Oct. 2, 2018: The Holy Guardian Angels
Oct. 2, 2018: The Holy Guardian Angels
By Fr. Peter John Cameron, OP
The guardian angels are a proof of how much God loves us. He sends the guardian angels to protect and attend us, especially when we do not know how to take care of ourselves. St. Basil the Great teaches that “beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life” (CCC 336; St. Basil, Adv. Eunomium III: PG 29, 656B). This prompts St. Jerome (d. 420) to comment, “How great the dignity of the soul, since each one has from his birth an angel commissioned to guard it.”
We need our angelic protectors, explains St. Thomas Aquinas, because, although we can to a certain degree avoid evil thanks to free will, we cannot do so in any sufficient degree. Just as guardians are appointed for people who have to pass by an unsafe road, so an angel guardian is assigned to each human being as long as that one is a wayfarer.
Guardian angels regulate us and move us to good by instructing us, by assisting us in prayer, by warding off demons, and by preventing both bodily and spiritual harm. St. Gregory of Nyssa (d. 395) tells us that “the Lord of the angels procures life and peace through his angels for those who are worthy.” And St. Ignatius (first century) adds, “It is characteristic of God and his angels that in their activity they give true joy and spiritual exultation, while removing the sadness and affliction that the enemy excites.”
Father Simon Tugwell, O.P., describes the distinctive help offered by the angels: They cannot give us the warm, animal, emotional kind of support that we get from other human beings, but the very simplicity of their spiritual vision can help to alleviate the complexity of our animal life.
The purity of their praise can come to our assistance when we are bogged down in the turmoil of our sensuality or our emotions and can find no way through. When we are weighed down by our corruptible flesh, we can be lifted up, like our Lord in Gethsemane, by the spiritual joy of the angels. St. Edith Stein assures us, “It is their bliss to be allowed to cooperate in God’s dispensing of graces.”
Prayer
My good Guardian Angel, you have been appointed by God to be my protector and shepherd, leading me to life and peace. Thank you for your guardianship. Without the benefit of your angelic care, I would be left to the custody of my own feeble resources. You delight in dispensing God’s graces to aid me in my salvation.
Regulate my life and move me to the good. Instruct me that I may live by the enlightenment of heaven. Assist me in prayer. Ward off demons that would threaten me, and remove the sadness and affliction brought on by the enemy. When weighed down by my emotions and fleshly things, lift me up and let me share your joy. Protect me from all bodily and spiritual harm.
Please forgive any times I may have neglected you. With trust in your angelic protection, I offer you my intentions: (mention your request here).
By Fr. Peter John Cameron, OP
The guardian angels are a proof of how much God loves us. He sends the guardian angels to protect and attend us, especially when we do not know how to take care of ourselves. St. Basil the Great teaches that “beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life” (CCC 336; St. Basil, Adv. Eunomium III: PG 29, 656B). This prompts St. Jerome (d. 420) to comment, “How great the dignity of the soul, since each one has from his birth an angel commissioned to guard it.”
We need our angelic protectors, explains St. Thomas Aquinas, because, although we can to a certain degree avoid evil thanks to free will, we cannot do so in any sufficient degree. Just as guardians are appointed for people who have to pass by an unsafe road, so an angel guardian is assigned to each human being as long as that one is a wayfarer.
Guardian angels regulate us and move us to good by instructing us, by assisting us in prayer, by warding off demons, and by preventing both bodily and spiritual harm. St. Gregory of Nyssa (d. 395) tells us that “the Lord of the angels procures life and peace through his angels for those who are worthy.” And St. Ignatius (first century) adds, “It is characteristic of God and his angels that in their activity they give true joy and spiritual exultation, while removing the sadness and affliction that the enemy excites.”
Father Simon Tugwell, O.P., describes the distinctive help offered by the angels: They cannot give us the warm, animal, emotional kind of support that we get from other human beings, but the very simplicity of their spiritual vision can help to alleviate the complexity of our animal life.
The purity of their praise can come to our assistance when we are bogged down in the turmoil of our sensuality or our emotions and can find no way through. When we are weighed down by our corruptible flesh, we can be lifted up, like our Lord in Gethsemane, by the spiritual joy of the angels. St. Edith Stein assures us, “It is their bliss to be allowed to cooperate in God’s dispensing of graces.”
Prayer
My good Guardian Angel, you have been appointed by God to be my protector and shepherd, leading me to life and peace. Thank you for your guardianship. Without the benefit of your angelic care, I would be left to the custody of my own feeble resources. You delight in dispensing God’s graces to aid me in my salvation.
Regulate my life and move me to the good. Instruct me that I may live by the enlightenment of heaven. Assist me in prayer. Ward off demons that would threaten me, and remove the sadness and affliction brought on by the enemy. When weighed down by my emotions and fleshly things, lift me up and let me share your joy. Protect me from all bodily and spiritual harm.
Please forgive any times I may have neglected you. With trust in your angelic protection, I offer you my intentions: (mention your request here).
