September 29^th is an important date coming up in our liturgical year.  It is Michaelmas, or the Feast of the Archangels.  Historically it is called Michaelmas, because it is the shortening of ‘Michael’s Mass’ just as Christmas is a shortened form of ‘Christ’s Mass.’  This year we will not celebrate it at Mass, because it falls on a Sunday and the ordinary Sunday Mass trumps most feast days.  It is still an important feast day to remember, because it is the celebration of the archangels (and really all angels) who are our protectors against the demons seeking to steal our souls.  The three archangels we celebrate are Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael.

St. Michael is the archangel from whom the feast day gets its alternate name from.  The name Michael comes from the Hebrew name Micah, which means ‘Who is like God?’.  Michael appears in Scripture four times:  twice in Daniel, once in Jude, and most well-known in the Book of Revelation.  Revelation speaks of Michael leading the battle of the angels against Lucifer and the other fallen angels.  He defeats the demons and drive them out of the heavenly realm.  Michael is considered to be the protector of the Church. Due to this, St. Michael the Archangel is the patron saint of the military and first responders. 

St. Gabriel is the second archangel the feast celebrates.  The name Gabriel comes from the Hebrew word for ‘Hero of God.’  Gabriel appears both in the book of Daniel, and most famously in Luke’s Gospel as the messenger of God to Zachariah announcing the birth of John the Baptist and to Mary announcing the birth of Christ.  Some tradition even names Gabriel as the angel with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane before the Crucifixion. Because of his role in conveying messages, Gabriel the Archangel is the patron saint of messangers and postal workers. 

Finally, there is the archangel St. Raphael.  Raphael’s name comes from the Hebrew raphe-el, which means ‘God has healed.’  Raphael appears exclusively in the Book of Tobit.  Raphael is the companion of Tobias on his journey to marry his future wife, Sarah.  He aided Tobias to drive away the demon afflicting Sarah so they could wed.  Due to these events, Raphael is the patron saint of pilgrims, nurses and physicians, as well as the blind. 

In the life of the Church, each of the archangels carry out different missions:  Michael as protector, Gabriel as messenger, and Raphael as guide.  Each serves a distinct purpose, and therefore can aid us in a variety of situations. Common to them all is the protection they provide to us from the demons who seek to destroy us.  That is why September 29th is such an important feast day.  Angels protect us from the demons. I could not imagine what it would be like if we did not have the angels to aid us in this way.  It is important to have a connection with them for this reason.  In fact, St. Pio of Pietrelcina, (also known as Padre Pio), whose feast day we celebrate today, once slapped a person in confession for not praying for the aid of their guardian angel!  We should ask for the intercession of the archangels and our guardian angel every day for aiding us in our spiritual journey towards heaven.