Angels-MICHAEL

Michael ranks as the greatest angel in all three of the major monotheisms,
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. His name, meaning “who
is as God,” derives originally from the Chaldeans (Mesopotamians),
by whom he was worshiped as a deity. In Islam he is called Mikhail.
He is traditionally considered to be chief of the order of virtues; chief
of archangels; prince of the presence; angel of
repentance, righteousness, mercy, and sanctification;
and ruler of the fourth heaven, conqueror
of Satan.
He is credited by Midrash Rabba as the
author of the whole of Psalm 85, and in one
account he is claimed to have wiped out, singlehandedly
and overnight, 185,000 men from the
army of the Assyrian king Sennacherib, who
was threatening Jerusalem in 701 B.C. In addition,
he has been identified as the angel who
stayed the hand of Abraham when the latter
was on the point of sacrificing his son Isaac. In
Rev. 20:1 it is claimed that Michael is the one
who will descend from heaven with “the key of
the abyss and a great chain in his hand” and
bind the Satanic dragon for a thousand years.
In volume 2 of The Legends of the Jews (p.
303), Louis Ginzberg asserts that “the fire that
Moses saw in the burning bush had the appearance
of Michael, who had descended from
Heaven as the forerunner of the Shekinah.”
According to a commentary on Gen. 18:1–10
contained in Talmud Berakot 35, Michael is
recognized by Sarah as one of three “men” who were entertained
unawares by Abraham. Michael is said to have assisted four other
great angels—Gabriel, Uriel, Raphael, and Metatron—in the burial
of Moses and to have disputed with Satan for possession of the body.
Michael has often been equated with the Holy Spirit, the Logos, God,
and Metatron in mystic and occult literature, and in Baruch III,
Michael “holds the keys of the kingdom of Heaven.”
In ancient Persian lore, he was called Beshter, “one who provides
sustenance for humankind.” This would make him analogous to
Metatron. It is also said that the tears shed by Michael over the sins
of the faithful formed the cherubim. Michael is invoked as St.
Michael by Christians, and he is also known as the angel of the Last
Judgment. He has been considered the “weigher of souls” since the
tribes of Israel were in captivity in Egypt, where religious tradition
held that there was a weigher of hearts of the deceased named Anubis.
This dog- or jackal-headed deity was identified with the most
important star in the Egyptian sky, Sirius, the Dog Star. In Persia the
star was known as Tistar, the Chief, and the earlier Akkadian term
was Kasista, the Prince.
In the Middle Ages Michael was regarded as the psychopomp,
the conductor of souls to the otherworld. Because the church was anxious
to attract the old pagan worshipers of Roman Gaul, who
remained faithful to the god Mercury, they assimilated Michael with
that underworld god. Chapels dedicated to Michael appeared over the
ruins of earlier temples, and the many “Michael’s Mounts” to be found
throughout Europe attest to the power of the ancient archetype of the
mound of the dead.
Prince of the host of the Lord;
Standard Bearer; Mighty Seraph;
One of the Seven that stand before the Throne;
Dauntless Challenger whose cry ran through the vaults
of heaven: “Who is like to God!”
Guardian of God’s chosen race,
Glorious Champion of the Church of Christ under the
New Law;
Triumphant Defender of the Women and her Child;
Vanquisher of the Dragon and Chainer of his strength;
Leader of souls into the holy light.
Father Husslein, S.J.
Michael, like Gabriel, is one of the most commonly pictured
angels in visual art and is depicted most often as winged and with
unsheathed sword, the warrior of God and slayer of the Dragon.
Although in the Renaissance period he is represented with a wide
variety of features, he is always young, strong, and handsome, usually
wearing a splendid coat of mail and equipped with sword, shield, and
spear, all shining bright, ready for battle. He is often seen in combat
with Satan, who in this context is frequently represented as a serpent
or dragon. Sometimes he is wearing a jeweled crown. His wings are
generally conspicuous and very grand, and he usually holds in his
hand the scales of justice. In Muslim lore Michael’s wings are said to
be “the color of green emerald,” and he is covered with “saffron hairs,
each of them containing a million faces and mouths and as many
tongues which, in a million dialects, implore the pardon of Allah.”
Among the recently discovered Dead Sea Scrolls there is one
entitled The War of Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness,
where Michael is called “the prince of light” and wars against the
angels of darkness, the latter under the command of the demon Beliel.
In The Legends of the Jews, Ginzberg regards Michael as the forerunner
of the Shechinah, as well as the angel who brought Asenath from
Palestine as a wife for Joseph, and as the one who saved Daniel’s companions
from the fiery furnace. Michael, who is also regarded as the
intermediary between Mordecai and Esther, and as the destroyer of
Babylon, is said to have informed the fallen angels of the Deluge.
When he wept, his tears changed into precious stones.
Longfellow, in The Golden Legend (1851), pictures Michael as the
spirit of the planet Mercury, bringing the gift of patience. Michael figures
prominently in secular writings, including those of Dante and
Milton, and in contemporary fiction he serves as archdeacon to Bishop
Brougha in Robert Nathan’s The Bishop’s Wife. Michael is called
“leader of God’s host” in Yeats’s poem “The Rose of Peace.” In 1950
Pope Pius XII declared Michael to be the patron of policemen, and it
is foretold in Daniel that when the world is once again in real trouble
Michael will reappear. Some religious scholars claim that soon he will
reveal himself once again.
Michael has also been a popular figure within the contemporary
New Age/metaphysical subculture. Even prior to the current wave of
angelic faddishness, Michael was invoked for protection by metaphysical
practitioners and channeled by New Agers.