Saint Archangel Michael: importance in Orthodoxy, icons, photo

Everyone who is familiar with the Scriptures knows that, apart from the visible and tangible world, there is another world of angelic powers - disembodied spirits, different from him, at the command of God called to protect and protect people - the higher creatures He intended for eternal Celestial glory. According to the Bible, the struggle against the ancestor of evil is led by the angelic army of the holy archistrategos Michael, who by the will of God fulfills this lofty destiny. Who is he, this guardian and our guardian? And of whom does his army consist?

Angelic world

First of all, we note that the word "angel" in translation from ancient Greek means "messenger, messenger." The existence of this ethereal being is equally recognized by the three monotheistic religions - Christianity, Islam and Judaism. His main task is to proclaim to the people the will of God, hence the name. Traditionally it is depicted as an anthropomorphic (that is, combining in itself the features of man and animal) creature, endowed with wings.

According to theological ideas, the angelic world has a complex hierarchy, and in every religion it has its own. Without touching this vast topic, one should only mention that in Christian angelology - the division of theology, dealing with this topic - it is commonly believed that the archangels belong to the eighth of the nine angelic ranks.

The prefix "arch" in translation from ancient Greek means "senior, main". Thus, it is not difficult to guess that the archangel is none other than the elder angel. In all three monotheistic, or, as they are still called, "Abrahamic" (as they go back to Patriarch Abraham) religions, the most famous and revered is the holy Archangel Michael. In Orthodoxy, he is often referred to as the Archangel Michael, which indicates his dominant position in the Celestial Host.

Who is Archangel Michael?

It is curious that if we analyze the very expression "Archangel Michael", it turns out that it includes five words: arch, angel, mi, ka, ate. "Arch" and "angel", as can be seen from the foregoing, mean "senior messenger", and "miraculously" from the Hebrew and Hebrew literally translates as "who as God". Summing up, we can conclude that in the representation of the three largest world religions, Archangel Michael (or Archangel Michael) is "a senior messenger like God."

However, one should take into account that in theology there was never put an equal sign between the greatness of God and the meaning of His servant, even the one who dominates the angels. Therefore, it is more correct to consider such a translation: "a senior messenger endowed with divine authority" or "an authorized envoy of God."

Archangel Michael in the Bible

Archangel Michael is repeatedly mentioned both in the Book of the Prophet Daniel, included in the Old Testament, and in the New Testament texts. For example, the pages of the Apocalypse tells about the battle of the angelic army led by Archangel Michael, with the dragon who pursued the "Woman clothed in the sun", under which, according to theologians, the Christian church was meant in the period of persecution.

Figures the holy Archangel Michael of God and in the Epistle of the Apostle Judah, which describes his dispute with the devil about the body of the prophet Moses. This episode, by the way, is the only one in the canonical texts, where Michael is called an archangel. According to the researchers, it is borrowed from an earlier Christian apocrypha - a text that is not recognized as canonical, and the latter, in turn, reproduces a story from Hebrew literature.

The inexorable judge

The role of the Archangel Michael in the struggle between good and evil was reflected in many Christian eschatological works dealing with issues related to the end of the world, redemption and the afterlife. According to the established religious tradition, he acquired the features of not only the winner of Satan, but also one of the main rulers of the Last Judgment. It is he who will call the souls with a "trumpet".

He also has the role of a judge who brings an inexorable sentence to the souls of sinners and reveals the gates of eternal bliss to the righteous. This theme has found wide reflection in the iconography, and thanks to her the patron of the deceased is considered to be the Archangel Michael. The prayer offered to him contains a request for protection in the fight against evil and for support in the Last Judgment.

It is characteristic that in the literature of the Copts - followers of the ethno-religious community of North Africa, which is mainly spread in Egypt - there is a story about how at the Last Judgment the Archangel Michael, calling from the graves of the souls of the dead, will weep bitterly at the fate of sinners, and Jesus Christ, Condescending to his pleas, will forgive them.

The Image of the Archangel Michael in the Old Testament Apocrypha

As mentioned above, religious literature includes, in addition to texts recognized by the church and considered canonical, a large number of so-called apocrypha - texts that have not received official recognition, but nevertheless of interest to researchers.

One of them is the Book of Enoch - the most significant apocrypha of the Old Testament. It describes how, at the behest of God, the Archangel Michael in the presence of an angelic host clothed Enoch, the seventh Israeli patriarch, into the garments of the glory of the Lord. This passage emphasizes the significance of Archangel Michael and the exceptional role he was given in the representation of the ancient Jews.

Another well-known apocrypha is the Qumran scrolls - a collection of manuscripts discovered in 1947 in the caves of Qumran on the coast of the Dead Sea. This, the earliest of the biblical texts that have come down to us, contains a story about how the Archangel Michael, being the leader of the world, leads the Lord's army to fight against the forces of darkness headed by Belial. The Qumran community, which owned the scrolls that were found, existed in the II century BC, thus it becomes clear how ancient is the veneration of Archangel Michael in the Middle East.

Archangel Mikhail in Christian apocryphal texts

But especially this image is found in Christian apocrypha. In the IV century, a text was written, which was called the "Gospel of Nicodemus." It says, in particular, that after the descent into hell, Jesus Christ entrusted to Archangel Michael the mission to lead the souls that He saved to Heaven. In the same period, the apocryphal "Revelation of Paul" appeared. In it, the Chief Apostle tells how Archangel Michael performs the ablution of the souls of the deceased, before they open the gates of Heavenly Jerusalem.

In the well-known but not recognized by the church work of the 10th century, "The Walking of the Virgin by Flour" describes how Archangel Michael serves as the conductor of the Heavenly Descending Queen of Hell. Following her, he tells who and for what sins there is suffering. The fact that the Archangel Michael is destined to trumpet on the last day and to appeal from the graves to the Last Judgment of the souls of the deceased is also evidenced by the "Apocryphal revelation of John the Theologian" (not to be confused with his canonical text).

Archangel Michael from ancient Jews and Muslims

As already mentioned, the image of the Archangel Michael is found both in the Jewish tradition and in Islam. Among the ancient Jews, he is known as Mikael, along with other archangels - Gavriel, Oriel and Raphael - guarding the four sides of the world. In the Qur'an, he is called Mikail, and is on the edge of the sea, overflowing with angels and located in the seventh heaven. In the view of Muslims, he is endowed with wings of emerald color.

The image of Archangel Michael in Orthodoxy

In Orthodoxy Archangel Michael is the leader of the Heavenly Host, traditionally acts as the guardian of God's law and a fighter against the forces of hell. In this connection, in the name of his rank, the word "archistrategic" is more often used, which emphasizes his role as a warrior and defender. It is no coincidence that he is considered to be the patron of the "militant Church", uniting all the opponents of evil who have remained faithful to God.

Along with this, the Orthodox Church traditionally represents him as a defender of the souls of the deceased, who were entrusted by God to the souls of Abraham and the Blessed Virgin Mary for transferring them to Heaven. But even for the living, he can become an assistant to the Archangel Michael - the prayer he raises about health has extraordinary strength. This is due to the fact that, according to religious beliefs, any ailment is sent by evil spirits, namely with them Archangel Michael and leads a relentless struggle. Overcoming them, he thereby relieves those who suffer from their diseases.

There is another tradition in Orthodoxy, connected with his name. It is believed that the angel who stood at the gates of paradise with a fire-sword in his hands was the Archangel Michael. The icon, located in the Archangel Michael-Archangel Monastery of the Great Ustyug and dating from the 17th century, represents the image of this scene on one of its hallmarks.

Miracles of the Archangel Michael

The sacred tradition holds many legends about the miracles revealed by the Archangel Michael. One of them tells how in ancient Phrygia there was a temple dedicated to him, in which the pious sexton Archip Herotopsky served for many years. The pagans who lived in the district fostered hatred for him, and one day, wishing to destroy the righteous, and at the same time destroy the temple, connected together the channels of two mountain rivers and sent a stream to it. And it would be unfortunate, but according to the prayer of Arkhip the Archangel Michael appeared miraculously, slashing the rock with a blow, and all the water went into the formed cleft. Every year the Orthodox Church commemorates the memory of this event on September 19.

Another legend says that during the terrible plague epidemic that raged in Rome at the end of the 6th century, the inhabitants of the city were saved from death only after the figure of the Archangel Michael, who put his sword in the scabbard, appeared on the top of the mausoleum of Emperor Hadrian. In memory of this, at the place where the savior of the city appeared, his statue was installed, and the mausoleum itself was renamed into the castle of Saint Angel.

You can continue the list of such legends for a very long time. Some of them became a reflection of real events, and some were the product of fantasy of early Christian and medieval authors, who in this way wanted to raise the beloved saint.

Honoring Archangel Michael in Asia Minor and Egypt

His veneration as a healer is characteristic not only of Russian Orthodoxy. For example, in Asia Minor, in the territory of modern Turkey, for a long time, there were several miraculous sources associated with his name. They are known since Byzantium, where Archangel Michael was famous as a great healer. In honor of him, even a special church was built, called Michalion.

But Archangel Michael used special honor from the Egyptian Copts. The Christians of this country dedicated to him the most precious thing that they had - the Nile River. They also adopted from Byzantium the tradition to organize annual festivities in honor of it, timed to coincide with June 12, the day when the Nile left the banks. For residents of the country, constantly dried by the sun, the flood of the river was synonymous with life, and it is not surprising that they linked it to the name so dear to them.

Holidays in honor of Archangel Michael

The Holy Archangel Michael is an archangel, deeply revered by the Russian Orthodox Church. The day of the commemoration of his memory, called the Cathedral of the Archangel Michael and other celestial bodies of the ethereal, is celebrated on November 21. Its establishment is connected with the decision of the Laodicean Council held in 360, at which the heresy was proclaimed the doctrine that angels are not ministers of God, but rulers and creators of the world.

In the Catholic world this holiday is also celebrated, but the date of the celebrations is September 29. On this day, many admirers of the saint make pilgrimage trips to the monastery of St. Michael built in the Early Middle Ages, located on the island of Mont-Saint-Michel, off the coast of Normandy, as well as visiting the Italian cave church of Monte Gargano. In other time, the Catholics accepted after the Mass to recite a prayer to the holy Archangel Michael.

A bit of history

On the question of the origin of this image, which has become so popular in the three great world religions, the researchers do not have an unambiguous answer. It is believed that Michael was already known to the ancient Chaldeans who inhabited the lower reaches of the Euphrates and Tigris in the 9th century BC. But since in Christianity he is represented as a holy militant church, then, obviously, his roots should be sought in the religion of ancient Persia, where the whole pantheon of gods was divided into representatives of light and darkness, and where they were in constant confrontation.

It should be noted that the Archangel (Archangel) Michael enjoys great honor in Germany, where he is considered the patron of the state. His cult is closely associated with ancient folk beliefs. According to one of them, he appears mainly on mountain peaks, where he was inhabited by the pagan god of the German tribes Odin. With the ancient beliefs associated with the establishment of the day of his memory - September 29. Once on this day, there was a celebration of the completion of harvesting.

He also assisted in military matters. It is known that, beginning with the IX century, the image of the Archangel Michael was adorned with all the German battle banners. According to the legend, his help decided the outcome of the Battle of Lechfeld, where the Germans confronted the nomadic Hungarians who invaded their lands. In the German folk art there is even a tendency to identify Archangel Michael with their national hero, the legendary dragon-winner Siegfried.

Archangel Michael of God also entered into a whole series of mystical and occult teachings. His name is often mentioned in the texts as associated with the Holy Spirit, Logos and Metatron. In one of such books, known as the "Apocalypse of Baruch", Archangel Michael is represented by the guardian of the keys from paradise, which in the Christian tradition is associated with the name of the Apostle Peter.

Plots of icons of Archangel Michael

In Orthodoxy, among the most revered saints, the Archangel Michael is always mentioned . The icon of this defender of God's truth and a fighter with Satan, as a rule, is present in every temple. He is depicted holding a spear in his right hand, and in the left a special sphere is a mirror, which is a symbol of foresight, given to him by God. One can see other plot constructions in which Michael the Archangel - the Archangel of God - is represented by the trampling serpent. Often on the icons in his left hand he holds a date branch symbolizing victory, and in the right a banner with a cross.

Variants of the plots of icons on which the Archangel Michael, the heavenly forces and a host of saints are represented, are very diverse. Often there are images of the Last Judgment, where he is revealed as a formidable judge holding a scales. Sometimes he is the escort of the souls of the dead to the Last Judgment. In general, his iconography is as vast as the plots of the Holy Scriptures and legends in which the Archangel Michael appears. Photos taken with these icons are presented in this article.

Summing up, it should be noted that the value of Archangel Michael in Orthodoxy lies primarily in his role as the leader of the angelic army in the fight against evil forces, as well as the ruler of the Last Judgment, which opens the doors of paradise to the righteous and throws sinners into hell. He is also our intercessor before God, who asks for forgiveness for our sins.