Who is Azriel?

[GearXL]

This forum is more of a debate rather than a question. I know that there are other religions, like Kabbalistic Judaism or New Age that believe in 7 archangels. This belief can’t truly be trusted other than speculation as only three archangels are named in the Bible. But in the Hebrew Bible, the “angel of death” has a name; Azriel.

But that brings up a little contradiction. We believe that death is the total absence of the Lord and that there is nothing holy about Death. Azriel is just another personification of that emptiness like Santa Muerte, the Grim Reaper, or any other indigenous shadow figure of the sort.

But if death is so unholy, then why is there an “angel of death?”

 

[Gertabelle]

This forum is more of a debate rather than a question. I know that there are other religions, like Kabbalistic Judaism or New Age that believe in 7 archangels. This belief can’t truly be trusted other than speculation as only three archangels are named in the Bible. But in the Hebrew Bible, the “angel of death” has a name; Azriel.

But that brings up a little contradiction. We believe that death is the total absence of the Lord and that there is nothing holy about Death. Azriel is just another personification of that emptiness like Santa Muerte, the Grim Reaper, or any other indigenous shadow figure of the sort.

But if death is so unholy, then why is there an “angel of death?”

Catholics don’t believe that at all. Where are you getting your ideas from – Facebook?

Seriously, as Catholics we have this awesome resource called The Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Here is what Holy Mother Church holds as truth and teaches us about death:

The meaning of Christian death

1010 Because of Christ, Christian death has a positive meaning: “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” "The saying is sure: if we have died with him, we will also live with him. What is essentially new about Christian death is this: through Baptism, the Christian has already “died with Christ” sacramentally, in order to live a new life; and if we die in Christ’s grace, physical death completes this “dying with Christ” and so completes our incorporation into him in his redeeming act:

“It is better for me to die in (eis) Christ Jesus than to reign over the ends of the earth. Him it is I seek - who died for us. Him it is I desire - who rose for us. I am on the point of giving birth. . . . Let me receive pure light; when I shall have arrived there, then shall I be a man.” (St Ignatius of Antioch)

**1011 **In death, God calls man to himself. Therefore the Christian can experience a desire for death like St. Paul’s: "My desire is to depart and be with Christ. " He can transform his own death into an act of obedience and love towards the Father, after the example of Christ:

*“My earthly desire has been crucified; . . . there is living water in me, water that murmurs and says within me: Come to the Father.” (St Ignatius of Antioch)

“I want to see God and, in order to see him, I must die.” (St Teresa of Avila)

“I am not dying; I am entering life.” (St Therese of Lisieux)*

**1012 **The Christian vision of death receives privileged expression in the liturgy of the Church:

“Lord, for your faithful people life is changed, not ended. When the body of our earthly dwelling lies in death we gain an everlasting dwelling place in heaven.”

1013 Death is the end of man’s earthly pilgrimage, of the time of grace and mercy which God offers him so as to work out his earthly life in keeping with the divine plan, and to decide his ultimate destiny. When “the single course of our earthly life” is completed, we shall not return to other earthly lives: “It is appointed for men to die once.” There is no “reincarnation” after death.

1014 The Church encourages us to prepare ourselves for the hour of our death. In the ancient litany of the saints, for instance, she has us pray: “From a sudden and unforeseen death, deliver us, O Lord”; to ask the Mother of God to intercede for us “at the hour of our death” in the Hail Mary; and to entrust ourselves to St. Joseph, the patron of a happy death.

*Every action of yours, every thought, should be those of one who expects to die before the day is out. Death would have no great terrors for you if you had a quiet conscience. . . . Then why not keep clear of sin instead of running away from death? If you aren’t fit to face death today, it’s very unlikely you will be tomorrow. . . . (The Imitation of Christ)

Praised are you, my Lord, for our sister bodily Death,
from whom no living man can escape.
Woe on those who will die in mortal sin!
Blessed are they who will be found
in your most holy will,
for the second death will not harm them. (St Francis of Assisi)*

 

[Tis_Bearself]

I have never heard any Catholic describe death as “the total absence of the Lord”. The total absence of the Lord is Hell, not death. When someone dies, depending on how they have lived their lives, they may end up in the presence of the Lord (Heaven, perhaps after a stay in purgatory) or they may end up in the absence of the Lord (Hell). The Lord himself went through the process of earthly death.

 

[Crusaderbear]

According to wikipedia these are the Archangels…
Seven angels or archangels are given as related to the seven days of the week: Michael (Sunday), Gabriel (Monday), Raphael (Tuesday), Uriel (Wednesday), Selaphiel (Thursday), Raguel or Jegudiel (Friday), and Barachiel (Saturday).

Azreal, the angel of death was NOT an archangel, he was another kind…one description said he had 4 faces, thousands of eyes, and thousands of wings…apparently he was only mentioned in the Apochrypha texts and is part of eastern orthodox christianity.

 

[pianistclare]

Catholics don’t believe that at all. Where are you getting your ideas from – Facebook?

Seriously, as Catholics we have this awesome resource called The Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Here is what Holy Mother Church holds as truth and teaches us about death:

What she said. ^^^^

What they said? NO bueno. :nope:

 

[Le_Bonvivant]

When we think of kaballah we think of an alternative form of judaism that had some influence on modern dat spirituality, with followers like Madonna.

Strictly speaking kaballah means something else, it’s the oral jewish tradition that was not written down in the bible. So it’s comparable to our tradition which protestants reject. In the end most of this oral traditions were written down and the Jews have a lot of information and views on the old testament that are unknown to us. Not many of these ancient books have been translated from hebrew. The most important one, the Zohar, is available though.

Just because information about Angels besides the 4 that we honour in our church did not make it into our catechism doesn’t mean it’s not true.

 

[Tim_D]

According to wikipedia these are the Archangels…
Seven angels or archangels are given as related to the seven days of the week: Michael (Sunday), Gabriel (Monday), Raphael (Tuesday), Uriel (Wednesday), Selaphiel (Thursday), Raguel or Jegudiel (Friday), and Barachiel (Saturday).

Azreal, the angel of death was NOT an archangel, he was another kind…one description said he had 4 faces, thousands of eyes, and thousands of wings…apparently he was only mentioned in the Apochrypha texts and is part of eastern orthodox christianity.

In the Catholic tradition, we only recognize the names of 3 archangels; Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. The other names mentioned either come from apocryphal texts or from some sort of Jewish mysticism.

 

[Reepicheep]

When we think of kaballah we think of an alternative form of judaism that had some influence on modern dat spirituality, with followers like Madonna.

Strictly speaking kaballah means something else, it’s the oral jewish tradition that was not written down in the bible. So it’s comparable to our tradition which protestants reject. In the end most of this oral traditions were written down and the Jews have a lot of information and views on the old testament that are unknown to us. Not many of these ancient books have been translated from hebrew. The most important one, the Zohar, is available though.

Just because information about Angels besides the 4 that we honour in our church did not make it into our catechism doesn’t mean it’s not true.

When I think of kaballah I think of the occult as practiced by Jewish scholars.

Of course I could be wrong but that’s what the word means to me.

 

[GLam8833]

I beg to differ that the Catholic Church teaches
that God invented death(See Wisdom 1:13; Rom.
5:12; 1 Cor. 15:21), The Bible, and therefore the
Church sees death as an enemy to be defeated
(1 Cor. 15:26) thru the death and resurrection of
Jesus Christ(Rom. 4:25) So, death was manifest-
ed thru Man, b/c God chose to give Man free will!!

 

[pianistclare]

In the Catholic tradition, we only recognize the names of 3 archangels; Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. The other names mentioned either come from apocryphal texts or from some sort of Jewish mysticism.

Correct.
There are tons of threads on this.

 

[RyanBlack]

In the Catholic tradition, we only recognize the names of 3 archangels; Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. The other names mentioned either come from apocryphal texts or from some sort of Jewish mysticism.

That is correct concerning the Latin Church. In the Eastern Catholic Churches, at least those of the Byzantine tradition, we recognize the names of the other four.

 

[TheSpider]

What about Uriel? He is a important angel that Catholics recognize. You can find his statues for sale on prominent catholic sites and you can find what he represents to Catholics.