Transcript The 7 ARCHANGELS—A VArying List

ANGELS/FALLEN ANGELS
In Young Adult Lit and More
TYPES OF ANGELS
The first thing angels say is “fear not,” suggesting that they’re quite
terrifying. According to tradition, angels do not have free will like man;
they are only messengers passing on God’s word. In fact, they can only
each do a single act, which is why three angels often go, to bring three
different messages. “Angelus” is Latin for messenger.
The three books of Enoch are the best source for Judeo-Christian angels and
fallen angels. Another strong source is The Celestial Hierarchy by
Dionysus the Aeorpagite written in the fifth century. This contains the
best-known hierarchy of angels, used in St. Thomas Aquinas’s thirteenth
century work, Summa Theologiae. In his time, Angelology was
compulsory in several theological curriculums, and Aquinas created a
great deal of educational material. Medieval grimoires such as The Lesser
Key of Solomon contain much on angels and demons as well. Dr. John Dee
and Emmanuel Swedenborg communicated with angels regularly and
wrote books about their experiences.
The Celestial Hierarchy sorts angels thus:
First Choir
1). Seraphim
2). Cherubim
3). Thrones
Second Choir
4). Dominations
5). Virtues
6). Powers
Third Choir
7). Principalities
8). Archangels
9). Angels
THE 7 ARCHANGELS—A VARYING LIST
The earliest reference to a system of seven archangels
as a group appears to be in The Book of Enoch,
where they are named as Gabriel, Michael,
Raphael, Uriel, Raguel, Remiel and Saraqael.
According to Enoch, there are seven archangels
('irin we-ḳaddishin, "holy ones who watch"):
Uriel: set over the world's luminaries and over Sheol
Raphael, set over the spirits of men
Raguel (Ra'uel, "the terrifier"), who chastiseth the
world of the luminaries
Michael, set over the best part of mankind, over the
people of Israel
Sariel ("God turneth"), set over the spirits who seduce
the spirits to sin
Gabriel, set over paradise, the serpents, and the
cherubim
Jerahmeel ("God is merciful"), whom God set over the
resurrection
POP CULTURE
Angels have featured as main characters
in many popular movies:
Wings of Desire (1988)
The Prophecy (1995)
Michael (1996)
Meet Joe Black (1998)
Dogma (1999)
Highway To Heaven
Touched By An Angel
The Preacher’s Wife
It’s A Wonderful Life
The struggle between angels and fallen angels appears on the X-Files,
Xena, Charmed, and others. There are angelic superheroes from Angel
on X-Men, a mutant who resembles an angel to the actual angel Zauriel
who joins the Justice League. And of course, who’s more angelic than
Superman, the modern flying man who travels the world saving the
day?
City of Bones
City of Ashes
City of Glass
City of Fallen Angels
City of Lost Souls
City of Heavenly Fire
City of Bones was highly
popular at the time of release,
reaching #8 on the New York
Times Best Seller list
(Children's books) in April
2007.City of Ashes was one of
the YALSA's top ten teen
books for 2009.
Publishers Weekly commented
that it "is a sprawling urban
fantasy packed with just about
every type of creature known
to the genre".
THE BOOK OF RAZIEL
After Adam’s expulsion from the Garden of Eden, he prayed to God for
compassion and grace. He added:
“Grant me knowledge and understanding, that I may know what shall befall
me, and my posterity, and all the generations that come after me, and what
shall befall me on every day and in every month, and mayest Thou not
withhold from me the help of Thy servants and of Thy angels.” (Ginzberg)
Three days later, the angel Raziel came with a book in his hand. The angel
addressed Adam thus:
O Adam, why art thou so fainthearted? Why art thou distressed and anxious?
Thy words were heard at the moment when thou didst utter thy supplication
and entreaties, and I have received the charge to teach thee pure words and
deep understanding, to make thee wise through the contents of the sacred
book in my hand, to know what will happen to thee until the day of thy death.
And all thy descendants and all the later generations, if they will but read
this book in purity, with a devout heart and a humble mind, and obey its
precepts, will become like unto thee.
THE BOOK OF RAZIEL
It is the book out of which all things worth knowing can be learnt, and all
mysteries, and it teaches also how to call upon the angels and make them
appear before men, and answer all their questions. But not all alike can use
the book, only he who is wise and God-fearing, and resorts to it in holiness.
Such a one is secure against all wicked counsels, his life is serene, and when
death takes him from this world, he finds repose in a place where there are
neither demons nor evil spirits, and out of the hands of the wicked he is
quickly rescued. (Ginzberg)
Raziel’s name means “the Secrets of God,” and he is said to stand beside God’s
throne and hear many of his secrets. The legend goes on to tell that the other
angels grew jealous of Adam and threw the Book of Raziel into the ocean,
though Enoch, Noah, and Solomon eventually inherited it and used its
secrets. “Each day the angel Raziel makes proclamations on Mount Horeb,
from heaven, of the secrets of men to all that dwell upon the earth, and his
voice resounds throughout the world,” explains Targum Ecclesiastes, a
collection of explanatory stories about the book of Ecclesiastes (10:20). Clare
notes:
“Raziel, for instance, is an angel from the Jewish kabbalistic tradition, who is
supposed to have given Adam, in the Garden of Eden, a book of wisdom — he
is sometimes called the Angel of Secrets, or Angel of Knowledge. Therefore he
Book of Raziel, Seal of Raziel
The Books of Raziel by Sabrina Benulis, beginning
with Archon, introduce a young woman named
Angela Mathers, who is obsessed with visions and
dreams of angels. She’s ostracized, for there’s a
prophecy that someone with red hair like hers will
destroy the world. Finally released from a mental
institution, she enters West Wood Academy. There,
however, she discovers a secret coven. Angels and
demons are combing the streets for the key to the
Book of Raziel and the power to control the
universe.
Popular Angel Romances
•Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
•Halo by Alexandra Adornetto
•Fallen by Lauren Kate
•Mercy by Rebecca Lim
•Unearthly by Cynthia Hand
•Angelology by Danielle Trussoni
Laini Taylor’s Daughter of
Smoke and Bone is a
groundbreaking angel series.
Akiva, an angel broken by a
never-ending war, comes to
earth and falls in love with a
human girl named Karou.
Though she pretends to be an
art student, she has another,
secret life collecting teeth and
bringing them to her master, a
granter of wishes. As Akiva
and Karou fall in love, they
realize the war is continuing
and they are not on the sides
they had once believed. The
book is filled with surprises
from beginning to end.
ARTIFACTS OF SMOKE AND BONE
Hamsa
A hand-shaped talisman against the evil eye found
in the Middle East. The word mean five
(referring to the fingers) and a blue or green eye
often appears in the figure’s center. In Jewish
culture, the hamsa is called the Hand of
Miriam; in some Muslim populated cultures,
the Hand of Fatima.
Thurible
A thurible is a metal censer suspended from
chains, in which incense is burned during
worship services.
Other series use the images of angels to create aliens manipulating man
for their own aims or to better mankind in Terence Blacker’s The Angel
Factory, Battlestar Galactica, and Babylon 5. The Ori on Stargate demand
worship, but more resemble demons bristling with hellfire. Doctor Who
offers the terrifying “weeping angels” aliens. Phillip Pullman’s His Dark
Materials shows angels who are closer to the institutionalized church with
its inquisition than avatars of God. Lyra, Will and the rebel angels are
fighting for freedom against “those who want us to obey and be humble
and submit”. Actual angels who aren’t as benevolent as they appear are
also in Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere and Sarah Douglass’ The Crucible
series.
Angelfall by Susan Ee features a post-apocalyptic Bay Area, where the angels
have descended to tear civilization apart. Teenage Penryn quests with the
injured and wingless angel Reffe, whom she believes is her only link to her
vanished seven-year-old sister. Like Katniss, Penryn has learned self-defense,
since with a useless mother, she is the only possible protector of her little
sister. While Penryn begins her quest knowing that angels are the greatest
threat, she slowly discovers factions within their world as each battles to be
the angels’ sole link with God. Further, mysterious demons, perhaps
Nephilim, perhaps something worse, are preying through her world,
devouring human flesh. The humans are planning an uprising, and Penryn
finds her loyalties are divided. It will take true courage and selflessness to
survive and bring humanity back to peace.
L.A. Weatherly’s Angelburn features evil angels
who feed on innocents, leaving them mentally
damaged. However, those victims believe that
they’ve been blessed, and have founded the cultlike
Church of the Angels, every-growing in number.
However, the angels have found a single person
capable of stopping them, a half-angel teenager
named Willow. On the run for her life, Willow
meets Alex, an A.K., or Angel Killer. He’s spent all
his life learning how to see them and shoot them
before they kill innocents. He’s even become a
special assassin for the CIA. However, another
wave of angels is approaching earth and only
Willow can stop them. To do so, however, she must
force herself to confront the angelic side of her own
nature and discover what she can do.
The Fallen by Thomas E. Sniegoski follows Aaron
Corbet, a boy who thought he was human until he
discovers he is Nephilim—half angel, half human.
Under the guidance of the fallen angel, Zeke, he
heals his dying dog and grants him vast powers of
intelligence. Aaron himself has the gift of
languages—animal languages as well as human.
Along with the angel Camael, Aaron embarks on
his destiny—to be the Nephilim chosen to heal the
rift between fallen angels and God. However, most
of Camael’s brethren consider him an affront to
God and are determined to stop him…
Dark Angel YA Novels
Meridian (Fenestra, #1)
by Amber Kizer
Fallen Angel (Fallen Angel #1)
by Kim Wilkins
Dark Angel (Dark Angel, #1)
by Eden Maguire
Darkness Unbound (Dark Angels, #1)
by Keri Arthur
Succubus Blues (Georgina Kincaid, #1)
by Richelle Mead
Demon Angel
by Meljean Brook (The Guardians, #1)
Nephilim
What are nephilim? It’s been widely debated. The
Bible tells us this:
There were giants in the earth in those days; and
also after that, when the sons of God came in unto
the daughters of men, and they bare children to
them, the same became mighty men which were of
old, men of renown. (Genesis 6:4)
The Hebrew word for “sons of God,” Nephilim, has
sparked a great deal of debate through history –
are they angels who had children with human
women? The descendants of Seth (Adam and Eve’s
third son) meeting the descendants of another
tribe? Lore is uncertain, though many of the more
romantic and fantastical modern works label them
as “fallen angels.”
As the Zohar, the book of Jewish mysticism states:
All the just men who lived subsequent to Enos [Enoch], as Jared,
Methusalah and Henoch, did all in their power to restrain the practice of
magical arts, but their efforts proved futile and ineffectual; so that the
professors of them, proud of their occult knowledge, became rebellious and
disobedient to their Lord, saying, ‘Who is Shaddai [one of God’s many
names], the almighty, that we should serve him and what profit should we
have in praying unto Him’?’ Thus spake they and foolishly imagined that
by their occultism and magic they would be able to nullify and turn away
the oncoming judgment that was to sweep them wholly out of existence.
Beholding their wicked deeds and practices, the Holy One caused the
earth to revert back to its former condition and become immersed in
water. After the deluge, however, He gave the earth again to mankind,
promising, in His mercy, it should never again and in like manner be
destroyed. It is written, ‘The Lord caused the earth to be covered with the
deluge’ (Ps. xxix., 10). The word for Lord, here, is Jehovah and not Alhim;
the first representing mercy, the other severity and judgment. In the time
of Enos, even young children became students and trained in the higher
mysteries and knowledge of the secret doctrine.” (Zohar 238)
These practitioners of magic were the Nephilim, the ones God sent Noah’s
flood to destroy.
Dean: I thought angels were supposed to be guardians. Fluffy wings,
halos — You know, Michael Landon. Not dicks.
Castiel: Read the Bible. Angels are warriors of God. I’m a soldier.
On Supernatural, the angel Castiel carries Dean out of Hell. Since
Castiel is actually “roughly the size of your Chrysler Building,” he and
his brothers must occupy humans (with permission) to interact in the
world – demons do the same. The Apocalypse is coming, and all the
angels are choosing sides for the great conflict. Uriel, Michael, Raphael,
and all the expected main players show up in the story.
The television show Angel is about a vampire
(named Angel both for his beautiful face, and
finally for his mission of helping others) who acts
as a classic vampire and demon hunter. He’s also a
sort of guardian angel to Buffy the Vampire Slayer
on her show. The devil actually shows up in his
series, though mostly as a joke (Angel hasn’t gone
to the devil’s side—he just joins him for a weekly
racketball game!) However, he’s guided by the
Powers that Be, and his friend Cordelia eventually
becomes a type of heavenly protector. Jamaerah,
or James, is introduced as a banished angel in
service to the Powers That Be, who appears in
post-Angel: After the Fall comics and joins Angel’s
team.
Coming
soon…Myth
and Motifs in
The Mortal
Instruments
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