Homily for Feast of Sts. Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael

Homily for the Feast of
Sts. Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael

Sept. 29, 2023
Collect
Provincial House, New Rochelle, N.Y.

“O God, . . . grant that our life on earth may be defended by those who watch over us…” (Collect).

Altho angel means “messenger,” the collect prays that we may be served by the angels as protectors.  That’s certainly the role attributed to St. Michael in both the Old and the New Testaments, e.g., “Michael and his angels battled against the dragon” (Rev 12:7) in defense of God’s reign over the created world.

St. Gabriel, however, does fulfill the ministry of messenger, helping Daniel interpret visions in ch. 8-9 and announcing God’s imminent intervention for our redemption to Zechariah and Mary (Luke 1).

The only other angel named in the Scriptures is Raphael, who appears only in what we could call the short story of Tobit, where he has two roles, companion and healer.  I suppose those roles could be interpreted as protective.  Or we could call them accompaniment or presence.

Thus in the Scriptures the archangels do what we in Don Bosco’s family are called to do:  to protect the young from physical and moral dangers; to bring the Good News to the young and the unevangelized and to interpret God’s Word for our time; to walk at people’s side—both the young and their elders—guiding them on their pilgrimage toward heaven; and to heal those who’ve been injured, damaged, or traumatized by what life throws at them on the way.

            We pray that the angels may protect, enlighten, and accompany us, and that we in turn may do that for God’s people, until all of us “in the presence of the angels sing [his] praise” (Ps 138:1).