Have you ever seen an angel? Thousands of normal people around the world have experienced angelic encounters. You don’t have to be interested in Spiritualism or anything remotely New Age, either. According to some estimates, as many as one in four people say they have experienced angels in one way or another! Are they all making it up?
This amazing story arrived at my website one day:
‘I was coming home after spending a long weekend with my Mom. I was driving along the windy Altamont pass in Central California when I noticed an ambulance at the side of the road and a man lying in the dirt. I felt such deep compassion but, extremely helpless.
I prayed out to God, “Oh please send this man an angel!” I felt better and kept on driving. Maybe it helped in some way? I was tired and anxious just to get home. The drive seemed to take forever and I wasn’t yet half way when I saw something that startled me. The ambulance was passing me on the freeway and above it flew an ANGEL!’
This is certainly an amazing story and yet just one of the many stories that have been sent to me over the last year. Angels often arrive when we’re ill or in danger but not always. Sometimes they appear when big changes occur in our lives or at moments of great apprehension.
What are we to make then of the so called Angel of Death? Many people throughout history recall tales of hooded figures arriving to announce a death. In later Jewish literature, the Angel of Death is said to have appeared like a bird with 12 wings, although not all text brings fear to this role. Archangel Michael is the angel usually credited with the role of caretaking the dead safely to the other side.
There are many recorded cases of angels being seen, heard and felt by loved ones sitting at the bedside of dying relatives. Nurses and other medical staff working with the dying sometimes find themselves privileged to witness this phenomenon.
I received this touching story from New Zealand:
“Last October I was spending time caring for my father who had terminal cancer. I had the night-shift alone as no-one seemed to feel comfortable with doing this. The medication he was on didn’t seem to touch his suffering. There was nothing left I could do to comfort him. In despair I called on the angels, asking from the bottom my heart to please help this man. My whole being was focused on this one task.
“The angels came! I did not see them but I felt them arriving. The room that had been dim with a night-light was beginning to fill more and more with the light and presence of angels bringing an intense atmosphere of love. We felt no longer just the two of us in that room and as my Father lay down he at last, sunk into a peaceful sleep.
“He woke only one more time, to tell me that his mother was also in the room (she had long since passed on) and that it was almost time for him to go. I knew he was going to be fine (in this new place). I really felt that the angels came to take him away and bring him peace at last.”
In both these stories, the angels were asked to come. Both writers were tired and distressed at the time of the incident. Is this why angels came to them or they thought that they did? Doubters need to recognise that these angel accounts come from all over the world, from every type of personality, crossing all religious boundaries.
Angels appear in text as far back as recorded history. You find them in the Bible, the Koran and many fables and legends. Some are mentioned by names and others are just referred to as a being of light or a winged one. Yet real angels may not have wings at all! Some experts believe that the ‘wings’ seen by the human eye are in fact the white ‘God light’ that surrounds them, even though many individuals swear to feeling the touch of feathers or even record hearing the flutter of wings.
They come to protect and warn but also to bring good news. Mothers see angels when their children are in danger. “Your child has fallen in the pond”, or “the gate is open and your toddler has escaped”, are surprisingly common warnings! Susanne from Ipswich told me her story:
“One night I was asleep and my one year old son was asleep next to me, I was woken up by a voice saying gently but loud enough to wake me up ‘Cameron’ (my son’s name). As I woke up I saw that he was sitting on the edge of the bed, if I hadn’t woken up I think he would have fallen off the edge. I know this is a very tiny experience but it proves to me the truth - that angels do exist.”
Angels can bring music with them. I myself heard a choir of a thousand angels one day when my daughter was ill. I later discovered this is the angelic choir of the seraphim. How did I know it was angels? I bring the unscientific answer I just knew! Ask anyone with an angel experience - they don’t need proof.
Angels are currently big business; they are as popular now as they were back in the renaissance times and even during the life of Jesus. Angels are currently fashionable, appearing on items of clothing and accessories. How many little girls have owned an item of clothing proclaiming “I’m an angel” on the front? The images of angels decorate mugs, notebooks, t-trays and soft furnishings. We have this primeval urge to surround ourselves with angel energy, the energy of pure love and the current popularity and belief is being expressed in a contemporary way.
When we think of angels, we automatically think of messengers and saviours sent from God but not all reports of angels are good ones. In the Bible, (Book of Genesis), Jacob wrestled with a mysterious being which is usually thought of as being an angel.
Lucifer, is the angel typically known as the angel of darkness (or the fallen angel). Although some studies believe this to be an injustice; Lucifer being confused with a reference to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon who declared he would place himself on an equal footing with the Lord (Old Testament, Book of Isaiah 14:12), with Lucifer actually being a much beloved angel of God refusing only to bow down before mankind due to his great pride. Lucifer, has been the subject of many paintings and writings ever since, not surprisingly.
Talking with Angels
Communicating with angels is a skill being taught in books and workshops. Yet it is not a recent innovation. Even in the Bible, Jesus talks about being able to summon the angels at will. ‘Do you think I cannot call my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than 12 legions of angels’ (Mat 26:53).
If summoning up spirits is a thing which worries you, it should. As with calling in any
spiritual energy it needs care as to motivation. Angels come from the source of the highest love and it is only by working on these very high levels that we can work with this energy effectively. It seems important to mention the Universal law of like attracts like. Your intent must be pure. See the meditation below
Angel Names
Throughout historical and religious text (particularly Hebrew records of angels), channelled messages and visitations, references listing as many as 100 angel names or more can be found. The most famous of these are Archangel Gabriel and Archangel Michael.
But do angels actually need or require names? There is some thought that many angels in fact, share the same names and that the names themselves refer to whole hosts of angels on the same ‘level’, rather than an individual tag or label.
Traditionally, many angel names have the suffix ‘el’ (Raphael, and Uriel for example), which is Hebrew for of the Lord.
Angelic Orders or Hierarchy are also known as the choirs of angels. The sixth century theologian Dionysius the Areopagite (a disciple of Saint Paul) developed the angelic orders. Later in the seventh century, Pope Gregory the Great agreed there were nine ‘orders of angels’, perhaps in principal, partly due to the natural human requirement to classify and label everything, in order to fully understand it.
The Angels of the Earth
Legions lists one group of angels as having particular authority and guardianship of the planet Earth. According to Thomas Heywood (1635 Hierarchy of the Blessed Angels) there are four; Gabriel, Michael, Raphael and Uriel. But Jewish Tradition shows seven Earth angels; Admael, Arciciah, Ariel, Tabbashael, Azriel, Arhiel, and Horobael.
Angel stories fill many books, and appear in films and TV programmes all over the world. So have the angels found a way to communicate with us again? Maybe it was only that we stopped listening for just a while?
Bringing the feeling of deep love into your inner being (remembering a time of great happiness) is the best place to start. To connect with angels in a more meaningful way, it is worth learning to sit in a meditative state. By meditating, in this particular instance, I’m not suggesting that you close your mind, but that you open it - that you visualise the meeting, rather than blank out your mind. A guided meditation (one which talks you through a journey) is useful here or you can create a tape of your own. The words keep you on track with your goal to meet and talk with angels.
For good results as with most things, it takes regular practice. Tape the words so that you can play it back to yourself or ask a friend to read them to you. Burning a candle whilst meditating traditionally ‘brings in the light and protection of God.’ I like to use Frankincense (in an oil burner) to raise the energy of the room to a high ‘vibration’.
A Meditation to meet with your angels
Read slowly, remembering to leave space to follow instruction. Keep your voice and calm and clear.
Take a deep breath. Breathe out slowly. Take another deep breath and slowly push out the breath. While you concentrate on your breathing, imagine yourself floating within a perfect white cloud. Floating, floating, safe and relaxed, comfortable and at the most perfect temperature. You’re feeling safe and secure, comfortable and happy. You’re going to meet your angel and you are looking forward to it. Remember a time of great happiness and peace in your life. Find that feeling and hold it in your heart.
Breathe in and out. In and out. You are becoming more and more relaxed. Concentrate on that loving feeling. Leave a minute here. Look around you now at these beautiful surroundings. Leave a minute here so that you have time to imagine and create beautiful surroundings in which to meet your angel.
This is a wonderful place to meet your angel! Your angel is waiting now to welcome you. Look up now and your angel will be slowly walking towards you. Leave a moment here.
Your angel is holding out his or her arms to greet you and you recognise them immediately. You may hug your angel now. This is a being of great love. Your own special protector with you always at your side - protecting you.
Sit a while now and talk with your angel. You can ask your angel anything you want to. You can ask your angel’s name. Maybe you want to know about your own special gifts or ask your angel if they have a special message for you. Leave a few minutes here, maybe as much as five minutes perhaps with your music playing gently n the background.
And now it is nearly time to leave your angel. Do not forget that your angel is not leaving you. Your angel is always around you, watching and protecting, sending you love. Say good-bye to your angel now. You may ask for any last messages of love and know in your heart that you can visit your angel in this special place at any time. Hug your angel goodbye now. Leave at least two more minutes here.
As you watch your angel wave goodbye, know that you only have to talk to your angel and they will always hear you. Feel yourself surrounded once more by the relaxing white cloud. Relax here for a moment more before we return to the room. Leave a moment here.
Take a deep breath and start to bring yourself back into the moment. You are starting to become aware of your surroundings now. When you are ready you can open your eyes. Take another deep breath. Stretch your arms out in front of you. You are feeling relaxed and happy, bringing back the love of your angel. Open your eyes. Back in the room. You are now wide awake. Relax and breathe, deep, relaxing breaths of fresh calming air. In and out - relaxing, calm and peaceful.
Take the opportunity to shake out your arms and legs. Take a few minutes to bring yourself totally back into the presence. Some people will feel like they have awoken from a deep sleep You might want to have a cup of tea or something to eat to ground yourself back into the presence, before recording your experiences in a notebook.
After the meditation
You might have experienced a lot or a little. Your meditation may have been profound or just relaxing. Many people cry after such an experience. Take whatever happened as the right experience for you. |
