Who are the 4 archangels Catholic?

How many archangels are there?

The only archangels mentioned in the Bible are Michael (Rev. 12:7), Gabriel (Luke 1:19), and Raphael (Tob. 12:15). How many there are besides these three is unknown. Scripture refer to the numbers of angels only as “hosts” and “a multitude” and “thousands upon thousands.”

Angels are mysterious beings. Our culture has a lot of misconceptions about angels--what they are, who they are, and what they do. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), an angel is a being of pure spirit; that is “what” they are. St. Augustine tells us that the word “angel” is actually what they do: they are messengers and servants of the Most-High God.There are three archangels named in the Bible: Michael, Raphael, and Gabriel. These messengers served God’s people at different times and had different purposes. They had vastly diverse missions, each corresponding to their very identity and being. Let’s take a look at them now.

St. Michael is known as the Prince of the Heavenly Hosts and the defender of God’s people. According to the Catholic Bible Dictionary, Michael means “Who is like God?”. In the Book of Revelation, “Michael and his angels” battle the dragon, an ancient symbol of the devil, and throw him and his followers out of heaven. Christianity honors him as a patron of the nation of Israel, God’s chosen people of the Old Testament. Today, Michael is still thought of as a guardian of the Church, God’s people of the New Testament.

St. Raphael is mentioned in one book of the Bible—the Book of Tobit. His name can be translated as “God will Heal.” In the Book of Tobit, God sends Raphael to answer the prayers of two people: Tobit, who was blinded by bird droppings, and Sarah, who was harassed by a demon who killed any man she married. These two, on the same day, prayed to God for death. God answered their prayers by sending Raphael, who brought together Tobias, Tobit’s son, and Sarah. He also banished the demon that stalked Sarah and healed Tobit’s blindness in the same journey.

St. Gabriel appears once in the Old Testament and twice in the New Testament. His name means “God is my warrior” or “God is strong.” First, he is sent to the prophet Daniel in the time of the great exile to interpret visions concerning the coming of the Messiah. Second, he appears to Zechariah to foretell the birth of John the Baptist. St. Gabriel is best known, however, for appearing to Mary and announcing the birth of the Messiah, Jesus.

What can these three messengers tell us about our missions? Our own name gives us our mission. I’m not necessarily thinking about our personal names, as those meanings don’t always correspond to a call from God. Through our baptism, we have been named Christians. In the early Church, the term was used in reference to those who followed Christ and were persecuted for the faith. This name gives us our truest identity as those who belong to and follow Christ. It also gives us a mission: to continue his work in our world today. We are called to be the face, hands, feet, and heart of Jesus to all we encounter. Let us live out of this identity as authentically as we can so that others may come to know Jesus through us. As St. Ignatius of Antioch, who lived in the generation after the apostles, said, “Let me not merely be called ‘Christian’; let me be one.” May the angels and archangels help us to live up to our identity and mission as followers of Christ on our journey towards heaven.

NOTE: Definitions of angels’ names found in the Catholic Bible Dictionary edited by Scott Hahn. 

Sara Stacey holds a Masters of Arts in Theology from the Augustine Institute and is currently pursuing a M.A. in Counseling from Regis University.

On Nov. 8, both Greek and Antiochian Orthodox churches will celebrate the “Synaxis of the Holy Archangels.” Synaxis is a Greek word meaning “a gathering of beings for worship.”

Orthodox churches honor several archangels by name — usually seven in number. In the Catholic tradition, we honor only three archangels by name: Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. These three can be found listed in the Bible by name. No other angel is named in the canonical books of the Bible.

More than three
However, the Orthodox Church of America (OCA) lists other angels, by various names. Most common are Uriel, Sealtiel and Jehudiel. Uriel’s name means “the fire or light of God.” The OCA says that people “pray for him to enlighten those with dark minds.”

The Catholic Encyclopedia also cites the Jewish tradition of naming seven archangels, based on the non-canonical Book of Enoch (an ancestor of Noah). Enoch is listed in the Letter of St. Jude (1:14). These angels include our three named above, along with Uriel, Raguel, Sariel and Jerahmeel.

While, by Vatican decree, Catholics are not to honor any other archangels by name, you will still see statues of the angel Uriel in bookstores and on Catholic e-commerce sites. Uriel is shown as an angel holding a flame. This is because of the translation of his name listed above.

Sacrament of confirmation
In the Anglican church (Episcopalian churches outside of England), Uriel is also recognized and has the honor of being the “angel of Confirmation.” According to the website (urielsg.org) of St. Uriel Episcopal Church in Sea Girt, N.J., “Uriel is the patron of the sacrament of confirmation. He carries the sword of truth for soldiers of Christ, which we become through this sacrament. Fire reminds the Christian of the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and the flames of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.”

In Jewish tradition, there are also references to Uriel as being the angel who warned Noah about the coming flood. (This is also the case in the Book of Enoch.) In other Jewish mystical traditions, Uriel and three other archangels are recognized as the four creatures that stand around the throne of God (Ez 1:5). Uriel is said to be the lion or the eagle. Also in Jewish tradition, Uriel was said to appear as a lion in the Temple in Jerusalem to take up to heaven the offering placed on the altar.

Da VInci
Turning to Christian medieval times, Uriel is listed as linked to Sunday. There were also several supposed “gospels” popular in the Middle Ages. From them, arise stories such as were used by Leonardo da Vinci in his famous “Virgin of the Rocks” which hangs in the Louvre in Paris. This 15th century painting, of which there is another version in London also credited to da Vinci, the archangel Uriel has saved the child John the Baptist from King Herod’s men and now travels with him and the Holy Family to Egypt.

About a century later, John Milton wrote “Paradise Lost.” In it, Uriel was tricked by Satan into giving the evil angel directions to the Garden of Eden. Too late, Uriel realized his mistake and tried to send other angels to help Adam and Eve.

All of these stories make Uriel an interesting figure. However, Catholics are asked to only honor the three archangels named in the Bible. The “Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy,” issued by the Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship in December of 2001, states, “The practice of assigning names to the Holy Angels should be discouraged, except in the cases of Gabriel, Raphael and Michael whose names are contained in Holy Scripture.”

Sources: The Catholic Encyclopedia; romereports.com; telegraph.co.uk; catholicism.org; orthodoxchristian.info; oca.org; antiochian.org; “Orthodox Russia,” vol. 22, 1999 at holy-transfiguration.org; “Orthodox Saints, vol. 4”; Greek Orthodox Church in America at goarch.org; vatican.org; catholicculture.org; jewishencyclopedia.com; “Ask a Rabbi” at aish.com; jewishvirtuallibrary.com; urielsg.org; okhmsea.org; askacatholic.com and greekcitytimes

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