Stump The Seminarian Vol 1 The Angel Uriel

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St. Uriel", mosaic in St John's Church, Boreham (England) (1888)

I'm teaming up with St. Michael Catholic Radio in Tulsa, Oklahoma, 102.9 FM, to do a twice-monthly "Stump the Seminarian" feature. Here's the description:

Have a question about the Catholic faith? Don't know who to ask? St. Michael Catholic Radio is starting a new blog called "Stump the Seminarian"! Submit your question and Joe Heschmeyer, a seminarian in Rome, will answer a few in upcoming blogs. You can submit your questions over there, if you'd like. I'll be cross-posting answers here, as well. I've gotten a few questions already, and I've picked out one that I've never heard asked before. It's about the archangel Uriel. Read on:

FROM: Darren

QUESTION:

"Why does the Catholic Church only recognize St. Michael, St. Gabriel, and St. Raphael as Archangels? Why do we not recognize Uriel the Archangel, as well as others? Is it against Catholic teaching to pray to these archangels?"

ANSWER:

The Bible tells us that there are seven angels who stand before the Throne of God, interceding on our behalf. We first hear about this in Tobit 12:15, in which the archangel Raphael describes himself as "one of the seven holy angels who present the prayers of the saints and enter into the presence of the glory of the Holy One."

Tobit is part of the Old Testament Deuterocanon, the set of seven books of Bible accepted by Catholics but rejected by most Protestants. So it's significant that this account from the Book of Tobit is confirmed in the New Testament book of Revelation, a book rejected by Luther rejected but accepted by virtually all Protestants today. In Revelation 8:2, St. John says:

Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer; and he was given much incense to mingle with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne; and the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God.Additionally, in the Gospel of Luke, the archangel Gabriel's introduction closely tracks with Raphaels (Luke 1:19).

But while there are seven of these angels, Scripture only gives us the names of three of them: Raphael, Gabriel, and Michael (Daniel 10:13, 21; Revelation 11:9). Popular Jewish and Christian devotions and legendary accounts gave us the names to the other four, including Uriel, although these names varied. I wouldn't put any stock in these accounts, particularly because the Vatican's "Directory on Popular Piety" (P 217) cautions: "The practice of assigning names to the Holy Angels should be discouraged, except in the cases of Gabriel, Raphael and Michael whose names are contained in Holy Scripture."

That said, the "Directory "describes that popular devotion to Holy Angels as "legitimate and good." P 216 explains that a healthy devotion to the angels should be marked by:

* "devout gratitude to God for having placed these heavenly spirits of great sanctity and dignity at the service of man;" and

* "an attitude of devotion deriving from the knowledge of living constantly in the presence of the Holy Angels of God;- serenity and confidence in facing difficult situations, since the Lord guides and protects the faithful in the way of justice through the ministry of His Holy Angels. Among the prayers to the Guardian Angels the "Angele Dei "is especially popular, and is often recited by families at morning and evening prayers, or at the recitation of the Angelus."

So devotion to the angels is good, but the only angelic names that we actually know are the three that we get from Scripture.

In Christ,

Joe

Reference: mysteryvoodoo.blogspot.com

Yahoel The Chief Archangel Name Of The Ineffabe

Within the book Apocalypse of Abraham, there is a mighty archangel called Yahoel, who is said to be a spiritual guide sent to accompany Abraham. Depending of which translation you happen to come across, Yahoel's name might also appear as Iaoel. When Yahoel introduces himself to Abraham, he states that the meaning of HIS NAME IS INEFFABLE, or incapable of being expressed with human words, which is also the case for God's own name. For those of you who are not familiar with the Apocalypse of Abraham in which Yahoel appears, it is a pseudepigraphic Jewish literary work that was largely based on Old Testament scripture. The precise date of it's authorship is not known, however many scholars believe it was written between 70 to 150 AD. As it's Jewish in origin, it's considered to be an integral piece of Apocalyptic literature. Due however to it's noncanonical foundation, most Orthodox Jews and mainstream Christian don't recognize it as official.

Legend has it that the archangel Yahoel is so close to God in his nature and form, that he could be accurately described as a manifestation of God's power. It is also stated that Yahoel is one of the grand choir masters in heaven, and that he personally instructs legions of angels with their singing. It is also believed by some that Yahoel has the power over all earthly serpents and reptiles, as well as all of the reptilian like creatures found within the sea and air. Some scholars have interpreted that last attribute as possibly meaning that Yahoel was the heavenly archangel that both created and exterminated the dinosaurs that used to roam the earth, as there are bits of scripture that could be thought to mean that he was on the earth conducting tasks for God before man arrived. One of the other attributes he holds and shares equally with the archangel Michael, is that Yahoel is a sworn protector of Israel, even the new Israeli state of today.

With regard to accounts of Yahoel's physical description, it is stated that he has a human face that was carved out of pure chrysolite, a green like stone that looks like Peridot when it's cut. Yahoel's hair is also said to flow like pure white snow, and upon the top of his head he wears a turban that looks like it is made out of a thick spirit like mist of rainbow colors, and it also radiates a bright heavenly light. Yahoel is also said to wear a robe like garment, which is long flowing and a bright royal purple in color. In his right hand he holds a solid gold scepter, which is a symbol of the absolute power that God has granted him. There have also been some translations that claim that Yahoel sits on a great throne of clouds. There are a lot of Christians and Jews that take grave offense to the description of Yahoel, with some stating that it represents a form of blasphemy. His persona is too closely linked with God's power for some, as he almost mimics the Holy Ghost.

OTHER ANGEL PROFILES

ANGELIC VENERATION, WORSHIP, PRAYER AND CHANNELING IS PROHIBITED. ALL OF THE ABOVE ARE RESERVED ALONE FOR AND WITH GOD. GOD REVEALS PRIMARILY THROUGH HIS HOLY SPIRIT NOT THROUGH HIS ANGELS. MANY HAVE BEEN DECEIVED BY DEMONIC AND EVIL SPIRITS APPEARING AS ANGELS OF LIGHT, BEARING FALSE MESSAGES OF NEW AGE RELIGIONS AND PHILOSOPHIES. IF GOD WANTS TO TELL YOU SOMETHING HE WILL DO SO BY HIS SPIRIT NOT THROUGH HIS ANGELS.