The ranks of angels are features of the celestial hierarchy in Orthodoxy and Catholicism. Heavenly hierarchy: guardian angels.

Angels hierarchy

The basis for creating a church doctrine about angels is the book of Dionysius Areopagite, written in the 5th century, “On the celestial hierarchy” (Greek “Περί της ουρανίας”, lat. “De caelesti hierarchia”), better known in the 6th century edition. Nine angelic ranks are divided into three triads, each of which has any particularity.
  The first triad - seraphim, cherubim and thrones - is characterized by close proximity to God;
  The second triad - power, domination and power - emphasizes the divine basis of the universe and world-mastery;
  The third triad — the beginnings, the archangels, and the angels proper — is characterized by close proximity to man.
  Dionysius summarized what had been accumulated before him. Seraphim, cherubim, powers, and angels are already mentioned in the Old Testament; domination, beginnings, thrones, powers, and archangels appear in the New Testament.

According to the classification of Gregory the Theologian (4th century), the angelic hierarchy consists of angels, archangels, thrones, domination, forces, auroras, ascents and understandings.
  According to their position in the hierarchy, the ranks are as follows:

Seraphim - first
  cherubim - the second
  thrones- third
  domination - fourth
  forces - the fifth
  power - the sixth
  beginning - the seventh
  the archangels - the eighth
  the angels are the ninth.

Jewish hierarchical constructions differ from Christian ones, since they appeal only to the first part of the Bible - the Old Testament (TaNaH). One source has ten ranks of angels, starting with the highest: 1) hiot; 2) ofanim; 3) arelim; 4) hashmalim; 5) seraphim; 6) small, actually "angels"; 7) Elohim; 8) Bene Elohim ("sons of God"); 9) Cherubs; 10) ishim.

In the Maseket Azilut, ten angelic ranks are given in a different order: 1) seraphim, led by Shemuel or Yehohel; 2) Ofanim led by Rafail and Ofaniel; 3) Cherubs, headed by Cherubiel; 4) shinanim, over which cedekiel and Gabriel are placed; 5) tarshishim, whose chiefs are Tarshish and Sabriel; 6) led by Céfaniel; 7) Hashmalim, whose leader is called Hashmal; 8) small, headed by Uzziel; 9) Bene Elohim led by Hofniel; 10) arelim, which is headed by Michael himself.

The names of the senior angels (archangels) vary in different sources. Traditionally, the highest rank is attributed to Michael, Gabriel and Raphael - to three angels, named by name in biblical books; the fourth to them is usually added Uriel, found in the non-canonical 3 Book of Ezra. The idea that there are seven higher angels (associated with the magical properties of the number 7) is widespread, attempts to list them by name have been made since the time of Book 1 of Enoch, but there are too large discrepancies here. We confine ourselves to listing the “magnificent seven” adopted in the Orthodox tradition: these are Gabriel, Rafail, Uriel, Salafiel, Yehudiil, Barahiel, Jeremiel, headed by the eighth - Michael.

The Judaic tradition also places Archangel Metatron on an extremely high position, who was the patriarch of Enoch in earthly life, but in heaven turned into an angel. He is the vizier of the heavenly court and almost the deputy of God himself.

Nine angelic ranks

The first hierarchy: Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones.
  The second hierarchy: Domination, Strength, Power.
  Third hierarchy: Beginnings, Archangels, Angels.

1. The Seraphim

Seraphs are angels of love, light and fire. They occupy the highest position in the hierarchy of ranks and serve God, caring for his throne. Seraphim express their love for God by constantly singing laudatory psalms.
  In the Hebrew tradition, the endless singing of the seraphim is known as "Trisagion" - Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh ("Holy, Holy, Holy Lord of the Forces of Heaven, the whole earth is full of its radiance"), considered the song of creation and celebration. Being the creatures closest to God, the seraphim are also considered "fiery" because they are enveloped in the flame of eternal love.
  According to the medieval mystic Jan van Ruysbrok, the three rites of seraphim, cherubim and thrones never take part in human conflicts, but are with us when we peacefully contemplate God and experience constant love in our hearts. They generate divine love in people.
  St. John the Theologian on the island of Patmos had a vision of angels: Gabriel, Metatron, Kemuel and Netanyel among the seraphim.
  Isaiah is the only prophet who mentions seraphim in Hebrew Scripture (Old Testament) when he talks about his vision of fiery angels over the throne of God: "Each had six wings: two covered their faces, two covered their legs, and two were used for flight."
Another mention of the seraphim can be considered the book of Numbers (21: 6), where reference is made to the "fiery serpents." According to the "Second Book of Enoch" (apocrypha), the seraphim have six wings, four heads, and a face.
  Lucifer came out of the rank of seraphim. In fact, the Fallen Prince was considered an angel who overshadowed all others, until he lost God's Grace.

Seraphims - In Judaic and Christian mythology, angels, especially close to God. The Prophet Isaiah describes them like this: “In the year of the death of King Uzziah, I saw the Lord sitting high on the throne, and the entire temple was filled with His robe. Around him stood the seraphim; each of them has six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his legs, and with two he flew. And they cried to one another and said: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts! The whole earth is full of His glory / ”(Is. 6 1-3). According to the classification of Pseudo-Dionysius, together with cherubs and thrones, seraphim belong to the first triad: "... the Holy Thrones, mnogokie and many-winged Chins, called in the language of the Jews Cherubim and Seraphim, by the explanation of the Holy Scripture are in the larger and most immediate before the other
  proximity to God ... as for the name of the Seraphim, it clearly shows their incessant and everlasting striving for the Divine, their ardor and quickness, their ardent, constant, unremitting and steady swiftness, as well as their ability to really raise the lower ones to the highest, excite and ignite them to a similar heat: it also means ability, burning and burning. thereby cleansing them is always open. unquenchable, always the same, light-shielding and enlightening power of them. chasing away and taking into account all darkness.

2. Cherubs

The word "cherub" means "the fullness of knowledge" or "the outpouring of wisdom." This choir has the power to know and contemplate God and the ability to understand and transmit divine knowledge to others.

  3. Thrones

The term "thrones", or "multi-eyed", indicates their proximity to the throne of God. This is the closest to God rank: both their divine perfection, and the consciousness they receive directly from Him.

Pseudo-Dionysius reports:
  “So, it is true that the highest beings are dedicated to the first of the heavenly Hierarchies, since it has the highest rank, especially because the first Epiphany and sanctification initially relate to it, as the burning Thrones and the outpouring of wisdom are called
  heavenly minds because these names express their God-like properties ... the name of the highest altars means that they
completely free from all earthly affection and, constantly rising above the long valley, preliminarily strive for the highest, with all their might
  motionless and firmly attached to a truly Supreme being
  accepting His Divine suggestion in utter passionlessness and immateriality; it also means that they carry God and slavishly fulfill the Divine His commands.

4. Reigns

Saints of domination are endowed with sufficient power to rise above earthly desires and aspirations and free themselves from them. Their duty is to assign the duties of angels.

According to Pseudo-Dionysius, “the significant name of the holy lords ... means some non-treble and free from any low attachment to earthly elevation to the mountain, not a single violent attraction to the dissimilar with them in any way unstable, but the domination is constant in its freedom, standing above all humiliating slavery, alien to all humiliation, withdrawn from all inequality to itself, constantly striving for true domination and, as much as possible, sacredly transforming into a perfect similarity to Him to itself, and all his subordinate, not cling to anything accidentally exist, but always fully converted to the truth-that exists and continually partake of state-sponsored godlike "

  5. Forces

The forces known as "resplendent, or shining," are angels of miracles, help, blessings that appear during battles in the name of faith. It is believed that David received the support of the Force in the battle with Goliath.
  The powers are also angels, from whom Abraham received his power when God told him to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. The main duties of these angels are to work wonders on earth.
  They are allowed to intervene in everything related to physical laws on earth, but they are also responsible for enforcing these laws. By this rank, the fifth in the Hierarchy of Angels, humanity is given valor as well as mercy.

Pseudo-Dionysius says: “The name of the holy Forces means some powerful and irrepressible courage, if possible, communicated to them, reflected in all of their God-like actions in order to remove from them all that could diminish and weaken the Divine insights given to them, striving for God-imitation, not remaining idle of laziness, but relentlessly gazing at the highest and all-strengthening Power and, as much as possible, in her own power, can make Her way completely turned to Her as the source of the Forces and God-God upgrade equ downward to the lower forces to communicate the power of them. "

  6. Power

Authorities are on the same level as dominions and powers, and are endowed with authority and intelligence, second only to God. They provide the balance of the universe.

According to the Gospels, authorities can be both good powers and henchmen of evil. Among the nine angelic officials, the authorities close the second triad, which in addition to them includes domination and power. As stated by Pseudo-Dionysius, "the name of the holy Authorities signifies equal to Divine Dominions and Forces, harmonious and capable of accepting Divine insights, the Chin and the device of premium spiritual dominion, which does not use self-ruledly bestowed dominion forces, but freely and decently as Divine. and others are sacred to Him leading and, as much as possible, becoming similar to the Source and Giver of all power and depicting Him ... in the utterly true use of their sovereign power. "

7. Beginning

  The beginnings are legions of angels defending religion. They constitute the seventh chorus in the hierarchy of Dionysius, the next immediately before the archangels. Beginning gives strength to the peoples of the Earth to find and relive their fate.
  It is also believed that they are the guardians of the peoples of the world. The choice of this term, as well as the term "authority", to designate the ranks of the angels of God is somewhat doubtful, since c. “The Epistles to the Ephesians,” “the authorities and the authorities,” are called “the spirits of evil in the heavens,” against which Christians must fight (“To the Ephesians,” 6:12).
  Among those who are considered the "main" in this rank are Nisrok, an Assyrian deity, which occult writings consider the main prince, the demon of hell, and Tahan, one of the seven angels of creation.

The Bible says: “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor
  Beginning, neither Force, neither present, nor future ... cannot separate us
  from the love of God in Jesus Christ our Lord (Rom. 8.38). By
Pseudo-Dionysius classification. beginnings are part of the third triad
  along with the archangels and the angels themselves. Pseudo-Dionysius says:
  "The name of the Heavenly Authorities means the God-like ability to command and control according to the sacred order appropriate to the commanding Powers, both entirely to refer to the Beginning Principle, and others, as is characteristic of the Authority, to guide, sign in themselves, as far as possible, the image of an inaccurate Start and. finally, the ability to express the premium of His superiors in the beautification of the commanding Forces .., the Probe of the Commanding Authorities, Archangels and Angels alternately commanding the human Hierarchies, I would be in the order it was climbing and turning to God, fellowship and communion with Him, and that from God blagodatelno applies to all hierarchies, nachazhdaetsya message through and poured out in the Holy harmonious manner. "

  8. Archangels

Archangels - The word is of Greek origin and is translated as "angel hierarchy", "senior angels". The term "Archangels" appears for the first time in Greek-speaking Jewish literature of pre-Christian times (Greek: Book of Enoch, 20, 7) as a transfer of expressions like ("Grand Duke") in the annex to Michael of the Old Testament texts (Dan. 12, 1); then this term is accepted by the New Testament authors (Jude 9; 1 Thess. 4, 16) and later Christian literature. According to the Christian celestial hierarchy, they occupy a place directly above the angels. Religious tradition has seven archangels. The chief here is Michael the Archangel (Greek: “supreme commander”) - the leader of the armies of angels and people in their universal battle with Satan. Michael’s weapon is a fiery sword.
  Archangel Gabriel is best known for his participation in the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary about the birth of Jesus Christ. As a herald of the hidden secrets of the world, he is depicted with a flowering branch, with a mirror (a reflection, too, the way of knowledge), and sometimes with a candle inside the lamp - the same symbol of the hidden sacrament.
  Archangel Raphael is known as a heavenly healer and comforter of the afflicted.
  Four other archangels are mentioned less often.
  Uriel is the fire of heaven, the patron of those who devote themselves to the sciences and arts.
  Salafiel is the name of the high minister, with whom prayer inspiration is associated. On the icons he is written in a prayer position with his hands folded crosswise on his chest.
Archangel Yehudhiel blesses the devotees, protects them from the forces of evil. In his right hand he has a golden crown as a symbol of blessing, in his left - a scourge that drives away enemies.
  Varachil is assigned the role of distributing the highest benefits to ordinary laborers, above all farmers. He is portrayed with pink flowers.
  The Old Testament tradition also speaks of the seven heavenly archangels. Their ancient Iranian parallel — the seven good spirits of Ame Sha Spenta (“the immortal saints”) —fits the Vedic mythology. This points to the Indo-European origins of the doctrine of the seven archangels, which in turn correlates with the most ancient ideas of people about the sevenfold structures of being both divine and earthly.

9. Angels

Both Greek and Hebrew words expressing the concept of "angel" mean "messenger." Angels often performed this role in Bible texts, but the authors often give this term a different meaning. Angels are bodiless helpers of God. They appear in the form of people with wings and a halo of light around their heads. They are usually mentioned in Hebrew, Christian and Muslim religious texts. Angels have the appearance of a man, "only with wings and are dressed in white robes: God created them from stone"; angels and seraphims - women, cherubs - men or children)<Иваницкий, 1890>.
  Good and evil angels, messengers of God or the devil, converge in the decisive battle described in the book of Revelation. Angels can be ordinary people, prophets, inspiring for good accomplishments supernatural carriers of all kinds of messages or mentors and even impersonal forces like the winds, cloud pillars or fire that led the Israelites during their exodus from Egypt. Plague and pestilence are called evil angels. St. Paul calls his illness "the herald of Satan." Many other phenomena, such as inspiration, sudden urges, and providence, are also attributed to angels.
  Invisible and immortal. According to the teachings of the church, angels are asexual invisible spirits, immortal from the day of their creation. There are many angels that follow from the Old Testament description of God - "Lord of Hosts". They form a hierarchy of angels and archangels of the whole host of heaven. The early church clearly divided the nine types, or "ranks," of angels.
  Angels served as mediators between God and his people. AT Old Testament it is said that no one could see God and remain alive, therefore direct communication between the Almighty and man is often depicted as communion with an angel. It was the angel who did not let Abraham offer Isaac. Moses saw an angel in a burning bush, although he heard the voice of God. An angel led the Israelites at the time of their exodus from Egypt. From time to time, the biblical angels look quite like mortals until their true nature is revealed, like angels who came to Lot before the terrible destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
  Perfume Other angels are mentioned in Scripture, for example, a spirit with a sword of fire that barred Adam's path back to Eden; Cherubim and seraphim, depicted as thunderclouds and lightning, which recalls the faith of the ancient Jews in the god of thunderstorms; the messenger of God, who miraculously rescued Peter from prison, moreover, the angels, who appeared to Isaiah in his vision of the heavenly court: “I saw the Lord sitting on a throne high and exalted, and the edges of his robe filled the whole temple. Around him stood the seraphim; each of them has six wings; with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. "
  The host of angels appear several times on the pages of the Bible. Thus, the choir of angels announced the birth of Christ. Archangel Michael commanded numerous heavenly host in the battle against the forces of evil. The only angels in the Old and New Testaments that have their own names are Michael and Gabriel, who brought Mary the news of the birth of Jesus. Most angels refused to name themselves; this reflected the common belief that revealing the name of the spirit reduces its power.

In many religions of the world there are guardian angels in one form or another. These creatures are considered holy, extremely important to humans, powerful and peaceful. Their main purpose is to protect the person they protect from all misfortunes and misfortunes.

Guardian angels are prayed for help in difficult life situations. In addition, it is believed that they should be addressed before major events: long trips, important meetings, and so on. Who are they and where did they come from?

Meaning of the word "angel"

This word came to us from Greece. In Greek, it means "messenger" - the one who brings news, news. Strangely enough, people knew about the existence of angels long before the appearance of Christianity. Almost all the peoples of the world believed in the existence of invisible entities that helped people.

The Persians called their guardians "feruer", in the Sufi religion they were "muvakkali". In ancient Rome, there was a spirit of protector and patron, who was called "genius." The Romans believed that this creature was born together with a man, after which it determined his fate and accompanied him through life.

The fullest information about angels is contained in the Christian religion, as well as Judaism (the Bible and Thor). The above texts describe invisible creatures that protected people.

They have a beautiful appearance and are more perfect than people. Angels created before people, so they have special abilities. All the angels make up the "heavenly army", in which everything is built on the strictest hierarchy.

The main purpose of angels in the Christian religion is to protect the world in which people live. These entities can control the elements, people, animals thanks to a special “grace” that gives them strength.

Angel ranks

According to the Holy Scriptures, the above creatures are usually divided into 9 ranks. As close as possible to God are: seraphim, thrones and cherubim. Seraphim have always been depicted near the throne of the Lord.

In general, in appearance they resemble a person, but they have a special feature - 6 wings (the average angel has only 2 wings). During the flight, the seraphim cover their faces with two wings, two with their legs, and the other two wave. They constantly sing songs praising God.

The appearance of the cherubs is completely different. They were once depicted by the prophet Ezekiel, in his vision of the heavenly chariot. Cherubs have 4 wings and 4 faces. The feet of their legs resemble the feet of a calf and gleam like precious metal. The faces of cherubs are the most special feature.

Only one person is human, and the rest is of animal origin. Thus, on the one side of the human face, the cherub has a lion's face, and on the opposite side, the face of the calf, behind which is the face of an eagle. These angels are always surrounded by crowds of the righteous, as well as similar beings, only of low rank. By the way, less is known about other angelic "titles".

Numerous pictures, fantastic films and videos show us angels and archangels. Among Christians, the most famous of the archangels are:

Michael - who is like God;
  Gabriel - the man of God ("man" - "man");
  Raphael is a healer of God;
  Uriel is the light of God;
  Salafiel - a prayer to God;
  Ifremiel - God's height;
  Yehudhiel, God's praise;
  Barachiel is the blessing of God.

Muslims, in turn, consider the following archangels to be the most important:

Gabriel - the angel of revelation;
  Michael - the patron;
  Israel - the angel of death;
  Israelite - the angel of resurrection.

The above holy persons are subject to thousands of ordinary angels who follow human actions. Although the angels were always considered invisible, they were often painted. The most interesting thing is that the appearance of angels has changed over the centuries.

In the first centuries after the appearance of Christianity, angels were painted by ordinary people who do not have wings, but with a beautiful appearance. Later the angels were supplemented with huge wings, with the help of which they could move from God to the world of people.

Why angels appeared to people

Often the angels came to those who needed advice to warn him, point out the right way and prevent mistakes. The Bible describes several meetings with angels who were famous biblical persons: Moses, Abraham, Joshua, Navin, David, Jacob.

In the modern world, sometimes there are cases when ordinary guardian angels come to ordinary people, warning them about something or advising them.

For example, sometimes we have such situations when we feel that something has to go wrong. It is believed that our guardians are warning us about the trouble. After such a warning, it remains for us to decide whether it is worth doing our plans, or it is better to abstain. By the way, the angels are believed to care more about our soul, so they protect us from sins.

You can communicate with guardian angels.

Of course, we will not talk about the usual communication. With the angels we can maintain a spiritual connection. We ask our guardians for help mentally. There are many signs and beliefs regarding communication with the invisible guardians. It is believed that there are two types of guardians: "earthly" and "heavenly."

The first are the souls of deceased relatives who continue to accompany the mother, and protect him from trouble. The "heavenly" guardian angels, in turn, are descended from God.

In Orthodoxy, it is believed that a person takes care not only of his keeper, but also of the saint, whose name he bears. That is why it is so important to correctly choose the name of the child, especially the one under which he will be baptized. By the way, a child can have 2 names: one will be called by others, and under the second he will be baptized.

Many parents in childhood told that there was an angel behind the right shoulder of a person, and a demon behind the left shoulder. When a person can not decide on any act for a long time, they begin to advise him, and the angel advises the good, and the demon - the bad. By the way, the sign "to spit over the left shoulder" is also associated with the above. "Spitting" should be if a person notices that they are trying to jinx him.

Since childhood, many of us know that sharp objects cannot be left on the windowsill at night, otherwise the guardian angel will not be able to protect the person. In addition, it is believed that a few days before the birthday of the angel leaves the person. A few days after the holiday, the keeper returns. Despite this, in the most difficult situations, the patron will always come to the rescue and protect the person.

How many guardian angels do you have?

It is believed that some people who perform a special mission in life have several patrons. Often their number does not exceed three, but it happens that nine angels guard a person at once.

Any person can have many keepers, regardless of his status and position in society. He can be poor, homeless, crippled, it does not matter. The main thing is that he must have a talent for something, he must have spiritual purity and faith.

Those who have only one keeper in ancient times were considered unhappy. They tried to choose a name that bore several saints at the same time. Thus, it is possible to attract patrons and increase their number by correcting their fate in a positive way. Modern psychics, too, are often advised to change the name of a person, if his life is constantly pursued by failure.

Agni Yoga and Guardian Angels

The adherents of this doctrine believe that the keeper appears in a person long before his birth, when his soul is born. It is then that the soul is "programmed" - it determines the nature, the mission of life, constitute a sequence of events through which a person can learn certain qualities.

If the custodian of any decision of the entities that determine the fate, seems strongly cruel or unjustified, he can intervene and correct the fate - to ask for his ward another chance to make the right decision.

When a person is born, his keeper continues to accompany him, helping to overcome the difficulties of life, conceived by "holy programmers." The angel directs the ward in the right direction of life, helps to cope with the program of training the soul and achieve success.

When a person dies, the keeper temporarily transfers his soul to Death, which cleanses it from unnecessary energy shells, preparing it for reincarnation.

The guardians can be addressed with various prayers: asking for help, healing, and so on. The only thing they can not do is punish the offenders, since such an action is a sin. Therefore, asking for it is useless. Also, the angels can not change the fate of the ward, if he pays for his sins and sins from past lives.

In addition, religion claims that our guardians hear us all the time, so talking with them is not necessarily prayers. Simple words are enough, but only if they are sincere. A person should ask his guardian only about good. Otherwise, he will not be able to help.

S. Morozova

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November is chosen for the feast of the angels because it is the ninth of March, which was once the beginning of the year, and the number nine corresponds to the nine angelic ranks.

Angels on icons are a set of symbols that convey to us not the appearance, but the idea of ​​angels as messengers of God, since Angels do not have material flesh:

• Wings  - a symbol of speed and all penetration;
• Staff  - the symbol of the messenger;
• Mirror  (sphere in hand with the image of the cross or the abbreviation of the name of the Savior) - a symbol of the gift of foresight, which God bestowed on Angels;
• Toroki  (developing golden “ribbons” in the hair) is a symbol of special hearing of God and obedience to His will;
• "Eye" in the forehead  - a symbol of all seeing;
• The appearance of a beautiful young man  - a symbol of excellence. AT Holy scriptures  Angels sent by God, as a rule, were the chosen people in the form of beautiful, radiant young men in white robes.