Today is the feast of the angels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael. Angels function as messengers and mediators between God and humans. Sometimes they function as “accuser” or prosecuting attorney as we hear in today’s first reading from the Book of Revelation:
“Now have salvation and power come, and the Kingdom of our God and the authority of his Anointed. For the accuser of our brothers is cast out, who accuses them before our God Day and night.”
This image comes from the Old Testament where the accuser is called “Satan” in Hebrew (Job 1-2; Zechariah 3:1; 1 Chronicles 21:1). This figure is not a demonic figure but an angel who functions as a prosecutor:
“Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, while the adversary (Satan) stood at his right side to accuse him. And the angel of the Lord said to the adversary, “May the LORD rebuke you, O adversary; may the LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you!” (Zechariah 3:1-2).
In our first reading from the Book of Revelation this accuser is silenced and cast out. The death of Jesus on the cross (“Blood of the Lamb”) and the witness (martyria) of the saints has conquered this accuser.
In today’s Gospel we hear that now Jesus in the image of Jacob’s ladder, provides unlimited access to God: “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” In a sense angels become superfluous because Jesus now provides full and unlimited access to God. Still, we celebrate the angels as they continue to function as servants of God and messengers between God and us. God uses any way he can to communicate with us and help us to hear his message. Let us respond: “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening!”
Image: “Angel” by svenstorm is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0.