Who is an angel? Who is a guardian angel, an angel of death, a fallen angel? Qualities of an Angel Language of Angels

Definition

The TaNakh does not contain a single term to denote this concept; most often, an angel is a “messenger”[1]. When used in a religious text without adding whose messenger it is, it means the Messenger of God. An angel can perform only one task at a time, but can perform any actions to achieve it.

However, the same word is sometimes used in the Bible to refer to people in the function of messengers[2]. Therefore, to clarify that we are talking specifically about angels, the Bible often attaches the Tetragrammaton or some other designation of God to this word as a clarifying definition[3]. However, sometimes this combination acts only as a designation of a person performing the function of a messenger or messenger of God[4]. It was only in post-Biblical Hebrew that the word mal'ah became a terminological designation for the concept of angel.

Sometimes angels are called in the Bible elohim (literally 'gods'[5]), bnei elohim ('sons of God'[6]) or bnei elim (literally 'sons of gods'; Ps. 29:1; 89:7), kdoshim ( `sacred beings`[7]) or simply anashim (`men`[8]). The TaNaKh also mentions winged creatures with the properties of angels, called cherubim[9] or seraphim (Is. 6:2, 3). The expression “heavenly host” refers to groups of angels accompanying God and serving Him. The latter can be seen as a denial of the pagan idea of ​​superhuman beings independent of God.

The narrative books of the Bible often mention one angel, rarely two or more, conveying a message or performing a certain action, and they appear in the form of a person, and they are not immediately recognizable as a heavenly being (Abraham and the Three Angels[10], Akedah[11] , Jacob's ladder[12], the assignment of the mission to Gidon to rule Israel[13], the death of the army of Sancheriv[14], etc.).

In everyday language, an Angel usually means any spiritual, intelligent, asexual, and sometimes ethereal being, expressing the will of some higher powers or God and possessing superhuman and supernatural capabilities.

In the TaNakh (Bible)

In the Torah (Pentateuch)

The most famous mention of Angels in the Pentateuch is the visit of three Angels to Abraham (Gen.). The sages say that one of them was supposed to announce the birth of Isaac to Abraham, the second was to lead Lot's family out, and the third was to destroy Sodom.

Another significant place is where Jacob wrestles with the angel at night (Gen. 32:28)

There is also a well-known place in the Torah where God, with the help of an angel, stops Abraham at the moment when he was ready to make a sacrifice:

Shortly before the Flood, some Angels, led by Azazel, interbred with people, giving birth to giants (nephilim) Gen. 6:2-4. To do this, they incarnated into a human body and descended to earth:

At that time there were giants on earth ( nephilim

), especially from the time when the sons of God began to come in to the daughters of men, and they began to give birth to them: these are strong, glorious people from ancient times.

—Gen.6:4

In the Torah, when Angels appear in tangible form, their description is absent and a human form is implied. The inhabitants of Sodom apparently even confuse them with people when they demand Lot to hand them over.

There are few descriptions of the appearance of Angels in ethereal form. The most important of them is the book of the prophet Ezekiel (Ezekiel). In his book, Angels are not “messengers”, but “beings from the Celestial Spheres.” Characteristic of them is the presence of wings and a large number of eyes. Some of their types are also listed there: Kruvim, Srafim, Ofanim, Hayot.

Nevi'im (Prophets)

The prophets, with the exception of Ezekiel and Zechariah, speak little about angels. Winged seraphim play a significant role in Isaiah's vision[15] when he is ordained as a prophet, but they are not mentioned again later. It is noteworthy that Hagai calls himself the messenger of the Lord to people, that is, a mortal (albeit a prophet), and not a supernatural being. This is probably evidenced by the very name of another prophet Malachi (literally “my messenger”), which, apparently, was a pseudonym.

The divine presence appears to the prophet Ezekiel[16] as a fiery human likeness, which sits on a throne supported by four fantastic creatures (hayot; “living creatures”). Subsequently[17] these creatures are identified with cherubs. It seems possible to include in the angel-like category the six men who are entrusted with the destruction of Jerusalem and one of whom, dressed in linen clothing, God commands to mark the foreheads of the righteous who are to be saved with a special sign and to throw handfuls of burning coals on Jerusalem[18]. In visions of the restored Temple [19], the prophet is accompanied by a man shining like copper, in whom one should also see an angelic being.

In the book of Zechariah, angels are present almost constantly: the angel of the Lord intercedes before God on behalf of Israel, in the name of God announces the acquittal of the High Priest Joshua, and reproaches Satan for slandering him. In the book of Zechariah, angels appear for the first time as independently existing individuals, and not just as beings whose actions are determined by a certain situation.

Ketuvim (Scriptures)

In the book of Psalms, references to angels are found throughout the text. In a number of places, angels are called to praise the Lord, as God’s other creatures praise Him.

In the book of Job, his friends console him by saying that even angels are not perfect, and man, naturally, is even more far from perfect.

The book of Daniel tells about countless servants around the Divine throne and about an angel who saved three youths from the oven, and Daniel from the lions. In the same book, angels not only carry out orders, they also show some initiative. They have their own names. This is the only book of the Bible in which angels acquire a completely distinct personality. Here for the first time the idea is expressed that every nation has its own patron angel.

Angel of Death

Before we talk about this angel, it is worth noting that the Bible does not say anything about the existence of a separate angel responsible for being with a person who is dying.

Despite this, there are references to such a creature in other religions. For example, in Judaism the angel of death is known as Sariel, Azrael or Samael, in Islam it is Malak Al-Mawt, in Hinduism it is Yamaraja or Yama.

In different religions and mythologies, this angel is represented in different ways - a skeleton with a scythe in a black robe, a young woman or an old woman, even a child. Despite its appearance, its mission is one: being present at the moment of a person’s death and either contemplating this process or directly participating in it.

In Christianity, such obligations could be placed on any angel solely by the will of God, but the angel of death does not exist separately. Often these angels are mistakenly called fallen angels, but this is not true.

Apocrypha

You can read more about the descent of angels to earth in the Book of Enoch.

The Christian Tradition considers this an allegory, believing that the “sons of God” in the Bible mean not only Angels, but also righteous people, thus, the meaning of this verse is that righteous people began to marry immoral people, succumbed to their influence, and they themselves became morally depressed. From the point of view of church theology, the sons of God are the descendants of Seth, and the daughters of men are the descendants of Cain.

In the apocrypha and pseudepigrapha, angels also often appear as beings with individual traits and even their own names. The influence of the myths of the peoples with whom the Jews were in constant contact, and above all a number of mythological concepts of the Babylonians and Zoroastrian Persians, is clearly felt in them. In the book of Jubilees, the people of Israel, by virtue of their union with God, are equated with angels (the Talmudic interpretation of this view states that Israel has the privilege of participating in the heavenly choir).

A very developed angelological system is presented in the book of Enoch (Hanokh). According to this book, there are seven highest angels (of which only the first three were mentioned in the TaNakh):

1. Michael (Michael) - archangel of the Jews;
2. Gavriel (Gabriel) - caretaker of paradise;
3. Rephael (Raphael) - ruler over the souls of people;
4. Uriel (Uriel) - the ruler of the luminaries and the underworld - Sheol;
5. Rehuel - punishing the world of luminaries;
6. Sariel is the lord of forces that seduce people;
7. Jerahmiel, who will oversee the resurrection from the dead.

Angels rule over all the elements and forces of nature, and the names of many angels are derived from the names of those forces of nature or elements that are subject to them, for example Baradiel - the angel of the city (barad - 'hail'), Galgaliel - the angel of the solar circle (galgal - 'ring' , `wheel`), Kochaviel - angel of the stars (`kokhav` - `star`), Metariel - angel of rain (`matar` - `rain`).

Angelic ranks

There is a certain system of angelic ranks, a special hierarchy, generally accepted for everyone. Thus, the entire angelic army is divided into three large groups, or triads.

The first triad includes Cherubim (the name means “abundance of knowledge and wisdom”), Seraphim (“flaming ones”) and Thrones (“those withdrawn from earthly things and striving for God”). These are the highest ranks who are the purest and most unbreakable in their devotion to God.

The second triad contains Dominances, Powers and Powers. These angels are constantly enlightened by God's wisdom, and they do not listen to it, but simply contemplate it. Dominions are engaged in instructing earthly kings and rulers to wisely rule. Angels of the rank of Powers send grace to God's saints and work miracles on earth. But in the powers of the Authorities there is the taming of the devil’s plans, the angels of the Authorities take temptation away from us; These church angels also control the natural elements.

Well, the third triad consists of the Principalities, Archangels and Angels. This is the group closest to people. Thanks to them, the will of God is conveyed to us, helping us to improve ourselves. The principles govern all the laws of nature, the Universe, and protect nations and peoples. Archangels are the conductors of God's revelations, they bring good news about the mysteries of God. There are angels with every person. They are assigned to protect and instruct us in spiritual life.

In oral tradition

It is believed that four angels stand before the throne of God and guard the four cardinal directions: Michael, Gabriel, Uriel and Raphael.

During the Talmudic period, not only the common people, but also scientists believed in the existence of angels. But there is no mention of them in the Mishnah, because the scientists of that time belittled the importance of angels and their role in human life. In the later aggadic texts of the Talmud, especially in the midrash, angels are mentioned several times. They are divided into many good and evil, higher and lower. Like the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, the Haggadah regards Gabriel, Michael, Rephael and Uriel as archangels and calls them angels of service (malachei ha-sharet). The Midrash gives great importance in the hierarchy of angels to Metatron. The responsibilities of the angels are differentiated, some are in charge of prayers, others are in charge of hail, rain, anger, pregnancy and birth, hell, etc. The Haggadah further develops the idea of ​​angels - guardians of nations and individual kings. Starting from the 3rd century. n. e. the sources contain the word pamalya

(literally 'retinue'), denoting a whole group of angels performing heavenly court.

The Haggadah gives varying opinions on whether angels should be considered superior beings compared to mere mortals. According to some statements, the righteous are higher than the angels, and according to others, both occupy the same position in the hierarchy of existence. Some teachers of the law expressed the opinion that every person is capable of becoming equal to an angel; others attributed this ability only to those professing Judaism. However, the latter can achieve this equality only after death. In aggadic eschatology, the prevailing view is that at the “end of days” the righteous will be elevated to a higher level than the angels. The angelological concepts developed in the Haggadah were also included in the liturgy. However, there was an opposite tendency among Jewish religious authorities, which sought to completely exclude mention of angels from the liturgy. In the Middle Ages, one of the most strident opponents of the veneration of angels was Maimonides.

Guardian Angels: who are they?

The idea that each of us has a personal patron is repeatedly mentioned in literature, cinema, music and everything that surrounds a person. What kind of patron is this, on whose help many people count? This is a guardian angel.

According to Holy Scripture, such an angel is given by God to every person from birth and baptism. The strength and capabilities of this angel depend on the spirituality of a person, the positivity of his thinking and the good deeds that he performs.

Christian traditions say that every person has two principles - good and evil. Behind his right shoulder stands a good guardian angel, guiding him on the true path, and behind his left shoulder is an evil tempting spirit who wants to turn a person into evil. These two angels accompany a person throughout his life. Afterwards they lead to the gates of Heaven (heavenly angel) or Hell (fallen angel), depending on what path in life a person has chosen - good or more evil.

That is why we cross ourselves from right to left, the handshake is done with the right hand, and the right hand is also applied to the heart. Many more such examples can be given, but the essence remains the same: the right side is very symbolic in Christianity.

It is generally accepted that when we perform some kind of good deed, our patron angel rejoices and gains great strength, and when he is evil, he becomes sad and weakens. A prayer to an angel must be sincere and pure.

Essenes

The angelological doctrine found widest distribution among the Essenes. The Qumran manuscripts testify to a coherent angelological system, according to which the “prince of light” and other heavenly princes were supposed to fight on the side of the “sons of light” on the “last day.” In this struggle for power between the forces of good and evil, a certain dualism can be recognized. The Pharisees had little interest in angelology. Being opponents of all mysticism, the Sadducees, however, hardly completely denied the very existence of angels.

In Kabbalah

In Kabbalah, angels number from 100 thousand to 49 million. True, when we talk about a large number of angels, we mean either nameless inhabitants of some Kabbalistic worlds, or, on the contrary, one name obtained by rearranging the letters of the Hebrew alphabet.

Kabbalah distinguishes several categories of angels: angels of service and destruction, angels of mercy and punishment, and even male and female angels (Zohar). The power of angels, according to Kabbalists, is based on the emanation of divine light manifested in them. In every human being, in their opinion, there live a good and an evil angel, and every step of a person is accompanied by good and evil spirits. A huge army of angels of destruction (malachei habala), in contrast to the good environment of God, constitutes the family of the Evil One, the devil - the personification of the reverse, “left” side of divine existence.

Etruscan Vanfs

The frescoes in the Etruscan tombs depict winged female demons - vanfs, which are directly related to the image of the Christian angel of death. Externally, these images almost completely (with the exception of the halo) coincide with the iconography of biblical angels. Vanfs were considered the messengers of death, living in the underworld and appearing on the surface to take the soul of the deceased. Sometimes the Vanf were depicted with a sword, but most often with the keys to the kingdom of the dead and a torch, with which they dispelled the darkness of the underworld.

Funeral service for the deceased. Behind the man sacrificing a slave stands a vanf. Fragment of a fresco from an Etruscan tomb

Vanf carries away the soul of the deceased. Fragment of a fresco from an Etruscan tomb

"Dark Angels"

The angels of the "Dark Side" are nevertheless also considered angels. For example, Samael is the Angel of Death (Malakh ha-Mavet). Of the evil angels (angels of destruction - malachi habala), he plays a special role. He is identified with the terrible giants and demons that exist in oral legends, in the literature of the ancient Near East and medieval Europe ("devil", "Satan").

In the Talmud[20] the angel of death is identical to Satan (Samael) and the yetzer ha-ra (evil thought). In folklore, the angel of death is often depicted allegorically: he has many eyes, he is a zealous reaper or an old man with a sword dripping with poison, etc. But most often the angel of death appears in the form of a fugitive and vagabond, a beggar, a traveling merchant or an Arab. nomad. In Jewish angelology, the motif of fallen angels is also found. Its origins go back to the biblical story[21] about the sons of God (bnei elohim), who, seduced by the beauty of the daughters of men, descended to earth. There they came to know the virgins of the earth, and from this connection a generation of giants was born.

However, the biblical tradition does not contain the element of moral conviction characteristic of later legends about fallen angels. This element first appears in the above-mentioned book of Enoch. Here the giants, descendants of the fallen angels, began to mercilessly exterminate people and teach them the use of weapons and other inventions that contribute to the spread of immorality and villainy. The archangels, having heeded the complaints of the people, turned to God, and they were ordered to punish the fallen angels. The legend of fallen angels seduced by mortal women and doing evil on earth is repeated in one variation or another in apocryphal and talmudic literature and in even more colorful form in midrashim.

Meaning of the word angel

The image of the Holy Archangel Michael is surrounded by eighteen marks - this is the most complete collection of his deeds: the Trinity, the council of archangels and other disembodied forces, Ezekiel’s prophecy about the destruction of Jerusalem, the vision of the four beasts, the struggle for the body of Moses, Jacob’s ladder, the three youths in the fiery furnace, the appearance of the Archangel To Joshua, the Archangel Michael drives the Apostle Peter out of prison, the appearance of an angel in the vestments of the great schema-monk to the Venerable Pachomius the Great, the struggle of Jacob with the angel, the destruction of Sodom and the extermination of the Dot family, the angel defeats the army of the Assyrian king Sennacherib, the Flood, the punishment of Nebuchadnezzar, the appearance of an angel in a dream to the king (presumably Alexander the Great), David's repentance and the miracle at Khoneh.

Near her are 77 angels, 77 archangels, the first angel is Michael the Archangel, the second angel is Gabriel the Archangel, the third angel is Kuzma and Demyan.

In every “romantic fleetingness,” Volodin warns us in a kind of forewarning to “Little Angels,” “as in a slightly doctored photograph, one can see the trace left by an angel”[7]; and this trace of the angel, which appears like his signature, makes it possible to understand that, in accordance with the great utopia of the Baroque, the writer, like an angel, must be transported to the edge of the world in order to create his work.

... and why are you hanging around here, cursing fate? Angel: I was assigned to him, I’m sick of ... drinking, a lot of whoreness, and sometimes philosophizing. Angel: And I was assigned to him from above, so that longer ... a long time ago, a famous poet, a favorite of the muses ... Angel: Yes, he’s not a poet, but he’s shit... -why did the Lord give a singing spirit? Angel: He gets pecked in the ass all the time... in peace, there’s one intimate moment... Angel: Only an impotent person is capable of writing about women like that... the woman gets angry, and you can immediately see why... Angel: She endures everything, angel, she... makes his guests laugh... Angel: In the restroom she sits on the toilet seats there... all his friends love him... Angel: Yes, they are all assholes. Hero...: And in the morning he is thoughtful, quiet? Angel: And lethargic, as if disabled. Hero: Probably..., writing a new poem... Angel: Or the stomach is acting up. Someone else has come... an old man! And what was he like young? Angel: Yes, I have recently descended from heaven, and to me... your lot is transparently clear , you, my angel, are in trouble, the old man is still...

There are angels who deliver from evil, intercessor angels, warriors, praising angels, an angel protecting Sarah from Pharaoh, but there are no angels of grief and sadness.

How often do I cross a red light, right through a stream of cars, however, no matter how thoughtful I am, my guardian angel is always with me, and he, my little angel, wants me to live in this world, so that I reach my bottom, I dropped one more floor lower, to where the most severe remorse hides, which is why the whole world, and even my angel himself, echoes with pain in me; More than once I have already tried to throw myself from the sixth floor, from my apartment, where every room torments me, but an angel always saves me at the last moment, dragging me back, just like my Franz Kafka, who also wanted to throw himself from the sixth floor, from Maison Oppelt”, from where the entrance is from Old Town Square, but Master Dr. Kafka would have fallen around the corner, on Parizhskaya, he, too, was probably painfully wounded by the world and his whole life.

... from him. At that time of death, a gentle angel was flying across the southern horizon; Suddenly ... He read himself a reproach in it; And the angel of death felt regret in the soul of the saint ... overcame, Although he had lost irrevocably. And the angel knew - and how not to know? What ... than to suffer Without any signs of suffering. And the angel is struck by a thought worthy of heaven: he wants to reward the sufferer...

In philosophy

Philo of Alexandria (1st century AD) identified the angels mentioned in the Bible with the demons of Greek philosophy. For Saadia Gaon (10th century), angels were corporeal beings, albeit of a more perfect substance than man. According to Abraham Ibn Ezra (12th century), angels are identical to the immaterial or simplest forms of ideal existence postulated by Neoplatonic ontology. In general, in the Middle Ages, the Aristotelian concept prevailed in Jewish philosophy, the most prominent representative of which was Maimonides. Its adherents viewed angels as “separate intelligences” (shalim nifradim), existing separately from human flesh. However, Maimonides believed that the term angel denotes not only a separate mind, but also all natural and physical forces.

Angels today

In modern Judaism, such as Reform and Conservative Judaism, there is a tendency to view traditional descriptions of angels as poetic symbols. References to angels have been almost entirely removed from Reform liturgy and from the liturgy of some groups of Conservative Judaists.

The attitude towards angels among most Orthodox Jews is ambivalent: although their existence is not completely denied, there is a tendency to demythologize ideas about angels and to interpret them as symbols. However, the degree of belief in angels varies among different orthodox groups. Belief in angels, in full accordance with traditional ideas about them, is preserved only among Hasidim and traditionalists from among members of Eastern Jewish communities.

Who are fallen angels?

In fact, this essence was once also light and pure, created by God. But once having abandoned God, this angel was expelled from the Heavenly Kingdom for his atrocities, which is why he became dark and vengeful, and was now called a “fallen angel.”

In Orthodoxy, fallen angels are also called angels of darkness. The most famous representatives are demons and demons; they serve Satan, the devil.

Satan first appears during the time of Adam and Eve in the form of a tempting serpent, who persuades Eve to eat the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge and disobey the will of God, for which they were later punished and expelled from Paradise.

A fallen angel is a cunning tempter whose mission is to destroy a person’s inner peace, his faith in God and virtue, and encourage him to commit sinful actions that alienate a person from God.

The Devil (Lucifer) was also once the supreme angel, among those closest to God. But it so happened that he became proud of himself and equated himself with the Father, for which he was cast into Hell. It was he who became the first of the fallen.

Notes

1. Life 19:1; Is. 63:9; Zx. 1:9, 13, 14, 19; Small 3:1
2. see Gen. 32:4, 7; Court. 9:31; II Ts. 6:32, 33
3. see Gen. 32:2; Zx. 1:11, 12; 12:9
4. Hagai 1:13; Small 2:7
5. I Himself 28:13
6. Life 6:24; Job 1:6
7. Ps. 89:6, 8; Job 5:1
8. Life 18:2; 16; 22
9. Life 3:24; I Himself 4:4; Ps. 80:2
10. Life 18
11. Life 22:11–18
12. Life 28:12
13. Court. 6:11–22
14. II Ts. 19:35
15. Is. 6:2
16. Eh. 1:26, 27
17. Eh. 8–11
18. Eh. 9–10
19. Eh. 40–48
20. BB. 16a
21. Life 6