Has your guardian angel told you his name?

[FCEGM]

I would not advise assigning a name to your Guardian Angel. It seems to be a New Age practice and not entirely part of our church tradition although some folks seem to advocate it.
See no. 217 of the Directory on Popular Piety and Liturgy

vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20020513_vers-direttorio_en.html

Thank you, Seatuck! This bears repeating:

1. Popular devotion to the Holy Angels, which is legitimate and good, can, however, also give rise to possible deviations:

when, as sometimes can happen, the faithful are taken by the idea that the world is subject to demiurgical struggles, or an incessant battle between good and evil spirits, or Angels and daemons, in which man is left at the mercy of superior forces and over which he is helpless; such cosmologies bear little relation to the true Gospel vision of the struggle to overcome the Devil, which requires moral commitment, a fundamental option for the Gospel, humility and prayer;

when the daily events of life, which have nothing or little to do with our progressive maturing on the journey towards Christ are read schematically or simplistically, indeed childishly, so as to ascribe all setbacks to the Devil and all success to the Guardian Angels. The practice of assigning names to the Holy Angels should be discouraged, except in the cases of Gabriel, Raphael and Michael whose names are contained in Holy Scripture.

 

[Mark_Robert]

Years ago, I asked my guardian angel what his name was and I got the answer “Asmodeus”. I believe that’s the name of a demon isn’t it? Needless to say, I didn’t like that answer.

 

[C_Bautista]

This is probably a very good reason to always keep in mind our susceptibility to demonic suggestion and influence.

I remember a theology teacher I had in high school had dabbled in lightly (or, more accurately, jokingly) occult-like practices as a young er man (14-16 maybe) with his friends once, and recieved a name from a “spirit” that, many years later after becoming a theology teacher, turned out to be the name of a demon.

 

[rpp]

Thank you, Seatuck! This bears repeating:

  	 				217. Popular devotion to the Holy Angels, which is legitimate and good, can, however, also give rise to possible deviations:

Thank you. I had given my Guardian angel a name, but was shown this and realized my error.

Yes, we should not name our guardian angel.

By the way, the above quote is from the “Directory on Popular Piety and Liturgy” You can see the full text here. catholicculture.org/docs/doc_view.cfm?recnum=4620#114

This was also discussed earlier on a thread that I myself started. forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=121830&page=2

We shuld not name our Guardian Angels.

 

[Michael_Howard]

This is probably a very good reason to always keep in mind our susceptibility to demonic suggestion and influence.

I remember a theology teacher I had in high school had dabbled in lightly (or, more accurately, jokingly) occult-like practices as a young er man (14-16 maybe) with his friends once, and recieved a name from a “spirit” that, many years later after becoming a theology teacher, turned out to be the name of a demon.

Yes, I believe the practice is dangerous and can lead to what is known as a “familiar spirit” which is really an unclean spirit trying to come off as your friend. These spirits take over and begin to require more and more of your time, leading one away from time spent worshipping Jesus Christ or praying the Rosary.

.Malachi Martin devotes some time to these type of demons in his book “Hostage To The Devil”. I would really be careful if you are spending an increasing amount of time talking with your angel or even saints for that matter. I ask for their intercession and help indeed, but not a lot of dialouge. I reserve this for Jesus and the Blessed Mother as well as time in Sacred Scripture.

 

[anamchara]

This is probably a very good reason to always keep in mind our susceptibility to demonic suggestion and influence.

I remember a theology teacher I had in high school had dabbled in lightly (or, more accurately, jokingly) occult-like practices as a young er man (14-16 maybe) with his friends once, and recieved a name from a “spirit” that, many years later after becoming a theology teacher, turned out to be the name of a demon.

That is scary. I’ve been reading through this thread wondering why I have never even thought of my Guardian angel. I guess because I grew up Protestant and this just wasn’t brought up. the prayer is so lovely. We repeat it every Sunday after Mass.

Angel of God, My Guardian Dear to whom God’s love commits me here. Ever this day be at my side to light and guard and rule and guide. Amen

 

[mchium]

I would not advise assigning a name to your Guardian Angel. It seems to be a New Age practice and not entirely part of our church tradition although some folks seem to advocate it.
See no. 217 of the Directory on Popular Piety and Liturgy

vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20020513_vers-direttorio_en.html

Oh-Oh…:bigyikes: you’d better tell Mother Angelica over at EWTN. She did a whole show one time about how she named her Angel (Fidelis) and she advised everyone to do the same…

 

[Sapphire]

This is an interesting question. When I first heard about asking your Guardian Angel their name it seemed odd to me since I could not imagine hearing an angelic voice telling me their name. Thus I did not pursue it. I know some people who say they know their Angel’s name and are content with it. After reading your posts I guess the Church would rather we did not dwell on acquiring such information? Some of you mentioned getting demonic names. That reminded me of what I’d heard about the Rite of Exorcism. Apparently as part of the exorcism the exorcist has to get the demon to admit its name and it never wants to? Anyway, as long as we always have the Name of Jesus in our hearts…:bowdown: :dancing: :bowdown2:

 

[bcuster]

When I was in formation for the Disciples of Jesus and Mary, we prayed to understand our Plan of Life: What God is calling us to be. One of the helps for this is to look at the saints that you are drawn to follow. Another is to study the angels. I have always felt strong protection in my life from evil. I have strayed into some pretty dark places and I have almost walked away from my faith a time or two. I named my son Michael. I found out that my husband’s family came from Engelberg, Switzerland and settled near the Benedictine Monks at Mount Angel, Oregon. My husband’s family has always been devoted to angels, especially Michael the Archangel. In pondering this I saw God’s work in my life as He gave me the strong protection of the angels. I taught in Catholic School for 20 years. During some of those years I questioned my faith. I always felt a strong obligation to teach the children exactly what the Catholic Church teaches. My spiritual director said that sometimes we have more than one guardian angel. I learned through prayer that I have an extra guardian angel I call my Angel of Light who protects my students from error as well as protects me from teaching error. My other angel I call my Angel of Goodness. My name is Bonita or Bonnie. It means pretty, but comes from the latin room for Good. I asked my guardian angel his name and “heard” almost a chuckle–It’s just like yours–Goodness. So I try to follow Jesus and Mary in immitating the Goodness of God; however since God alone is Good, I often fail. With the Help of God’s Goodness and Light, I will perservere.
Bonnie- Little Reflection of God’s Goodness

 

[Lukelion]

I call my guardian angel “Angelino”. Padre Pio called his angel that. It is Italian for “little angel”.

 

[Cari]

When I was heavy into New Age “stuff”, I asked my guardian angel for his name (darn those New Agers for co-opting angels! With all the occult baggage that’s been heaped on them, no wonder some devout Christians are hesitant to acknowledge angelic assistance), I got the name “Julien”.

Now, thankfully home in Holy Mother Church, I still thank my angel for his prayers, protection, and guidance at the end of the day, but I now feel very very uneasy about the name Julien and don’t call him by anything other than “Guardian Angel”.

Interesting thread, though!

 

[Bennie_P]

This has been an interesting thread, good stories and good teaching too.

Here is a couple interesting articles, some of you might enjoy.

Angels and Their Names

The Common Names

**by **Pascal P. Parente
:angel1:

Our Guardian Angels

**by **Fr. Joseph Ventura, C.P.

 

[rpp]

When I was heavy into New Age “stuff”, I asked my guardian angel for his name (darn those New Agers for co-opting angels! With all the occult baggage that’s been heaped on them, no wonder some devout Christians are hesitant to acknowledge angelic assistance), I got the name “Julien”.

Now, thankfully home in Holy Mother Church, I still thank my angel for his prayers, protection, and guidance at the end of the day, but I now feel very very uneasy about the name Julien and don’t call him by anything other than “Guardian Angel”.

Interesting thread, though!

Yeah, that is what New Agers do best, cherry-pick their beliefs. That is why they proclaim “spirituality without morality”.

And Cari, looking at your signature line, I would guess you are getting pretty excited (and uncomfortable). May God bless you on your upcoming delivery. May He keep you and your baby safe and may all go well. You are in my prayers. I will ask my guardian angel to help out your during this time as well. He could use the rest, unfortunately I keep mine pretty busy!

 

[Sr_Sally]

I’m not sure why I would need to know my Guardian Angel’s name. I do think that for us to give a name to the angels is wrong, It seems like naming a pet. Angels are holy and awe-full, not cute little fluffy things flying around after us!

 

[PassthePeace1]

I was saying a prayer to mine the other night and I asked him if he could tell me his name…to somehow let me know, give me a sign. Immediately the name Linus popped right into my head. What’s weird is I asked him years ago and had completely and totally forgotten it (else I wouldn’t have asked him this time). As soon as I heard the name Linus in my head I remembered he had told me years back. I had completely forgotten…

I looked up Linus in the Catholic Church and it turns out there was a St. Linus who was the Pope who succeeded Peter. He’s also the one who suggested to Peter that women cover their heads at Church. His feast day is Sept. 23rd which is also Padre Pio’s birthdate. And St. Padre Pio is my patron saint. Pretty wild, huh?

I love my guardian angel Linus!!!

I did the same thing…mine’s name is Rebecca.

 

[maronite]

Yes
my 7th grade religion teacher told us to pray the guardian angel’s prayer:

O Angle of God my guaridan dear, to whom God’s love commits me here, ever this day be at my side, to light and guard to rule and guide. Amen"

And the first male name that came into our heads in the monring would be it

however she also said that it would only happen if your angel wanted to reveal their name.

and she said male because all angels are spirits however though tradition we usually call angels as male names (Gabriel, Michael, raphael)

And in the morning i was siging to myself and in the lyrics said “Daniel” even though this name was not part of the actual song. confused as to where Daniel came in, i realsied that muct be the name of my angel.

i love you Daniel,. thankyou for keeping me safe, cya soon

 

[Ceil-1]

I’m thinking our angels have names we can’t even pronounce, let alone understand. If they give us a name, it is probably something they make for the benefit of our understanding.

I think this happens in the cases where we encounter them. They come to us in a form that is tailor-made for our needs, because, obviously, being spirit, they don’t actually have a real form. Kind of exciting.

 

[SweetSuzB]

My Guardian Angel revealed his name many years ago…After reading these answers, I decided to look up his name and the meaning…His name is Salvador and I found out today that it means Savior…Awesome!

 

[Joan_Anderson]

I think we have two distinct questions here. #1—Do angels have names (and if so, is it okay to try and find out what its name is?) and #2, Should we give our angel a name?

It’s always been my thought that, since God allowed Adam to name parts of God’s creation in the garden, it’s meant for everything to have a name, even angels. Thus, angels probably already have names. And I think it’s natural that as we move more closely into a relationship with our guardian angel (and yes, God does want this–check Psalm 91 and Exodus 24, vs 20-23, pretty comprehensive) we would want to know his name.

For years angels were ignored, despite the many times they are mentioned in Scripture. During the past decade, people have become more aware of angels, and of course, that opens the door to some New Age-y misinterpretations. But I don’t think asking one’s angel for his name falls into the New Age category. It’s just a natural outgrowth of our new and growing love for them.

 

[Lukelion]

Order of the Legion of St. Michael Spiritual Warfare Forum by Bro. Ignatius Mary has this to say. saint-mike.org/spcdc/bbs/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=158 (hope I did that right)

Angels already have names. Should I insist on calling you George even though your name is Therese? That would be rude and arrogant of me.
As explained it is not only rude to call someone by a name they do not have, but in the spiritual economy, “naming” a creature is to have dominion over it. We do not have dominion over the angels.
During the days of slavery, slave owners gave their slaves names. These people already had names, but since the slave owners “owned” the people to name them what he pleased was one of the many ways the slave owner exerted power and dominion over them.
Angels are not our slaves, we do not own them, we do not have dominion over them. Thus to “name” them is patently inappropriate, rude, and uncharitable.
I think this peculiarly Catholic custom (at least I never heard of it before becoming Catholic) is sourced in a misplaced devotion that seems to think that we need to know the name of our angels. We do not “need” to know our angel’s name. It is enough that we know we have an angel looking after us.
It seems that people want so badly to have an intimate relationship with their angel that they “name” their angel as if that produces intimacy, and perhaps have experiences with angels that are nothing but imagination.
We should develop a devotion to our angel, but we need to avoid pseudo-mystical experiences in relation to our angel. I sincerely doubt the people who say that their angel has told them their name. In every case that I have seen the “way” the angel informed the person smacks of nothing but wishful thinking and over-active imagination.
It is profoundly dangerous to “seek” to have our angel reveal his name. Such “seeking” can open us up to something other than our angel.
*As for St. Pio having a nickname for his angel, St. Pio was blessed by a specially intimate relationship with his angel. Such intimacy allows for such familiarity. Such close intimacy with our angel as St. Pio had is extremely rare, so rare to be nearly non-existent I think.
Without that special grace given by God, as was given to St. Pio, to give our angel a nickname is equally as arrogant and rude.
The same would be the case for people to refer to me by some nickname that they make up. No one on this BBS knows me well enough to be given that privilege, and vice versa.*I think we need to work on avoiding one of the biggest sins of the 20th and 21st century – presumption.
That is my 1 cent.​

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary

Guess I messed up! Back to the confessional!