Michael, the most glorious and most brilliant Chief Commander of the bodiless Powers, has shown much beneficence and grace to the human race, as much in the Old Testament as in the New due to the gospel. He first appeared to Patriarch Abraham. Then to Lot, when he rescued him with his daughters from the fire sent by God, and the destruction of Sodom. After this he appeared to Patriarch Jacob, when he rescued him from the murderous hands of his brother Esau. He went before the encampment of the children of Israel, when they were liberated from bondage in Egypt, and together with the pillar of fire and of cloud, he made easier the difficulty of their journey. He appeared to the seer Balaam, when he went to curse the Israelite people, frightening him and clearly preventing him from doing such a thing. He also appeared to Joshua the son of Nun, and responded: "As the Chief Commander of the army of the Lord have I now come." Also during the time of new grace he brought together the rivers which once were released by the impious against the holy spring of Chonae and against its divine church. And many other things are recorded about him in the divinely inspired Scriptures. For this reason we have him as a protector and guardian of our lives for our defense, and we celebrate today his all revered festival, for which reason it is called a Synaxis.
The devil, who out of supreme pride exalted himself
against the Creator and Master of all, and boasted of placing his throne on the
clouds of heaven, and become like the Highest, as it is written about him in
Isaiah (Is. 14:14), he therefore, upon having put his mind to do this, fell
from heavenly glory and his archangelic office. For this reason the Lord said
in the Gospel: "I saw Satan fall as lightning from heaven" (Lk.
10:18). Together with him an order of Angels fell, who sprung away from God due
to their pride, and fell with their leader the devil. And they were all
darkened instead of illumined, becoming demons rather than Angels. Therefore it
is said at that time the Chief Commander Michael, beholding the pitiful fall of
the Angels, understood the cause of their fall. And through subjection and
humility, which he showed as a grateful servant and faithful housekeeper
towards his Master God, he carefully guarded his own glory and brilliance
granted to him by God, as well as the glory of the other Angelic orders.
Therefore by his subjection and courtesy, it was determined by God Almighty,
that he should be the first among the Angelic orders.***
Gathering together and uniting the choirs of Angels, he cried out: "Let us be attentive!" By this was meant that we should take care and be mindful of what happened with the fallen demons due to their pride, who not long ago were among us Angels. And let us consider what God is, and what Angels are. God is the Master and Creator of us Angels. We Angels are servants and creatures of God. In this way he sang hymns and glorified the God of all, surely crying out that divine and angelic hymn to all the Angels: "Holy, Holy, Holy Lord Sabaoth, heaven and earth are full of Your glory." This mystery which we received from an ancient tradition, we presently celebrate. It is called a Synaxis of the Angels due to their carefulness, harmony and unity.****
Together with the Archangel Michael we celebrate today
the most beautiful and graceful Archangel Gabriel.***** For he also showed much
beneficence to the human race, as much in the Old as in the New Testament. The
prophecy of Daniel gives us his name, when Daniel explained the vision of the
King of the Medes and Persians and Greeks: "Gabriel, tell this man [namely
Daniel] the meaning of the vision" (Dan. 8:16). Gabriel also revealed to
Daniel that after seventy weeks of years, which is four hundred and ninety-seven
years, Christ would come, as it says: "While I was still in prayer,
Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight
about the time of the evening sacrifice..." (Dan. 9:21). It is he who
proclaimed the good news to the wife of Manoah, that she would give birth to
Samson. And he also proclaimed the good news to Joachim and Anna that they
would give birth to the maiden and Lady Theotokos.
In the New Testament he proclaimed the good news to
Zechariah, standing to the right of the altar of incense, that he would give
birth to the great John the Forerunner. He fed the Ever-Virgin Mariam for
twelve years in the Holy of Holies with heavenly food. No one would dispute
that it was he who proclaimed the good news to the Theotokos, that she would give
birth by the Holy Spirit to the Son and Word of God. He appeared in a vision to
Joseph, and told him to not be afraid, but to take Mariam as his wife, for that
which will be born from her is from the Holy Spirit. He also appeared and
evangelized to the shepherds, that Christ the Savior of the world was born. And
in a vision he told Joseph to take the Child and His Mother and flee to Egypt.
Then he himself told them to return to the land of Israel. Many sacred teachers
and hymnographers think that it was the divine Gabriel who was the Angel clad
in white, that came down from heaven and moved the stone from the door of the
tomb of the life-giver Jesus and sat upon it. And he evangelized the
Myrrhbearers regarding the resurrection of the Lord. We will say in general,
that the most divine Gabriel served in the mystery of the incarnate economy of
God the Word from beginning to end. For this reason the Church of Christ has
received to celebrate him together with the Archangel Michael, and to call upon
him for grace and help.
Notes:
* The name Michael means "power of God," or
power of the Chief Commander of the Lord.
** According to Proclus of Constantinople, Gabriel
means "God and man." This is why he served exceptionally in the
mystery of the incarnate economy of the God-man Word.
*** Some teachers of the Church harmonize the fall of
Lucifer and his demons and the bravery of the Archangel Michael, with what is
written in Revelation 12:7, 2 Peter 2:4 and Jude 6.
Gregory the Theologian says concerning this: "But
since this movement of self-contemplation alone could not satisfy Goodness, but
Good must be poured out and go forth beyond Itself to multiply the objects of
Its beneficence, for this was essential to the highest Goodness, He first
conceived the Heavenly and Angelic Powers. And this conception was a work
fulfilled by His Word, and perfected by His Spirit. And so the secondary
Splendors came into being, as the Ministers of the Primary Splendor; whether we
are to conceive of them as intelligent Spirits, or as Fire of an immaterial and
incorruptible kind, or as some other nature approaching this as near as may be.
I should like to say that they were incapable of movement in the direction of
evil, and susceptible only of the movement of good, as being about God, and
illumined with the first rays from God — for earthly beings have but the second
illumination; but I am obliged to stop short of saying that, and to conceive
and speak of them only as difficult to move because of him, who for his
splendor was called Lucifer, but became and is called Darkness through his
pride; and the apostate hosts who are subject to him, creators of evil by their
revolt against good and our inciters" (Oration 38 - On the Nativity of
Christ).
This is why the Apostle Paul says in Ephesians 6:12:
"For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against
principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age,
against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." In their
commentaries on this passage, both Theodoret and Jerome explain that the fallen
angels did not all come from a single angelic order, but from various orders.
However, Maximus the Confessor and John of Damascus say they fell from the
ninth order only. Chrysostom, Augustine, Maximus, John of Damascus and Gregory
the Dialogist say that Lucifer was the leader of the Angelic orders, while
Tertullian specifically says he fell from the Seraphim order. Chrysostom also
says that is on account of the multitude of Angels in the air that the Apostle
Paul said that women should cover their heads when they pray.
**** Saint Nikodemos the Hagiorite defends this
ancient tradition as being apostolic and should not be viewed as a myth, and
that according to Basil the Great we should keep these ancient traditions as
they were delivered to us, both concerning the fall of Lucifer and his demons
as well as the nine angelic orders, with the highest illuminating the lowest,
after which we have modeled our clerical orders.
***** Because the Synaxarion of Constantinople only
mentioned the Archangel Michael, Saint Nikodemos inserted information and
iambic verses concerning the Archangel Gabriel also, since they are
commemorated together on this day.
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