, no body!
And because angels are spirits, they can travel from place to place faster than the hastest jet place. An agel can go from Chicago to London in the time it takes you to think of Chicago and London.
Angels have tremendous knowledge. They received this knowledge directly from God when they were created. All that men have learned through patient study through the centuries, they know-and they know better than human beings will ever know. They know all the details of our world, not in a blurred fashion as we often do, but sharply, concretely and thoroughly. Even though angels may not know the secrets of our hearts, they know a great deal about us from our actions. They can coax us to good or evil, they can threaten or frighten us.
The Bible speaks of angels more than three hundred times. The first angels mentioned in the Bible were those sent by God to keep Adam and Eve out of the garden of Eden. We also read in the Old Testament that Almighty God sent an angel to accompany Tobias on a journey and another angel to protect Azarias and his companions.
"The Angel of the Lord went down with Azarias and his companions into the furnace. And he drove the flame of the fire out of the furnace." (Daniel 3:49)
The Gospels tell us that angels played an important part in the life of Christ. Before Our Lord was born we read that an angel was sent to Zachary to tell him that he was to be the father of John the Baptist. The angel Gabriel was sent to Mary to tell her that she was to be the mother of God.
"Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women." (Luke 1 :28)
On the first Christmas night an angel announced to the shepherds the coming of the Savior: " Do not fear ,for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy, that shall be to all the people. For this day is born to you a Savior, Who is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2:10-11)
Later, when Herod was trying to kill the infant Christ, an angel was sent to Joseph to warn him to take Jesus and Mary and go quickly into the land of Egypt. During Our Lord's life on earth angels formed His constant guard of honor. In the Garden of Gethsemani an angel comforted Our Lord in His agony; there, too, Our Lord reminded Peter that He had at His disposal thousands of angels.
B. THE ANGELS WERE CREATED TO SERVE AND PRAISE GOD IN HEAVEN
The first purpose for which God created the angels was to serve and praise Him in heaven.
In the Bible we read that "they (the angels) cried one to another, and said: Holy, Holy Holy, the Lord God of hosts, all the earth is full of his glory." (Isaias 8:3)
Again in the New Testament we read: " And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne." (Apocalypse 8:11 )
C. ANGELS ACT AS GOD'S MESSENGERS TO MEN
God often makes use of angels to act as His messengers to men. In fact the word "angel" means messenger. We have already seen that angels were sent as messengers to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, the shepherds and others.
D. YOU HAVE A GUARDIAN ANGEL. God loves every person whom He has created. Even if a man does not know God or does not serve God, God still loves him. God loves you even if you are in serious sin. Because He loves you, He has sent to you and to every other human being a guardian angel. As soon as a baby is born God sends an angel to guard that baby.
Christ tells us: "See that you despise not one of these little ones: for 1 say to you that their angels in heaven always see the face of My Father who is in heaven." (Matthew 18:10)
Your guardian angel stays with you to keep you from harm and to warn you of dangers to your soul. Even those in mortal sin have guardian angels-every adulterer, every murderer, every robber!
This is the official teaching of the Catholic Church about guardian angels: "To angels is committed by the providence of God the office of guarding the human race, and to be ready at hand with every man to protect him from any serious harm. For as parents appoint persons to guard their children if they have to travel on a dangerous road, and protect them from attack, so does our heavenly Father place over each of us in this our journey toward our heavenly country , angels to protect us by their aid and watchfulness, that we may escape the traps secretly laid for us by our enemies, and go safely on our journey along the road that leads directly to heaven."
As you begin to study the teachings of Christ, what a wonderful consolation it is to know that you have a guardian angel who helps you.
Every adult should learn this prayer to his guardian angel: "Angel of God, my guardian dear, to whom His love commits me here, ever this day be at my side, to light and guard, to rule and guide." Teach your children this prayer too. Anyone who says this prayer regularly will get special help from God at the hour of death.
E. THE DEVIL
The devil is a real person. He is an angel- a bad angel. The Bible tells us: .'There was a great battle in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon, and the dragon fought with his angels. And they prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And that great dragon was cast out. that old serpent who is called the devil and Satan. who seduceth the whole world.'. (Apocalypse 12:7-9)
The devil, (Satan, Lucifer) is a fallen angel. An angel is all intellect and all will, without a body. When God created the angels, He gave them great wisdom and power. Lucifer and the other evil angels rose up in rebellion against Almighty God and because of their sin they were hurled into hell forever. Thus the devils are really fallen angels.
" F or our wrestling is not against flesh and blood: but against principalities and powers against the rulers of the world of this darkness, against the spirits of wickedness." (Ephesians)
The devil has so deceived people that he gets them to think of him as a Halloween ghost. The devil is a real person. He has centuries of experience in evil. As soon as you get out of bed in the morning, before you get your shoes on, the devil is on the job. He may have a temptation custom-built just for you. He knows your temperament, your personality , your weakness, and he will work on you through his knowledge of you. He knows you better perhaps than you know yourself. He is an angel with wonderful knowledge and experience. He is powerful and crafty, and above all a liar, the father of lies.
See how he fooled Adam and Eve. He came in disguise, as a snake. He worked on a woman's curiosity and pride. He lied to them. He trapped them and got them to sin. He makes use of many agents too, to capture your soul. For example, he works through impure billboards, movies, and television shows, and worldly people. The devil will tell you not to go to Mass on Sunday. He will say to you: "What's the use of that silly rule about meat on Friday?" He will urge you to get some sinful pleasure out of life and forget religion. He will try you in a million ways.
" Be sober and watch: because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, goes about seeking whom he may devour. Whom resist ye, strong in faith." (I Peter 5:8-9)
Always remember that your weapons against the scheming of the devil are more powerful than any weapons the devil has. Yu have many weapons to fight your battle - your prayers, your guardian angel, God's grace, Christ. Keep busy, keep away from temptation, pray, associate with good people. Get rid of ignorance by learning religion through regular attendance at your instructions and by prayerful study.
QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW For Lessons 5 & 6
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1.How do you know there is a God? 2.Why can't you see God?
3.What is a spiritual thing? 4.Name some spiritual things.
5. Are spiritual things real? 6.What is the Blessed Trinity?
7. Which of the Three Person in God is greatest?
8. Make the Sign of the Cross.
9. Recite the Act of Contrition and the Apostles
10.What are angels? 11.Are angels real?
GO TO LESSON 7 - MAN
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