Angels of Triumph

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to contemplate the connection to angels as servants of God in our Christian heritage.

Connection to Angels

The reading from the Book of Daniel is a vision of Judgement before the Ancient One.

* [7:9–10] A vision of the heavenly throne of God (the Ancient of Days), who sits in judgment over the nations. Some of the details of the vision, depicting the divine majesty and omnipotence, are to be found in Ezekiel 1. Others are paralleled in 1 Enoch, a contemporary Jewish apocalypse.

* [7:13–14] One like a son of man: In contrast to the worldly kingdoms opposed to God, which are represented as grotesque beasts, the coming Kingdom of God is represented by a human figure. Scholars disagree as to whether this figure should be taken as a collective symbol for the people of God (cf. 7:27) or identified as a particular individual, e.g., the archangel Michael (cf. 12:1) or the messiah. The phrase “Son of Man” becomes a title for Jesus in the gospels, especially in passages dealing with the Second Coming (Mk 13 and parallels). (Daniel, CHAPTER 7, n.d.)

The reading from the Book of Revelation shares the vision of how Michael defeats the Dragon.

* [12:7–12] Michael, mentioned only here in Revelation, wins a victory over the dragon. A hymn of praise follows.

* [12:7] Michael: the archangel, guardian and champion of Israel; cf. Dn 10:13, 21; 12:1; Jude 9. In Hebrew, the name Michael means “Who can compare with God?”; cf. Rev 13:4. (Revelation, CHAPTER 12, n.d.)

Psalm 138 is a hymn of Thanksgiving and Praise.

* [Psalm 138] A thanksgiving to God, who came to the rescue of the psalmist. Divine rescue was not the result of the psalmist’s virtues but of God’s loving fidelity (Ps 138:1–3). The act is not a private transaction but a public act that stirs the surrounding nations to praise God’s greatness and care for the people (Ps 138:4–6). The psalmist, having experienced salvation, trusts that God will always be there in moments of danger (Ps 138:7–8). (Psalms, PSALM 138, n.d.)

The Gospel of John introduces Nathanael, a true Israelite. There is no duplicity in him.

* [1:47] A true Israelite. There is no duplicity in him: Jacob was the first to bear the name “Israel” (Gn 32:29), but Jacob was a man of duplicity (Gn 27:35–36).

* [1:48] Under the fig tree: a symbol of messianic peace (cf. Mi 4:4; Zec 3:10).

* [1:49] Son of God: this title is used in the Old Testament, among other ways, as a title of adoption for the Davidic king (2 Sm 7:14; Ps 2:7; 89:27), and thus here, with King of Israel, in a messianic sense. For the evangelist, Son of God also points to Jesus’ divinity (cf. Jn 20:28). (John, CHAPTER 1, n.d.)

Molly Mattingly shares some etymology. The word “angel” comes from the Hebrew word “messenger.” The angels in scripture are messengers for God, or their appearance points people to God and Christ. The ones who are named, like the archangels of today’s feast, communicate something about God in their names. Michael is the protector of Israel in Daniel and the leader of heaven’s armies in today’s reading from Revelation. And yet, for such a powerful being, Michael does not claim power. His name points beyond himself to God in a rhetorical question: “Who is like God?” Raphael appears as Tobiah’s traveling companion in the book of Tobit. Raphael – “God heals” – leads Tobiah not just to cure his father Tobit’s optical blindness, but to healing relationships through his journey. Finally, Gabriel most clearly acts as a messenger, interpreting prophecies of Daniel and announcing the births of both John the Baptist and Jesus. In Islamic tradition, Gabriel also dictated the Qur’an to Muhammad. But Gabriel’s name means “God is my strong one” or “God is my hero,” pointing to dependence on God. I find it especially beautiful that “God is my strong one” receives Mary’s “yes” to complete dependence on God, and that he announces God’s arrival as an infant, utterly dependent on human parents, not strong at all. It lays the foundation for Paul’s line: “When I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10). 

We join the choirs of angels and the communion of saints in praising God every time we participate in the Eucharistic liturgy. “In the sight of the angels [we] will sing your praises, Lord!” (Psalm 138:1) Today, I invite you to consider how you might follow in the archangels’ paths of praise. How might you point beyond yourself, giving God the glory even for the things you do? How might you offer or ask for God’s healing – for your own wounds, for our Church, for the world? How might you practice dependence on God, letting God be your strong one?

Calling All Angels (The Wailin’ Jennies) (Mattingly, 2022)

Don Schwager quotes “The Lord of Angels,” by John Chrysostom (347-407 AD).

"Do you see how he [Jesus] leads him [Nathanael] up little by little from the earth and causes him no longer to imagine him as merely a man? For one to whom angels minister and on whom angels ascend and descend, how could he be a man? This is why he said, 'You shall see greater things than these.' And to prove this, he introduces the ministry of angels. What he means is something like this: Does this, O Nathanael, seem to you a great matter, and have you for this confessed me to be King of Israel? What then will you say when you see 'angels ascending and descending on me'? He persuades him by these words to receive him as Lord also of the angels. For on him as on the king's own son, the royal ministers ascended and descended, once at the season of the crucifixion, again at the time of the resurrection and the ascension, and before this also, when they 'came and ministered to him' (Matthew 4:11). They also ascended and descended when they proclaimed the good news of his birth and cried, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace' (Luke 2:14), when they came to Mary and also when they came to Joseph... Our Lord made the present a proof of the future. After the powers he had already shown, Nathanael would readily believe that much more would follow." (excerpt from the Homilies On the Gospel of John 21.1) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on John 1:47-51 comments that we can celebrate the work that these archangels have done on our behalf and strive to follow their example of quick obedience and love for God.

These three archangels are always ready to hear God’s mission for them and fulfill it immediately. May we follow their example and make ourselves instruments of God’s grace to everyone he sends us to.

“Sts. Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, help me follow your example of service to God in all that I do.” (Meditation on John 1:47-51, n.d.)

The article from Franciscan Media discusses the role Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael as messengers from God. Angels appear frequently in Scripture, but only Michael, Gabriel and Raphael are named.

Each of the archangels performs a different mission in Scripture: Michael protects; Gabriel announces; Raphael guides. Earlier belief that inexplicable events were due to the actions of spiritual beings has given way to a scientific world-view and a different sense of cause and effect. Yet believers still experience God’s protection, communication, and guidance in ways which defy description. We cannot dismiss angels too lightly. (Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler discusses the authority Israel receives over the nations in the passage from Daniel where the Son of Man is attended by angels. The defeat of the dragon by Michael in Revelation connects us to the Blood of the Lamb and our personal connection to martyrdom. Friar Jude reminds us of the value of wrestling with God in the stories of Jacob and Nathanael.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, shares how the teachings of Thérèse of Lisieux have supported his own spiritual journey. He introduces Brené Brown, a contemporary teacher who extols the gifts of imperfection. He quotes a line from Leonard Cohen’s song “Anthem” that serves as a reminder when . . .trying to control everything and make it perfect.

The line is, “There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.” [3] . . . This line helps me remember the beauty of the cracks (and the messy house and the imperfect manuscript and the too-tight jeans). It reminds me that our imperfections are not inadequacies; they are reminders that we’re all in this together. Imperfectly, but together. [4] (Rohr, 2022)

We are open to intervention in our lives in the service of the Will of God that challenges us to deeper relationships with God and others.

References

Daniel, CHAPTER 7. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 29, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/daniel/7?9 

John, CHAPTER 1. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 29, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/1?47 

Mattingly, M. (2022, September 29). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved September 29, 2022, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/092922.html 

Meditation on John 1:47-51. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved September 29, 2022, from https://wau.org/meditations/2022/09/29/498565/ 

Psalms, PSALM 138. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 29, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/138?1 

Revelation, CHAPTER 12. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 29, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/revelation/12?7 

Rohr, R. (2022, September 29). Accepting Our Imperfections — Center for Action and Contemplation. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved September 29, 2022, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/accepting-our-imperfections-2022-09-29/ 

Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael. (n.d.). Franciscan Media. Retrieved September 29, 2022, from https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saints-michael-gabriel-and-raphael 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture ... Retrieved September 29, 2022, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2022&date=sep29a 

Providence and Property

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to meditate on Covenant relationships and how our relationship with God guides our practice to sustain love for others.

Support for relationships

 

In the reading from the Book of Joshua, the tribes renew the Covenant.

I gave you a land you did not till and cities you did not build, to dwell in; you ate of vineyards and olive groves you did not plant.1 

Psalm 136 praises God’s Work in Creation and in History.

* [Psalm 136] The hymn praises Israel’s God (“the God of gods,” Ps 136:2), who has created the world in which Israel lives. The refrain occurring after every line suggests that a speaker and chorus sang the Psalm in antiphonal fashion. A single act of God is described in Ps 136:4–25. God arranges the heavens and the earth as the environment for human community, and then creates the community by freeing them and giving them land. In the final section (Ps 136:23–25) God, who created the people and gave them land, continues to protect and nurture them.2 

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus addresses questions about marriage and divorce.

* [19:9] Moses’ concession to human sinfulness (the hardness of your hearts, Mt 19:8) is repudiated by Jesus, and the original will of the Creator is reaffirmed against that concession. (Unless the marriage is unlawful): see note on Mt 5:31–32. There is some evidence suggesting that Jesus’ absolute prohibition of divorce was paralleled in the Qumran community (see 11QTemple 57:17–19; CD 4:12b–5:14). Matthew removes Mark’s setting of this verse as spoken to the disciples alone “in the house” (Mk 10:10) and also his extension of the divorce prohibition to the case of a woman’s divorcing her husband (Mk 10:12), probably because in Palestine, unlike the places where Roman and Greek law prevailed, the woman was not allowed to initiate the divorce.3

 

Ronald Fussell comments that when we approach our relationships with others, and especially the rules, expectations, and the norms that we place on those relationships, with a hardened heart, then those relationships become more transactional and less human.

So, my prayer for all of us in reading today’s Gospel is that it will prompt us to prioritize relationships based in love, and human dignity, when we set and interpret relational expectations for each other. Trick questions are never fun.  But, looking past that, open hearts and deeper reflection are the foundation of healthy relationships where we can encounter Christ in our encounters with each other.4

 

Don Schwager quotes “Don't separate what God has joined together,“ by John Chrysostom (347-407 AD).

"Then he showed that it is a fearful thing to tamper with this law. When establishing this law, he did not say, 'Therefore, do not sever or separate' but 'What God has joined together, let man not separate.' If you quote Moses, I will quote the God of Moses, and with him I am always strong. For God from the beginning made them male and female. This law is very old, even if it appears human beings have recently discovered it. It is firmly fixed. And God did not simply bring the woman to her husband but ordered her also to leave her father and mother. And he not only ordered the man to go to the woman but also to cling to her, showing by his way of speaking that they could not be separated. And not even with this was God satisfied, but he sought also for another greater union: 'for the two shall be one flesh.'" (excerpt from THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW, HOMILY 62.1)5 

The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 19:3-12 urges us, if we know of persons going through a divorce or experiencing difficulties in marriage to try to reach out to those persons. As a brother or sister in Christ, we can radiate the love and mercy of Jesus as we accompany them through their trials.

Today, let’s pray for all who are in pain over a divorce or broken relationship. They are our brothers and sisters in Christ, and God loves them deeply. Let’s also lift up all married couples. May the Lord be with them and sustain them through all the ups and downs of life. “Lord, help all who are facing marital challenges. May they experience your comfort, your presence, and your wisdom.”6 

Friar Jude Winkler connects Joshua's history to a recommitment to the Covenant. The descriptions and prescriptions about married life were ambiguous to Matthew’s community. Friar Jude cites comments attributed to rabbi Hillel and expands the meaning of the term porneia.

 

  Jack Mahoney SJ, Emeritus Professor of Moral and Social Theology in the University of London and former Principal of Heythrop College, University of London, looks at the two passages in St Matthew’s Gospel in which Jesus appears to tell his followers that divorce is allowed in certain circumstances. These passages contrast dramatically with the rest of the New Testament, where Jesus is several times reported as totally forbidding divorce. He comments on the rabbi Hillel, expanding divorce for ‘something objectionable’ and notes that the term  porneia refers not just to a sexual sin but to some special type of sexual relationship which contravened the Jewish law on marriage.

The conclusion is, then, that Jesus was entirely consistent in his absolute rejection of divorce, without exception, invoking God’s ordinance at creation and explaining by the Jews’ hardness of heart the indulgence which Moses had permitted them in allowing for divorce. It is still possible today, of course, to continue to argue, as some Christians do, that the teaching of Jesus (now without ‘exception’) forbidding all divorce refers to an ideal situation often far from the reality of people’s lives and relationships; that the Mosaic situation of hardness of heart can continue to exist or even to prevail in modern circumstances; and even that what God has joined together, God, or the Church in God’s name, can also separate.7 

  Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that people are more comfortable with a divine monarch at the top of pyramidal reality. So we quickly made the one who described himself as “meek and humble of heart” (Matthew 11:29) into an imperial God, both in the West (Rome) and in the East (Constantinople). This isn’t the naked, self-emptying Jesus on the cross. This isn’t a vulnerable, relational one who knows how to be a brother to all creation. The Greek Zeus became the Latin Deus—and then we no longer knew Jesus in any meaningful sense that the soul could naturally relate to (which was the main point of the Incarnation!).

Brené Brown writes wisely about vulnerability and power. She observes that “The phrase power over is typically enough to send chills down spines: When someone holds power over us, the human spirit’s instinct is to rise, resist, and rebel. As a construct it feels wrong; in the wider geopolitical context it can mean death and despotism.” [1] There’s no seeking of power over in the Trinity, but only power with—a giving away, a sharing, a letting go, and thus an infinite flow of trust and mutuality. This should have changed all Christian relationships: in marriage, in culture, and even in international relations. Instead, we continue to prefer kings, wars, and empires, instead of an always leveling love.8 

Our desire for rules from above to define our relationships threatens to remove our prayerful openness to the prompting of the Spirit to enter the loving interaction of the Trinity as we make decisions on action for others.

 

References

1	(n.d.). Joshua, CHAPTER 24 | USCCB. Retrieved August 13, 2021, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/joshua/24
2	(n.d.). Psalms, PSALM 136 | USCCB. Retrieved August 13, 2021, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/136
3	(n.d.). Matthew, CHAPTER 19 | USCCB. Retrieved August 13, 2021, from https://bible.usccb.org/es/node/4313
4	(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections - Online Ministries - Creighton University. Retrieved August 13, 2021, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/081321.html
5	(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved August 13, 2021, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2021&date=aug13
6	(n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved August 13, 2021, from https://wau.org/meditations/2021/08/13/190586/
7	(2009, August 25). Grounds for divorce in St Matthew | Thinking Faith: The online .... Retrieved August 13, 2021, from https://www.thinkingfaith.org/articles/20090825_1.htm
8	(n.d.). Daily Meditations Archives — Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved August 13, 2021, from https://cac.org/no-domination-in-god-2021-08-13/