Angels are messengers of God God is the English name given to the singular omnipotent being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism in the Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible is a term referring to the books of the Jewish Bible (Tanakh) as originally written mostly in Biblical Hebrew, with some Biblical Aramaic. It is also called the Hebrew Scriptures. The term closely corresponds to contents of the Jewish Tanakh and the Protestant Old Testament (see also Judeo-Christian) and does not include the (translating מלאך), the New Testament The New Testament is the name given to the second major division of the Christian Bible, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament. Unlike the Old Testament, the contents of the New Testament deal explicitly with Christianity, although both the Old and New Testament are regarded, together, as Sacred Scripture. The New Testament and the Quran The Qur’an is the central religious text of Islam, also sometimes transliterated as Quran, Koran, Qur’ān, Coran or al-Qur’ān. Muslims believe the Qur’an to be the verbal book of divine guidance and direction for mankind. Muslims also consider the original Arabic verbal text to be the final revelation of God. The term "angel" has also been expanded to various notions of "spiritual beings The English word spirit has many differing meanings and connotations, all of them relating to a non-corporeal substance contrasted with the material body. The spirit of a human being is thus the animating, sensitive or vital principle in that individual, similar to the soul taken to be the seat of the mental, intellectual and emotional powers. The" found in many other religious traditions. Other roles of angels include protecting and guiding human beings, and carrying out God's tasks.

The theological study of angels is known as angelology. In art Angels have appeared in works of art for millennia. Angel-shaped beings appear in ancient Mesopotamian and Greek art and were probably the inspiration for the popular Christian image of angels, angels are often depicted with wings, ultimately reflecting the descriptions in the Hebrew Bible, such as the chayot The Chayot or Hayyoth are a class of Merkabah, or Jewish Mystical Angel, reported in Ezekiel's vision of the Merkabah and its surrounding angels as recorded in the first chapter of the Book of Ezekiel describing Ezekiel's vision by the river Chebar in Ezekiel According to religious texts, Ezekiel , "God will strengthen" (from חזק, khazaq, [kħaˈzaq], literally "to fasten upon", figuratively "strong", and אל, el, [ʔel], literally "strength", figuratively "Almighty"), was a priest in the Bible who prophesied for 22 years sometime in the 6th century's Merkabah The Hebrew word Merkabah is used in Ezekiel (1:4-26) to refer to the throne-chariot of God, the four-wheeled vehicle driven by four "chayot" (Hebrew: "living creatures"), each of which has four rings and the four faces of a man, lion, ox, and eagle. vision or the Seraphim Seraphim are a class of celestial beings in Judaism and Christianity. Literally "burning ones", the word is normally a synonym for snakes when used in the Hebrew bible, but they are mentioned in the Book of Isaiah as fiery six-winged beings attending on God. They appear again as celestial beings in an influential Hellenistic work, the of Isaiah Isaiah (Hebrew: יְשַׁעְיָהוּ, Modern Yeshayahu Tiberian Yəšạʻyā́hû ; Greek: Ἠσαΐας, Ēsaïās ; Aramaic/Syriac/Assyrian: ܐܫܥܝܐ , Isha`ya ; Arabic: أشعیاء‎, Ašʿiyāʾ ; "Yahweh is salvation"; pronounced /aɪˈzeɪ.ə/ , /aɪˈzaɪ.ə/ (UK)) lived approximately 2700 years ago and was a prophet in.

Etymology

The word angel in English is a fusion of the Old English Old English or Anglo-Saxon is an early form of the English language that was spoken and written by the Anglo-Saxons and their descendants in parts of what are now England and south-eastern Scotland between at least the mid-5th century and the mid-12th century. What survives through writing represents primarily the literary register of Anglo-Saxon word engel (with a hard g) and the Old French Old French was the Romance dialect continuum spoken in territories that span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from the 9th century to the 14th century. It is a direct descendent of Old Gallo-Romance. It was then known as the langue d'oïl to distinguish it from the langue d'oc (Occitan language, angele. Both derive from the Latin angelus which in turn is the romanization In linguistics, romanization or latinization, alternately spelt as latinisation or romanisation , is the representation of a written word or spoken speech with the Roman (Latin) alphabet, or a system for doing so, where the original word or language uses a different writing system (or none). Methods of romanization include transliteration, for of the ancient Greek Ancient Greek is the historical stage in the development of the Greek language spanning the Archaic , Classical (c. 5th–4th centuries BC), and Hellenistic (c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD) periods of ancient Greece and the ancient world. It is predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek. Its Hellenistic phase is known as Koine (& ἄγγελος (angelos), "messenger".^[1] The earliest form of the word is the Mycenaean Mycenaean is the most ancient attested form of the Greek language, spoken on the Greek mainland and on Crete in the 16th to 12th centuries BC, before the hypothesised Dorian invasion which was often cited as the terminus post quem for the coming of the Greek language to Greece. The language is preserved in inscriptions in Linear B, a script first a-ke-ro attested in Linear B Linear B is a syllabic script that was used for writing Mycenaean Greek, an early form of Greek. It predated the Greek alphabet by several centuries and seems to have died out with the fall of Mycenaean civilization. Most of the tablets inscribed in Linear B were found in Knossos, Cydonia, Pylos, Thebes and Mycenae. The succeeding period, known as syllabic script.^[2][3]

Judaism

The Bible uses the terms מלאך אלהים (mal'akh Elohim Elohim is a plural formation of eloah, an expanded form of the Northwest Semitic noun il (אֱל, ʾēl ). It is the usual word for "god" in the Hebrew Bible, referring both to pagan deities and to the God of Israel, usually with a singular meaning despite its plural form, but is also used as a true plural with the meanings "spirits,; messenger of God), מלאך יהוה (mal'akh Adonai In Judaism, the name of God is more than a distinguishing title; it represents the Jewish conception of the divine nature, and of the relationship of God to the Jewish people and to the world. To demonstrate the sacredness of the names of God, and as a means of showing respect and reverence for them, the scribes of sacred texts treat them with; messenger of the Lord), בני אלהים (b'nai Elohim; sons of God) and הקודשים (ha-qodeshim; the holy ones) to refer to beings traditionally interpreted as angels. Other terms are used in later texts, such as העליונים (ha'elyoneem; the upper ones). Daniel Daniel (Hebrew: דָּנִיֵּאל, Modern Daniyyel Tiberian Dāniyyêl ; Irish: Dainéil; Syriac: ܕܢܝܐܝܠ, Daniyel; Arabic: دانيال, Persian: دانيال, Dâniyal or Danial, also Dani, داني ; Danyal; Greek: Δανιήλ, Dhanil; Russian: Даниил, Daniil; Chinese: Protestant:但以理/ Catholic:达尼尔(Dá ní ěr)) is the is the first biblical figure to refer to individual angels by name.^[4]

In post-Biblical Judaism, certain angels came to take on a particular significance and developed unique personalities and roles. Though these archangels Archangel is a term meaning an angel of high rank. Archangels are found in a number of religious traditions, including Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Michael and Gabriel are the archangels named in the Bible as recognized by both Jews and many Christians. The book of Tobit mentions Raphael, who is also considered by some to be an archangel were believed to have rank amongst the heavenly host Heavenly host refers in the Bible to an 'army' of good angels in Heaven, no systematic hierarchy ever developed. Metatron Metatron is the name of an angel in Judaism and some branches of Christianity and Islam. There are no references to him in the Jewish Tanakh (Old Testament) or Christian Scriptures (New Testament). Although he is mentioned in a few brief passages in the Talmud, Metatron appears primarily in medieval Jewish mystical texts and other post-scriptural is considered one of the highest of the angels in Merkabah The Hebrew word Merkabah is used in Ezekiel (1:4-26) to refer to the throne-chariot of God, the four-wheeled vehicle driven by four "chayot" (Hebrew: "living creatures"), each of which has four rings and the four faces of a man, lion, ox, and eagle. and Kabbalist Kabbalah is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the mystical aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It is a set of esoteric teachings meant to explain the relationship between an eternal and mysterious Creator and the mortal and finite universe (His creation). While it is heavily used by some denominations, it is not a denomination in and of mysticism and often serves as a scribe. He is briefly mentioned in the Talmud The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism, in the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history,^[5] and figures prominently in Merkabah mystical texts. Michael Michael is an archangel in Hebrew, Christian and Islamic tradition. He is viewed as the field commander of the Army of God. He is mentioned by name in the Book of Daniel, the Book of Jude and the Book of Revelation. In the book of Daniel, Michael appears as "one of the chief princes" who in Daniel's vision comes to the Archangel Gabriel', who serves as a warrior and advocate for Israel (Daniel 10:13) is looked upon particularly fondly. Gabriel In Abrahamic religions, Gabriel is an archangel who serves as a messenger from God. He first appears in the Old Testament Book of Daniel, delivering explanations of Daniel's visions. Based on two passages in the Gospel of Luke, Gabriel foretold the births of both John the Baptist and Jesus. Christians of the catholic traditions refer to him as is mentioned in the Book of Daniel The Book of Daniel is a book in the Hebrew Bible originally written in Hebrew and Aramaic. The book revolves around the figure of Daniel, who tradition holds wrote the book. The book in part tells the story of how Daniel, a Judean, becomes chief of the magicians (4:9) in the court of Nebuchadrezzar II, the ruler of Babylon from 605 to 562 BCE (Daniel 8:15–17), the Book of Tobit The Book of Tobit is a book of scripture that is part of the Catholic and Orthodox biblical canon, pronounced canonical by the Council of Carthage of 397 and confirmed for Roman Catholics by the Council of Trent (1546). It is listed in Article VI of the Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England. Tobit is regarded by Protestants as apocryphal, and briefly in the Talmud,^[6] as well as many Merkabah mystical texts. There is no evidence in Judaism for the worship of angels, but evidence for the invocation As a supplication or prayer it implies to call upon God, a god or goddess, a person, etc. When a person calls upon God, a god, or goddess to ask for something or simply for worship, this can be done in a pre-established form or with the invoker's own words or actions. An example of a pre-established text for an invocation is the Lord's Prayer and sometimes even conjuration Conjuration in traditional and most contemporary usage refers to a magical act of invoking spirits or using incantations or charms to cast magical spells. In the context of legerdemain, it may also refer to the performance of illusion or magic tricks for show. This article discusses mainly the original and primary usage, describing acts of a of angels.^[7]

Medieval Jewish philosopher Jewish philosophy refers to all philosophical activity carried out by Jews, or, in relation to the religion of Judaism. Jewish Philosophy, until Jewish Enlightenment and Jewish Emancipation, was pre-occupied with attempts to reconcile coherent new ideas into the tradition of Rabbinic Judaism; thus organizing emergent ideas, that are not Maimonides Moses Maimonides, also known as Rambam, was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher; one of the greatest Torah scholars of the Middle Ages. He was born in Córdoba, Spain on Passover Eve, 1135, and died in Egypt on 20th Tevet, December 12, 1204. He worked as a rabbi, physician and philosopher in Morocco and Egypt. With the contemporary Muslim explained his view of angels in his Guide for the Perplexed The Guide for the Perplexed is one of the major works of Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, better known as Maimonides or "the Rambam". It was written in the 12th century in the form of a three-volume letter to his student, Rabbi Joseph ben Judah of Ceuta, the son of Rabbi Judah, and is the main source of the Rambam's philosophical views, as II:4 and II:6:

...This leads Aristotle Aristotle (384 BC – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology. Together with Plato and Socrates (Plato's teacher), Aristotle is one of the most in turn to the demonstrated fact that God, glory and majesty to Him, does not do things by direct contact. God burns things by means of fire; fire is moved by the motion of the sphere; the sphere is moved by means of a disembodied intellect, these intellects being the 'angels which are near to Him', through whose mediation the spheres [planets] move... thus totally disembodied minds exist which emanate from God and are the intermediaries between God and all the bodies [objects] here in this world.

– Guide for the Perplexed II:4, Maimonides

According to Kabalah Kabbalah is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the mystical aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It is a set of esoteric teachings meant to explain the relationship between an eternal and mysterious Creator and the mortal and finite universe (His creation). While it is heavily used by some denominations, it is not a denomination in and of, there are four worlds and our world is the last world: the world of action (Assiyah). Angels exist in the worlds above as a 'task' of God. They are an extension of God to produce effects in this world. After an angel has completed its task, it ceases to exist. The angel is in effect the task. This is derived from the book of Genesis The Book of Genesis is the first book of the Hebrew Bible, and the first of five books of the Torah, called the Pentateuch in the Christian Old Testament when Abraham meets with three angels and Lot meets with two. The task of one of the angels was to inform Abraham of his coming child. The other two were to save Lot and to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah.^[8]

Famous angels and their tasks:^[9]

• Malachim This article is about the Malachim alphabet. For the quasi-Chasidic dynasty, see Malachim . You might also be looking for Malakh (plural Malakhim), a type of angel in Judaism (translation: messengers), general word for angel
• Michael Michael is an archangel in Hebrew, Christian and Islamic tradition. He is viewed as the field commander of the Army of God. He is mentioned by name in the Book of Daniel, the Book of Jude and the Book of Revelation. In the book of Daniel, Michael appears as "one of the chief princes" who in Daniel's vision comes to the Archangel Gabriel' (translation: who is like God), performs God's kindness
• Gabriel In Abrahamic religions, Gabriel is an archangel who serves as a messenger from God. He first appears in the Old Testament Book of Daniel, delivering explanations of Daniel's visions. Based on two passages in the Gospel of Luke, Gabriel foretold the births of both John the Baptist and Jesus. Christians of the catholic traditions refer to him as (translation: the strength of God), performs acts of justice and power
• Raphael Raphael is the name of an archangel of Judaism and Christianity who performs all manner of healing and another one of Islam (translation: God Heals), God's healing force
• Uriel Saint Uriel the Archangel (אוּרִיאֵל "El/God is my light]", Auriel/Oriel Standard Hebrew Uriʾel, Tiberian Hebrew ʾÛrîʾēl) is one of the archangels of post-Exilic Rabbinic tradition, and also of certain Christian traditions. His name may have analogies with Uriah (translation: God is my light), leads us to destiny
• Seraphim Seraphim are a class of celestial beings in Judaism and Christianity. Literally "burning ones", the word is normally a synonym for snakes when used in the Hebrew bible, but they are mentioned in the Book of Isaiah as fiery six-winged beings attending on God. They appear again as celestial beings in an influential Hellenistic work, the (translation: the burning ones), protects the gates to the Garden of Eden The Garden of Eden is described in the Book of Genesis as being the place where the first man, Adam, and his wife, Eve, lived after they were created by God. Literally, the Bible speaks about a garden in Eden (Gen. 2:8). This garden forms part of the Genesis creation narrative and theodicy of the Abrahamic religions, often being used to explain
• Malach HaMavet Death as a sentient entity is a concept that has existed in many societies since the beginning of history. In English, death is often given the name the "Grim Reaper" and from the 15th century onwards came to be shown as a skeletal figure carrying a large scythe and clothed in a black cloak with a hood. It is also given the name of the (translation: the angel of death)
• HaSatan Satan (Hebrew: הַשָׂטָן ha-Satan ; Persian "sheytân"; Arabic: الشيطان ash-Shayṭān ("the adversary") - both from the Semitic root: Ś-Ṭ-N) is an embodiment of antagonism that originates from the Abrahamic religions, being traditionally considered a "fallen" angel in Judeo-Christian belief, and a (translation: the prosecutor), brings people's sins before them in the heavenly court
• Chayot HaKodesh (translation: the holy beasts)
• Ophanim An Ophan is one of a class of celestial beings called Ophanim described in the Book of Enoch with the Cherubim and Seraphim as never sleeping, but watching (or guarding) the throne of God (translation: arbits) Astrological Influence
• HaMerkavah (translation: the chariot), transports God's glory

Christianity

Early Christians inherited Jewish understandings of angels. In the early stage, the Christian concept of an angel characterized the angel as a messenger of God. Angels are creatures of good, spirits of love, and messengers of the savior Jesus Christ. Later came identification of individual angelic messengers: Gabriel, Michael, Raphael, Uriel, and Lucifer. Then, in the space of little more than two centuries (from the third to the fifth) the image of angels took on definite characteristics both in theology and in art.^[10]

By the late fourth century, the Church Fathers agreed that there were different categories of angels, with appropriate missions and activities assigned to them. Some theologians had proposed that Jesus was not divine but on the level of immaterial beings subordinate to the Trinity. The resolution of this Trinitarian dispute included the development of doctrine about angels.^[11]

The angels are represented throughout the Christian Bible as a body of spiritual beings intermediate between God and men: "You have made him (man) a little less than the angels..." (Psalms 8:4,5). Some Christians believe that angels are created beings, and use the following passage as evidence: "praise ye Him, all His angels: praise ye Him, all His hosts... for He spoke and they were made. He commanded and they were created..." (Psalms 148:2-5; Colossians 1:16). The Fourth Lateran Council (1215) declared that the angels were created beings. The Council's decree Firmiter credimus (issued against the Albigenses) declared both that angels were created and that men were created after them. The First Vatican Council (1869) repeated this declaration in Dei Filius, the "Dogmatic constitution on the Catholic faith". Of note is that the bible describes the function of angels as "messengers" and does not indicate when the creation of angels occurred.^[12][13]

Many Christians regard angels as asexual and not belonging to either gender as they interpret Matthew 22:30 in this way. Angels are on the other hand usually described as looking like male human beings. Their names are also masculine. And although angels have greater knowledge than men, they are not omniscient, as Matthew 24:36 points out.^[14] Another view is that angels are sent into this world for testing, in the form of humans.^[15]

Show All>>

What Links Here:

Recently Viewed Pages:

• Search Terms
• Home
• Evangelism: Images
• Referrers
• Encyclopedia
• Evangelists
• Society: Religion and Spirituality: Christianity: Evangelism: Evangelistic Pages: Directory
• News
• Evangelism
• Directory

Most Popular Pages:

• Church Usher
• Search Terms
• Home
• Church Usher
• Church Usher: Answers
• Church Usher: Encyclopedia
• Pastor Enoch Adeboye: Blogs
• Pastor Enoch Adeboye: News
• Short Term: Blogs
• Hinduism: Encyclopedia

Related 'Angel' Searches: