12-8-20 - Seeing Angels

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

Have you ever seen an angel? I know one or two people who did as children, and have heard of people having what they believed were angelic encounters as adults. I was once in a chapel when it seemed filled with a presence that was distinctly “other,” and I was terrified. Was that an angel? Probably not – for in the bible, angels always seem to show up with a message to deliver.

The angel Gabriel (one of only two angels named in the scriptures...) was pretty busy in the months leading up to Jesus’ birth. First he showed up in the temple to tell Zechariah that he and his wife, long barren and now past childbearing age, will have a son whom they are to name John. And six months into Elizabeth’s unlikely pregnancy, he appears to Mary in Nazareth to announce a pregnancy that is downright impossible.

And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

Only an angel could deliver a message that bizarre and, if you’ll permit me, inconceivable. But that’s when angels are deployed, when God has a specific message or charge for a specific person. Prophets are human messengers for God, often with messages for a whole community. Angels seem to get be tasked when it comes announcing things to people, things like miraculous births – three angels tell Abram and Sarai about her impending and unlikely pregnancy.

What do we know about angels? The Old and New Testaments speak of them as heavenly creatures – neither divine nor human. They deliver difficult messages and occasionally do battle with the forces of evil. They are not cute, or cuddly, or necessarily looking out for us – they work for God. They are often fierce and, it appears, always fearsome, for every angelic encounter seems to begin with, “Be not afraid…”

Should we pay attention to angels? I can’t imagine they want us to, nor would they want to be worn on pins and or smile on us from posters. They certainly do not want to be prayed to. Their function is to point our attention to what God is up to. I sometimes pray that God would send a “guard of angels” to protect someone from evil, but that’s about it.

Why am I discussing something I consider peripheral to being a Christ-follower? It's helpful to examine where we are on the subject of angels. If we consider them intermediaries with God, perhaps we’re being invited to forge a more direct connection. If we want protection, maybe we can invite the Holy Spirit to be more discernibly present in our lives. If we want a message, we can ask for it in prayer. If we want to be able to relate to God more personally – well, that’s why Jesus came in the first place. Let’s get to know him better.

The one thing I feel reasonably sure of is this: If we should be “touched by an angel,” we’ll know it.

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