How many gifts does the Lord continually give us every day and throughout our lives. The greatest of these gifts are the people that he gives us to accompany us. And yet, how often we have been ungrateful, unacknowledged of the graces and blessings that the Lord has sent us through them.
So too it is with our guardian angels, these gifts beyond measure that our minds cannot possibly fathom. These beings which are so diverse, one from the other, that they are. They are a species unto themselves, so magnificent, so powerful, so beyond our imagination. And yet the most humble of all. For they rank on the lowest tiers of the choirs of angels.
As we know there are nine choirs of angels: the seraphim, the cherubim, thrones, dominations, principalities, powers, virtues, archangels, and angels. Our guardian angels, albeit, can also be given to us—granted to us also by God—from any one of those choirs. Nevertheless, most of them are given from the lowest tier on that hierarchy.
But even the lowest angel is so magnificent that we would die of fright if we saw him in his essence. And yet he is gentle, humble, holy, beholds the face of God, and continually intercedes on our behalf.
Jesus himself says to his persecutors: “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”
In the Catechism, article 336, we read: “From its beginning until death, human life is surrounded by their watchful care and intercession. Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd, leading him to life.”
Padre Pio once had an extraordinary relationship with his guardian angel. He often sent his angel as a messenger to carry out requests or comfort souls at a distance. He once told a spiritual child: “If you need me, send me your guardian angel. He doesn’t pay a train ticket and comes quickly.” Many testified that when they invoked their angel to ask Padre Pio’s prayers, he responded instantly, even before a letter could possibly arrive to him.
Saint Gemma Galgani saw her guardian angel frequently. She described him as a patient, gentle guide who corrected her faults. Once, after she had spoken sharply, her guardian angel appeared very sorrowful and reminded her of the need for charity in her speech. She also told many people that her angel would kneel beside her as she prayed.
Yes, our angels teach us how to pray. Just envision them in your mind. They will show you the proper posture you ought to have before God.
Of course, our founder, Saint Francis of Assisi, not only associated with angels and had visions of angels, but had a deep reverence for them. We know he used to fast in honour of Saint Michael the Archangel, and it was during one of those fasts that the earth shook on Mount Alverno, and a seraph appeared with Jesus crucified superimposed on him, from which Saint Francis received the sacred wounds of the stigmata.
He once told his friars to show special devotion to guardian angels, because these heavenly companions are constantly in the presence of God and yet never leave our side.
My dear friends, as we go through this life and through the many perils that surround us, let us continue to confide in our angels: to protect and to guide us, to illuminate and to bless us. And we ask them to be with us always—ever by our side, to light and to guard, to rule and to guide.
And may Almighty God, through the intercession of these most splendid spirits, bless you and your loved ones always. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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