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| The name Michael means "Who is like God?" |
Talk Presented at St. Michael Catholic Church, Uso, dated September 27th, 2023
I rejoice with you as you are preparing for the feast of St. Michael the Archangel, your patron saint. I want to discuss with you, today, what to learn from St. Michael. We need to know who is Saint Michael to know what he teaches us.
Who is Saint Michael?
Saint Michael is an archangel, a spiritual warrior in the battle of good versus evil. He is an archangel because he is one of the chief princes among angels. The name Michael means "Who is like God?" His name suggests that he stands against attempt to take the place of God. He defends the honour of God. He is a champion of justice.
St. Michael the Archangel in the Scripture
1. He assisted Angel Gabriel to fight the Prince of Persia. Gabriel says, "...but the prince of the kingdom of Persia stood in my way for twenty-one days, until finally Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me" (Daniel 10:13)
2. He is the personal guardian of Daniel. Angel Gabriel says, "No one supports me against all these except Michael, your prince, standing as a reinforcement and a bulwark for me" (Daniel 10:21).
3. He is the guardian of the people of God. Angel Gabriel says, "At that time there shall arise Michael, the great prince, guardian of your people; It shall be a time unsurpassed in distress since nations began until that time" (Daniel 12:1)
4. He fought the devil over the death of Moses. Jude writes, "Yet the archangel Michael, when he argued with the devil in a dispute over the body of Moses, did not venture to pronounce a reviling judgment upon him but said, 'May the Lord rebuke you!'" (Jude 1:9)
5. He fought the dragon, the devil, and drove him out of heaven. St. John writes, "Then war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels battled against the dragon. The dragon and its angels fought back, but they did not prevail and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. The huge dragon, the ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, who deceived the whole world, was thrown down to earth, and its angels were thrown down with it" (Revelation 12:7–9).
6. There also the opinion he is referred to as simply as angel in some places in the Scripture. He is believed to be the angel who defends the gate to Paradise (Genesis 3:24); who defends against Balaam (Num 22:22-23); who appeared to Joshua (Jos.5:13-15); and "who routed the army of Sennacherib" (2 Kings 19:35).
St. Michael in Church Tradition
1. St. Michael is the Christian angel of death: at the hour of death, he comes to give each person the chance to redeem oneself before passing.
2. He weighs peoples' merits on Judgment Day to advocate for us and so is often depicted holding scales. Hence, Cemetery chapels are often dedicated to him, where Masses are offered in his honour on behalf of the departed.
3. Saint Michael is the Guardian of the Church and the commander of the Army of God. From the time of the apostles, he has been invoked and honoured as the protector of the Church.
4. Saint Michael defeats Satan on two occasions, first when he ejects him from Paradise, and secondly in the final battle of the end times when the Antichrist will be defeated by him.
5. He is a healer of the sick. “Church tradition relates that Saint Michael in the earliest ages caused a medicinal spring to spout at Chairotopa, near Colossae, where all the sick who bathed there, invoking the Blessed Trinity and St Michael, were cured.” Gregory the Great reportedly saw St. Michael during a devotional procession for end to plague in 590. He saw Saint Michael atop the Mausoleum of Hadrian, sheathing his sword, suggesting the peril was ended.
Cult of St. Michael the Archangel
Devotion to St. Michael the Archangel is a popular one. Every September 29th he is celebrated alongside Angels Gabriel and Raphael. There are chaplet and scapular in his name. St. Michael is invoked for protection, especially from lethal enemies. He is the patron of soldiers, police and doctors. The Visio Sancti Pauli, written in the late fourth or early fifth century, presents St Michael as an advocate for sinners, guarantor of rain, and thus a patron of agriculture.
What holy Michael the Archangel teaches us
1. Obedience to God (1 Sam. 15:22)
2. Battle against evil, vices and passion of the flesh (Eph. 6:12)
3. Defence of God’s honour by staying away from sin (Ezekiel 36:20).
4. Protection of the weak, oppressed and less privileged (Psalm 82:3)
5. Standing firm in time of trial (James 1:12)
6. Fighting for justice (Isaiah 1:17)
7. Healing others by caring for them and by our kind words (Mt. 25:36)
Conclusion
I speak to us in the words of Pope Benedict XVI to the bishops he ordained in 2007: “Take Michael as a model in making room in the world for God, countering denials of him and thus defending humankind's greatness, and in acting as "true guardian angels" of the Church.”
Prayer
Saint Michael the archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the Devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly hosts, by the power of God, cast into Hell Satan, and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world, seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.
Reference
https://www.smcvt.edu/about-smc/who-is-saint-michael/ dated Sept. 22nd, 2023
https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=308 dated Sept. 22nd, 2023
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Michael_in_the_Catholic_Church dated Sept. 22nd, 2023
https://www.scribd.com/doc/72052942/New-Microsoft-Office-Word-Document, dated Sept. 27th, 2023
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