|
MICHAEL ( See also: Micah (Num. xiii
.
13; I Chron. v.13 et passim)
.
In the See also: book of Daniel the name is given to one of the chief " princes " of the heavenly See also: host, the See also: guardian See also: angel or " See also: prince " of Israel (See also: Dan. x
.
13, 21; xii
.
I; cf
.
See also: Enoch xx
.
5 and possibly Mal. iii
.
I), and as such he naturally appears in Jewish theosophy as the greatest of all angels, the first of the four (or seven) who surround the See also: throne of See also: God, and the antagonist of Sammael, the enemy of God
.
He holds the secret of the mighty "word" by which God created heaven and See also: earth (Enoch lxix
.
14), and was " the angel who spoke to Moses in the See also: Mount " (Acts vii
.
38)
.
It was through Babylonian and Persian influence that names were given to the angels, and according to Kohut (Jiid
.
Angel. p . 24) Michael is parallel to Vohumano, " Ahura's first masterpiece," one of the Zoroastrian Amesha-spentas or archangels, It is as guardian angel of Israel, or of theSee also: Church, the true Israel, that Michael appears in
See also: Jude 9 and Rev. xii
.
7
.
This latter passage is of distinctly pre-Christian origin; it is not the See also: Child that overthrows Satan, the figure of the See also: Messiah is ousted by that of Michael
.
There is also here a relic of the primeval Babylonian myth of the struggle between the See also: light god See also: Marduk and the forces of chaotic darkness
.
In the Western Church the festival of St Michael and All Angels (Michaelmas) is celebrated on the 29th of See also: September; it appears to have grown out of a See also: local celebration of the dedication of a church of St Michael either at Mount Garganus in Apulia or at See also: Rome, and was a See also: great See also: day by the beginning of the 9th century
.
The See also: Greek Church dedicates the 8th of See also: November to St Michael, St See also: Gabriel and All Angels
.
|
|
|
[back] MICHAEL (1596-1645) |
[next] MICHAEL II |
There are no comments yet for this article.
Do not copy, download, transfer, or otherwise replicate the site content in whole or in part.
Links to articles and home page are encouraged.