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The Roman Catholic Church celebrates the Memorial of the Guardian Angels on October 2. Do the Eastern Churches believe in Guardian Angels? Do they have any special memorials or feast days? Thanks for you answers.

Dear Guy,

The Eastern Church has a GREAT veneration for the Holy Bodiless Powers or Angels!

Every Monday of each week, the Byzantine Divine Office celebrates liturgically the Nine Choirs of Angels.

There are those of us who also fast on every Monday in their honour too - in addition to the Wednesday and Friday fasts.

Our great feast of the Angels is on November 8/21 (depending on which calendar one is on) which is the Feast of St Michael and all Angels.

Liturgically, we have special, litany-like Akathists and Canons to St Michael and all the Angels (Bodiless Powers) and to our Guardian Angel.

Our Byzantine evening prayers ideally include the recitation of a Canon to our Guardian Angel, along with one to our Lord Jesus and the Most Holy Mother of God.

If you would like further information, I could give you a URL that has the text for this Canon to the Guardian Angel.

We also venerate highly the Archangels: Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Salaphiel, Yegediel and Barachiel.

Alex

Yes, please.

I am aware, from my years of lurking, of Eastern devotion to angels, but I cannot recall even one mention of Guardian Angels.

One of the RC email services that I subscribe to implied that "Guardian" Angel is a RC concept. That's what made me wonder.

Sir Guy,

Here is the Canon to the Guardian Angel:

http://pages.prodigy/net/frjohnwhiteford/angel.htm

If you can't connect with this, and I'm a real technopeasant, use a search engine for "Orthodox Liturgical Resources" and Fr. Whiteford's site will come up.

Just go to "Akathists and Canons" and the Guardian Angel Canon is fourth from the top of the Canon list.

The full Byzantine title for the Guardian Angel is "The Holy Angel, Guardian of human lives."

There is also another Byzantine tradition of holding a Moleben/Paraclesis or Supplicatory Service in honour of the Guardian Angel of a new home. I always invoke the Guardian Angel of our new home.

Whenever we pray at home or in church, we do the general Dismissal prayer that goes like this:

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, at the prayers of Thy Most Pure Mother, of my Holy Guardian Angel and (Patron Saints) have mercy and save me, for You are Good and a Lover of mankind. Amen.

There is a liturgical prayer to the Guardian Angel in daily Byzantine Compline, as well as in the formal offices of the morning and evening prayers.

Interestingly enough, one's personal festival of one's Name-saint, in my case, St Alexius the Man of God, is often called the "Day of one's Guardian Angel."

It is clear that we are protected by our personal Guardian Angel and by our patron saint whose name we bear.

An Orthodox spiritual teacher once wrote that, after morning prayers, we are to keep silence.

It is at that time that our Guardian Angel speaks to us . . .

Alex

Icons of the guardian angel are also very popular. Here is a link that has an example of such an icon and a short prayer to the guardian angel.

http://www.comeandseeicons.com/jfl02.htm

As for myself, may the day never come that I would be so foolish as to begin the day without requesting my own guardian angel's protection.

Vicki Williams

Friends and their Guardian Angels:

At the end of his regular (every Wednesday) general audience yesterday, which gathered more than 15,000 people in St. Peter's Square, Pope John Paul II "appealed to believers, especially young people, to rediscover the help of guardian angels in their lives . . ."

"The memorial of the Guardian Angels, who are referred to in many passages of the Old and New Testament, was already celebrated in the year 800 in (Catholic) England . . ."

The full story is at:

http://www.ewtn.com/vnews/getstory.asp?number=30108

Which reminds me of the recent dedication of the Cathedral of the L.A. Archdiocese, in honor of Our Lady, the Queen of the Angels, whose title was derived from the 16th century name of Los Angeles, CA:

"El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de los Angeles de Porciuncula"

Got it?

Dear Amado,

There is an Orthodox Icon similar to the image of "Our Lady of the Angels" in the East too!

A similar one is an icon of the Mother of God surrounded by the many children-saints martyred by Herod.

The Eastern liturgical services to the Angels invite us "to live the angelic life" of readiness to be sent, as they are, where God deigns to send us and to freely and always glorify God, as they do.

Alex

Dear Vicki,

As for me, I have no doubt that our Guardian Angels converse when we write to one another over the internet!

Alex

Included in one of the Litanies of Byzantine Liturgies (Divine Liturgy and Vespers) is the petition:
For an angel of peace, a faithful guide, a guardian of our souls and
bodies, let us beseech the Lord.

This seems to me to be a reference to guardian angels. If I am wrong, I'm sure the more learned members of this forum will correct me.

There is also a great tradition of naming one's Guardian Angel. I named my Guardian Angel:

Ayinel

which means "Eye of God" in Hebrew.

Angel of God, my Guardian dear
To whom God's love commits here
Ever this day be at my side
To light and guard, to rule and guide. Amen.

Under St Ayinel's mighty protection,
Marshall

Dear Marshall,

And I sometimes name my Guardian Angel "Machidiel" supposedly the patron of the month of March in which I was born.

And, yes, the request for the protection of our Guardian Angel is indeed included in the body of the Divine Liturgy, in the Litany following the Canon.

Alex

Have a Blessed St. Francis' of Assisi Day !!!

If I remember correctly, the "Porciuncula" is the "Little Portion", or the small chapel that St. Francis of Assisi rebuilt after the Angel came to him with the message from God - "rebuild my Church".

John
Pilgrim and Odd Duck

An angel didn't speak to St Francis but Jesus Himself from the St Damian's crucifix (which is actually an icon!).

yours in Christ,
Marshall

Thank you, Marshall,

Yes, St Damian's crucifix is probably the most widely seen icon in the Latin Church, as it is used by the Franciscan Friars wherever they go, which seems to be about everyplace.

I guess the icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is a close competitor in numbers.

Have a Blessed Day !!!

John
Pilgrim and Odd

Indeed! My wife and I have the St Damian's crucifix on our bedroom wall.

It is probably the most popular crucifix among Protestants, too.

Marshall