Guardian Angels in Orthodoxy
Since ancient times, people have known that there are patron spirits. Our ancestors were confident that disembodied patrons ensure that the ward receives everything that the Almighty has prepared for him. The term was formed as a result of the merger of two words “Court” and “God”, from which it follows that the heavenly patrons fulfill the will of the Almighty in relation to every person.
With the advent of Christianity in Rus', the idea of angels changed. The servants of the Old Testament claim that a countless army of angels exists in heaven. Mediation between the Lord and man is not their only mission. Their direct purpose is to fight the devil and demons.
The divine messengers have a strict hierarchy, headed by the Archangel Michael:
- Cherubim, seraphim, thrones - the highest rank .
- Strength, domination, authority - middle rank .
- Archangels, principles, angels - the lowest rank .
Invitation
Publicist Nikolai Kostomarov in his work “Image of Home Life. Family morals. The order of house management. Home Rituals” states that the invitation to celebrate Angel Day was birthday cakes. Particularly respected guests received a more substantial pie, while the rest were given standard-sized pastries.
Sometimes commoners were awarded birthday cakes, which were given to them by the reigning persons celebrating their own Angel Day upon leaving the church. In this case, there was no need to attend the appointment.
Visit to the temple
The main action that an Orthodox Christian must perform on Angel Day is visiting a temple. Archimandrite Ambrose (Yurasov) notes that on the eve of the celebration of his spiritual birthday, the birthday person should come to the evening service and certainly confess his sins, and in the morning pray at the liturgy and partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ.
Hieromonk Job (Gumerov) explains that on the day of remembrance of the saint, the Lord God gives him the special grace to pray for those on earth who bear his name and are under his heavenly protection. To partake of this grace, you need to be present in church and, in addition to spiritual communion with your saint, offer prayers to the Lord, Our Lady and Guardian Angel with special feeling and warmth.
The holy righteous John of Kronstadt noted that you need to pray to your saint so that he intercedes for a person before God and says: “Our birthdays and name days should come before all other weekdays, turn our hearts and eyes to heaven, with grateful feelings to the Creator , Provider and Savior, with the thought that there is our fatherland and Father, that the earth is not a fatherland, but a place of coming and wandering, that to cleave to perishable things is reckless, sinful... it is disgusting to God, that we must cleave to God with all our hearts.”
Two Angels
However, a person’s patron saint should not be confused with his Guardian Angel, who is assigned to a person on the day of his spiritual birth - Baptism, for protection from life’s troubles, care, warning against sins and posthumous accompaniment.
As Saint Theodore of Edessa wrote: “The Lord gives each of us two Angels, one of which - the Guardian Angel - protects us from all evil, from various misfortunes and helps us do good, and the other Angel is the holy saint of God, whose name we bear , intercedes for us before God, prays to God for us. His prayers, as more worthy and pleasing to God, are more likely to be accepted than our sinners.”
Prayer before going to bed to the Guardian Angel
At bedtime they read a prayer to the Lord, the Mother of God and the Angel. The Church blesses you to read the prayer rule in the morning and evening, which is best agreed upon with the priest.
Angel of Christ, my holy guardian and patron of my soul and body, forgive me everything I have sinned today, and deliver me from any evil of the enemy, so that I do not anger my God with any sin; but pray for me, a sinful and unworthy servant, so that I may be worthy of the goodness and mercy of the All-Holy Trinity and the Mother of my Lord Jesus Christ and all the saints. Amen.
Festive table
The festive meal on the occasion of Angel Day did not imply a rich feast and surprise the guests with delicacies, since the main purpose of gathering at a common table was spiritual unity. The central treat of any such celebration was the loaf, which was even glorified in a song previously sung at name days, and nowadays often heard at birthdays: “How on [someone’s] name day we baked a loaf...”. In addition to the loaf, the table had to have dishes with filling - meat, fish, mushroom or vegetable pies, pies, dumplings, pancakes with cottage cheese. The royal name days were celebrated on a special scale, but even on them the central dish was the loaf.
Alexander Polovinkin in his book “Orthodox Spiritual Culture” writes that if a name day falls during fasting, then the entire meal should consist of Lenten treats. However, if Angel Day falls during Lent, then the clergy advises postponing the celebration either to the next weekend, that is, Saturday or Sunday, or to celebrate this important event after Easter, when Bright Week begins.
What you can and cannot ask for
Before performing the ritual, under no circumstances should you be angry or offended. You cannot ask your guardian angel for revenge on your enemy. Also, requests, for example, for untold wealth or excessive attention from members of the opposite sex will not be heard.
The angel will refuse such requests insofar as they are a manifestation of greed and pride. And of course, the reason for calling a guardian angel must be compelling. With the help of such a defender, only vital problems can be solved.
How to call a guardian angel
Set your alarm for early in the morning. Look ahead to see when the sun will rise the next day in your area. Get in the right mood. Take a piece of paper and write your request on it. Any paper can be used. But it's best to take white. You also need to light a church or white candle. Take the paper in your left hand and the candle in your right and go to the window.
At the moment when the sun rises, say:
Angelic host, please hear my call. I extend a luminous blessing over everyone. East and south, west and north, I turn around and call to you. Invisible friend, messenger of love, send me your help.
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The candle in your hand will be a kind of beacon for the angel. Mentally imagine how he will come to her light.
After you say the right words, put out the candle and hide the piece of paper. After a few days, you will come to an understanding of how to solve your problem.
Another method with a candle
With the help of this ritual you can protect yourself from offenders. In the evening, before going to bed, light 3 candles in the bedroom. Take another candle, light it and sit on the bed. Sit on the bed, tuning into your guardian angel, until the candle burns out. Then say:
My guardian angel, only you can I turn to with my troubles. I ask you for help in life’s difficulties and hope that you will hear my requests. Come to me (name).
If the angel hears you, he will dream of you that night and talk to you. You can also feel his touch immediately after the ritual is completed. If this happens, express your request to the defender immediately.
Small name days
In the Saints, which presents a list of the names of saints in accordance with the day and month when the church honors their memory, quite often there are the same names belonging to different saints. In this case, the church rule is applied to determine the name day. According to it, the Day of the Lay Angel is considered the closest day of remembrance of the holy namesake, which comes after a person’s earthly birthday. On the days of remembrance of other saints with the same name, a person can celebrate “small name days.”
How to call without candles: a simple ritual
If you wish, you can call a guardian angel at home without using candles. To receive help from the heavenly patron, you need to say the following words:
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Because of grief and failure in life, I turn to you, my guardian angel. I ask you, hear about my request and help me. From birth you were given to me as my protector. Do not turn away from me in difficult times for me, come to me. Amen!
