St. Michael Catholic Church
St. Michael The Archangel
DID YOU KNOW......................
St. Michael is the Patron Saint of Brussels, the sick, those in battle, those tempted or at sea?
Michael was thought to have appeared during a plague in Rome, gathering souls of those who had died. This may be the reason he is the patron saint of death or of those in danger of dying. He is also known as a warrior saint, who protected soldiers and provided victory over the forces of evil. He was often invoked by military leaders as a sign of having God on their side. In art, he is usually shown with a sword, battling or standing in victory over a dragon, snake or Satan. St. Michael is also the patron saint of police officers. The only three angels named in the Bible are St. Michael, St. Raphael and St. Gabriel. Of the three angels, St. Michael is mentioned most often. Listed below are the four times St. Michael's name is listed in scripture. In the picture St. Michael is in a warrior's dress. St. Michael was known to lead the angels who wished to remain faithful to God in the great battle against Satan and against the angels that followed Satan.
(1) Daniel 10:13 sqq., Gabriel says to Daniel, when he asks God to permit the Jews to return to Jerusalem: "The Angel [D.V. prince] of the kingdom of the Persians resisted me . . . and, behold Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me . . . and none is my helper in all these things, but Michael your prince";
(2) Daniel 12, the Angel speaking of the end of the world and the Antichrist says: "At that time shall Michael rise up, the great prince, who standeth for the children of thy people."
(3) In the Catholic Epistle of St. Jude: "When Michael the Archangel, disputing with the devil, contended about the body of Moses", etc. St. Jude alludes to an ancient Jewish tradition of a dispute between Michael and Satan over the body of Moses, an account of which is also found in the apocryphal book on the assumption of Moses (Origen, "De principiis", III, 2, 2). St. Michael concealed the tomb of Moses; Satan, however, by disclosing it, tried to seduce the Jewish people to the sin of hero-worship. St. Michael also guards the body of Eve, according to the "Revelation of Moses" ("Apocryphal Gospels", etc., ed. A. Walker, Edinburgh, p. 647).
(4) Apocalypse 12:7, "And there was a great battle in heaven, Michael and his angels fought with the dragon." St. John speaks of the great conflict at the end of time, which reflects also the battle in heaven at the beginning of time. According to the Fathers there is often question of St. Michael in Scripture where his name is not mentioned. They say he was the cherub who stood at the gate of paradise, "to keep the way of the tree of life" (Genesis 3:24), the angel through whom God published the Decalogue to his chosen people, the angel who stood in the way against Balaam (Numbers 22:22 sqq.), the angel who routed the army of Sennacherib (IV Kings 19:35).