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What is an angel?
The term "angel" means messenger. Angels are celestial beings that are sent by God to serve a specific purpose on Earth. Angels are found in the three monotheistic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; they can also be found in Sumerian, Greek, Egyptian, Persian, and Babylonian writings.
How long have angels been around?
This is difficult to answer; we can only assume that they have existed for as long as humans could document their existence; because human documentation of them gives them legitimacy in the first place. Since their role is to protect and guide humans, we can assume that their existence dates back ancient times. Although there is no definite answer, there are ancient Sumerian texts that predate the Hebrew book of Genesis, and state the existence of angels. There were also references to winged angel-like creatures that resided with the pharaohs of Egypt thousands of years before Christ. These celestial beings were also present in Ancient Greek culture, as evident through art and documentation.
What other cultures have angels?
Although angels have been referred to by different names, the concept of an angel is prevalent across many cultures, religions, mythologies, and lore. For example: the Greeks referred to daemons, Hinduism refers to avatars, Buddhism is linked to devas and bodhisattvas, and many tribal cultures have mentioned spirit beings similar to angels, such as guardian entities. Despite the different classifications and titles used to describe these entities, all of these beings have a similar function to the concept of an angel.
During the middle ages a detailed hierarchy of angels, dependent on their closeness to God was established by the 15th century monk, Pseudo Dionysius.
The Magnificence of Angels
Most documentation that describes any details about angels, usually stresses their glory and magnificence as God’s created beings. For example, The Torah and the Bible both describe the prophet Isaiah’s vision of winged seraphim angels in heaven with God: “Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory’” (Isaiah 6:2-3). The physical glory of the angels reinforces God’s brilliance because He created them. If the angels can be so breathtaking and stunning, then God’s own glory is incomprehensible for mere humans to understand.
In addition, in Ezekiel Chapter 10 of the Torah and the Bible, Ezekiel had a vision of cherubim angels, whose wings looked like they were “completely full of eyes” (verse 12) and “under their wings was what looked like human hands” (verse 21). The angels each used their wings and something “like a wheel intersecting a wheel” (verse 10) that “sparkled like topaz” (verse 9) to move around. This image is peculiar yet almost hypnotic; the idea of such divine beings looking like this highlights how sacred God is for creating them in the first place.
Symbolic Nature of Angel Wings: A Reminder of God’s Love
Angel wings are one of the most prominent images that come to mind when thinking about angels. The wings serve several purposes, both in a practical and emotional sense. First, angel wings actually serve as a symbol of God’s love and protection over his people. Both the Torah and the Bible refer to wings in Psalm 91:4, which states of God: “He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.” God’s angels are an extension of his love and protection, thus the angel wings also have the abilities to guide and shield His people. In fact, Verse 11 declares: “For he [God] will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.” In this example angels act as God’s helpers, to spread love and protection to His followers.
Symbolic Nature of Angel Wings: A Reminder of God's Brilliance
Angel wings are also symbolic of the law defying, God given abilities the angels possess. The wings give angels the ability to travel from one dimension to another (which human beings can understand as flying) so they can do their work both in the Heaven and Earth realms. The idea of angels having wings is a comprehendible and practical way for humans to understand the supernatural. For example, if angels were depicted as beings of light without wings, this can take away from the emotional connection humans have built with angels. Humans need concreteness and physicality; thus, angel wings provide a comfort in knowing there is stable feature for these mysterious beings.
Saint John Chrysostom elaborated on this idea: “They manifest nature's sublimity. That is why Gabriel is represented with wings. Not that angels have wings, but that you may know that they leave the heights and the most elevated dwelling to approach human nature. Accordingly, the wings attributed to these powers have no other meaning than to indicate the sublimity of their nature." In other words the angel wings remind us of their Holy nature in a physical way that we can understand, but even more importantly they reiterate God’s awesomeness for creating such brilliant features on these entities.