The Language of Angels

How angels communicate in mysterious ways.
Fr. Pascal P. Parente

Excerpted from 'The Angels' by Fr. Pascal P. Parente, published by Tan Books and Publishers.

Do angels speak and manifest their thoughts to others? It would indeed be inconceivable that such a vast multitude of pure spirits endowed with superior intelligence and an abundance of clear ideas should lack the means of communicating among themselves.

Saint Paul speaks of such things as "the tongues of angels." From sacred Scripture we learn that angels do talk with one another; they talk to men every time they are sent as God's messengers into this world. The examples are many: The Archangel Raphael and Tobias, Gabriel the Archangel and Saint Zachary and the Blessed Virgin Mary; an Angel spoke to Saint Peter, etc. If they talk and they sing in a manner and a voice that is not their own, how much more must they be able to talk and sing in the language of the spirits.

At the birth of Christ, the heavenly messenger of joy and of great tidings, an angel of God announced the nativity of the Savior of the world to a few shepherds in the hill country around Bethlehem. Messengers had come down to earth many times since man's creation, to advise, to warn, to help, or to punish man. On this occasion "a multitude of the heavenly army" was heard for the first time singing, caroling, and praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will." Only the angelic mind could well understand the mystery of the Incarnation, and the great honor and dignity that had come to poor human nature when the Son of God, the Eternal Word, assumed and substantially united it to His Divine Person for all eternity.

The fact that angels possess a language of their own is beyond all doubt; the nature of that language, however, is little known to us. When the angels appear to men, a human language is spoken by them, the one spoken by the addressee. The sound of human voice is produced, and human words are spoken when the angelic apparition is a sensible one; only mental words, the conveying of ideas, are used in cases of imaginative or intellectual visions.

Among themselves the angels do not converse in any human language, by words of mouth, being incorporeal and immaterial. What is their language then? Of several theories...the one proposed by Saint Thomas seems to be the most acceptable. Saint Thomas holds that the angels talk to each other by a mere act of the will, opening their mind and revealing whatever ideas they wish to convey to others of the same nature as themselves.

This angelic language, or conversation, is called illumination. Dionysius refers to this mode of speaking where he writes: "The lower orders of the Celestial Beings (the angels) receive the understanding of the Divine works from those above them in a fitting manner, and the highest are correspondingly enlightened in the Divine Mysteries by the Most High God Himself..."

"They [the angels] need neither tongue nor ears but with-out the help of any spoken word they exchange with each other their thoughts and their counsels. This form of expression, the angelic language, may seem perhaps too faint and indistinct to us who are used to material sound and words of mouth; it is however much stronger, clearer, and more perfect than any human language, even when this is used by the most learned and experienced of men. Our words of mouth are no more than symbols of the ideas we have in our mind and wish to manifest to others. Symbols and words are very often inadequate in expressing the full thought, or they are ambiguous or not well understood by the hearer. To be able to open one's mind and reveal the whole thought, as it is there, without the channel of symbolism, sound, and words, is a higher and better form of expression. Such is the wordless exchange of ideas, the language of the angels.

source: http://www.beliefnet.com/story/41/story_4196_2.html

What Is a Prayer You Say to Angels?

i have a guardian angel, that watches over me,
my angel always protects me, and doesn't charge a fee.
she's always here with me, to keep me safe from harm,
and when i need her most, she reaches out her arm.
just so i can feel her, and know that she is near,
and if i start to cry, she'll wipe away my tear.
i am very thankful, to have her as my guide,
and i'll do my very best, to try and always abide.
doing what's right, isn't always easy to do,
cause there's so much bad out there, tempting me & you.
that's why we need, a helping hand sometimes,
and ever now and then, we need these little rhymes.

credit: templeminded 3/12/2006 7:08 AM

source: http://www.beliefnet.com/boards/message_list.asp?boardID=370&discussionID=495943&WT.mc_id=NL24

Angelic Love

To love for the sake of being loved is human,
but to love for the sake of loving is angelic.
--Alphonse de Lamartine

I like to ask people what our main reason for being here is. Most say that our existence has something to do with love. Although not a new thought, it is something we need to remember from time to time: Love is truly the most precious quality we have. At the end of our lives, we will not be asked how much money we made, how many things we acquired, how far up the ladder of success we got. The question that will matter is: How well did you love?

Deep within the dimensions of our heart is a capacity for higher love. A love that is so pure it makes the angels shudder with joy. This innate ability can be a guiding force in our lives; when it is, the angels usher us into situations where the love we generate creates miracles right before our eyes. It is never too late to embark on a journey of higher love because with the angels lighting the way transformation can happen in an instant.

The angels connect with us by way of our heart. They read our heart and see what we may be blocking and what might be causing us pain. Lessons in love involve pain, that is part of the bargain. The pain of a "broken heart" is not due to the fact that it is broken; the pain is from a building up of pressure created by fear, doubt, and anger. If we are willing to fully experience and honor the pain connected to love, then our heart breaks open, the pressure is released and we find ourselves in the territory of grace where fear is replaced with comfort, doubt with hope, and anger with forgiveness. Joy bursts forth.

It takes courage to love until your heart breaks open. The word "courage" comes by way of the Latin word cor, which means heart. The angels encourage us to love more and more. Each time we do, we get closer to a place of higher love. When I say "higher love," I am using the term as a metaphor for divine love. The angels represent the divine nature of love; to connect with the angels means raising our vibration to a higher plane. We may think that this is out of our reach, but it is very simple. We only need to do our best and love with the purest intent. The vibration we give off is directly related to our intention in matters of love. If we intend to love because we want to be worshipped or to possess someone, then the vibration is heavy because so much fear goes with this game. Love is expansive it needs breathing room. In a relationship loves needs space as Kahlil Gibran says to "let the winds of heavens dance between you."

The angels don’t judge us, they respond to us, and interact with us based on the qualities we energize. The frequencies of the angels are in accordance with the divine. So if we are generating the lower vibrations of fear and anger regarding a love situation, the angels cannot respond to this. When we shift the energy by facing the fear and dealing with the anger, the angels move in to help lift us up.

Because the angels are very highly attuned, to have a relationship with them we need to "tune-up" our own personal love vibration. The best way to do this is with a mindfulness practice. Take a moment and reflect on where you are in your quest to love well. Close your eyes and let your awareness go to your heart. Take a deep breath and let some feelings emerge. Make a mental note of the mixture of emotions. Know that regardless of the state your love-life is in, you are loved in heaven. Know that ultimately the angels whisper in your ear, "Everything is going to be okay." If you consider yourself single, rethink your use of that word. I don’t believe we are ever single; that word seems to promote a belief in separation, and we always have the choice to connect to life.

To further your mindfulness of love here are a few practice suggestions:

Designate a love-link between you and the angels. Think of something that you may encounter throughout your day that will initiate a moment to feel loved by the angels. An obvious love-link could be a heart. When you see a heart, take a moment and know the angels are in your heart. Look for hearts, listen for the word in conversation, notice it in writings, and feel your heartbeat. Other love-link suggestions: butterflies, flowers, cupids, clouds, diamonds, wings, etc. Think of a new love-link each day.

Consciously make your world more beautiful. Beauty is important because it means something is divinely cared for. I am not talking about our current fashion sense of beauty, I am talking about something deeper than conditioned visual beauty. We all have our own sense of what is beautiful; let beauty into your life, whatever it means to you. Ask the angels to remind you to notice beauty, to look up at the clouds, to notice the sun shining through the leaves of a tree, to literally stop and smell the roses. Increase beauty in your environment: Plant a flower, make yourself look a little better by smiling more, buy some art for your home.

Don’t forget to laugh and lighten up. The angels are attracted when we are sharing laughter with someone we love. Instead of punishing yourself for a "mistake," try laughing at yourself.

Gratitude allows you to move from a state of neediness to a state of grace. It is one of the best ways to lift a situation. The angels respond instantly to a moment of gratitude. Even when you don’t feel it, start to be thankful for a situation and in time the feeling will catch up with your intention.

Real compassion and loving kindness give off the highest divine vibrations, and bring us into direct contact with the divine. "Real means that we are not looking for anything in return. It means being willing to love for the sake of loving as a way to help the angels heal the planet, not to feel better about ourselves or to get a lover. Compassion means we are willing to give love when we have been given hate, to forgive, to consciously go beyond our self-interest and bridge the gap of separation that is so prevalent in human society. Even a baby step into compassion sets the angel in us free and opens the gate of the miraculous.

source: http://www.beliefnet.com/story/12/story_1203_2.html

What do angels look like?

I often receive emails asking, "Please tell me what my angel looks like." Often the questioner has been listening to someone on radio or TV describe their "vision" of angels surrounding members of the audience. Can people really see angels around a person? The Bible and the mainstream Christian faith know nothing of such second sight. It would be interesting to have three people, who claim to have the power to see a person’s angels, write down their descriptions and then compare them. I have no doubt they would describe three different entities!

Why? Because in their natural form angels are spirit beings, and our physical eyes cannot see the spirit. It also does not make sense that one’s angel (or three angels, as some claim we all have) would always be standing right behind their charge. In the Bible we learn that angels can move with tremendous speed, so guardian angels could keep their watch even if they were 50 or 100 feet above their charge.

Angels do have the ability to assume temporarily a shape that humans can see when there is a reason for them to do so. Most often in the Bible and in life today, when angels are seen they appear as people, looking no different than other persons. Remember Abraham’s visitors in Genesis 18? Hebrews 13:2 also states, "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares." The passage suggests that at any time it is possible that we may have encountered angels without our being conscious of their supernatural nature. Being inconspicuous is often a part of the angel’s ministry.

Most often, as angels do their work, they remain unseen. I am certain that when we get to heaven we will be amazed at how often angels were present and active in our lives though we were not aware of their activity.

Of course, there are exceptions. In biblical times and in life today, sometimes the angels appear in awesome splendor. They may appear as warrior angels, tremendously tall and powerful, or as beautiful beings with or without wings. In Psalm 104:4 angels are described as a flaming fire. Many have told us that they have seen an angel appear as light. At times the light appears as a faint glow that grows until the room is filled with brilliance. At other times it is an unseen figure bathed in light. Some have been only able to describe what an angel was wearing because the face was bathed in a such a bright light that it could not be seen. For some observers, the light is pure and white, brighter than any whiteness they have ever seen; others describe a light of different colors.

Are angels male or female?

This is the question children ask most often. Many of the pictures we see of angels, especially those on Christmas cards, are of a woman with long blond hair, dressed in a flowing white robe and with graceful wings.

But are angels mostly women? No! They are neither men nor women. They do not have a gender as we know it. They do not marry or have children (Matthew 22:28-30); they are sexless beings, at least in the normal sense of the word. It is possible that celestial beings have a gender in a way unknown to us. C.S. Lewis speculated about this in his fictional space trilogy, Perelandra.

What we do know is that angels are not masculine or feminine in the way we use those terms. When I sit on the floor surrounded by five-year-old children who ask that question in Sunday School, I simply answer, "Angels are not boys or girls. They are different than people. Different and wonderful."

Don’t all angels in the Bible have masculine names?

Whenever I am leading a seminar on angels and this question is raised, I ask: "What are the names of angels in the Bible?"

The answers come quickly: "Gabriel and Michael."

"That’s right," I answer.

"Are there others?" For a long moment, there is usually silence before someone calls out the name of Lucifer, the fallen angel. These three are the only angels named in the Bible. The Apocrypha adds Raphael, and Uriel is also mentioned in Jewish, Kabbalistic, and some Christian traditions. The Kabbalah includes many other angel names, most ending in -el, from the Hebrew root indicating "God." These names are all masculine.

I can picture the angels chuckling about our speculation over their names. Since there are millions and millions of angels and we only know the names of a few, we certainly cannot draw any conclusion about the gender of angels based on their names. We are limited to a human vocabulary. It is quite possible that countless angels have wonderful names we have never heard on earth, names that are truly angelic but neither masculine nor feminine.

The Pink Dress

There was this little girl sitting by herself in the park.

Everyone passed by her and never stopped to see why she looked so sad.Dressed in a worn pink dress, barefoot and dirty, the girl just satand watched the people go by. She never tried to speak. She never said a word. Many people passed by her, but no one would stop.The next day I decided to go back to the park in curiosity to see if the little girl would still be there.Yes, she was there, right in the very spot where she was yesterday, and still with the same sad look in her eyes. Today I was to make my own move and walk over to the little girl.

For as we all know, a park full of strange people is not a place for young children to play alone. As I got closer I could see the back of the little girl's dress. It was grotesquely shaped. I figured that was the reason people just passed by and made no effort to speak to her. Deformities are a low blow to our society and, heaven forbid if you make a step toward assisting someone who is different.

As I got closer, the little girl lowered her eyes slightly to avoid my intent stare. As I approached her, I could see the shape of her back more clearly. She was grotesquely shaped in a humped over form.I smiled to let her know it was OK; I was there to help, to talk. I sat down beside her and opened with a simple, "Hello." The little girl acted shocked, and stammered a "hi"; after a long stare into my eyes. I smiled and she shyly smiled back. We talked until darkness fell and the park was completely empty. I asked the girl why she was so sad. The little girl looked at me with a sad face said, "Because, I'm different."I immediately said, "That you are!"; and smiled.The little girl acted even sadder and said, "I know."

"Little girl," I said, "you remind me of an angel, sweet and innocent." She looked at me and smiled, then slowly she got to her feet and said,"Really?"

"Yes, you're like a little Guardian Angel sent to watch over all people walking by." She nodded her head yes, and smiled. With that she opened the back of her pink dress and allowed her wings to spread, then she said "I am."

"I'm your Guardian Angel," with a twinkle in her eye. I was speechless -- sure I was seeing things. She said, "For once you thought of someone other than yourself. My job here is done". I got to my feet and said, "Wait, why did no one stop to help an angel?" She looked at me, smiled, and said, "You're the only one that could see me," and then she was gone. And with that, my life was changed dramatically. So, when you think you're all you have, remember, your angel is always watching over you. Tell this to everyone that means anything at all to you. Make sure you thank the person who sent it to you, to let them know you're glad they care about you. Like the story says, we all need someone...And, every one of your friends is an Angel in their own way.

The value of a friend is measured in the heart.I hope your Guardian Angel watches over you always.

In the Arms of an Angel

In the arms of an angel
fly away from here
from this dark hotel room
and the endlessness that you fear
you are pulled from the wreckage
of your silent reverie
In the arms of your angel
may you find some comfort there.

Angels around Us

Angels are often not seen,
but rather felt or heard or sensed.
People recount a shifting color
in the atmosphere, a dream,
a clarifying thought,
a surge of superhuman strength.
Sometimes only visible
is the tip of a sword or
a muscular arm flung out protectively.

by: Tracy Mullins

source: http://www.beliefnet.com/