Unseen Angels

 

I am not an "angel person." Some people collect angels and pictures of various cherubs, but I have always thought they were too sentimental. I like the idea of having a "guardian angel," but how does this angel differ from the Holy Spirit? I would have to accept the reality of angels, which I hedge about. But I believe in the community of saints that surround us, so why can't angels be included?

Anyway, below is a meditation that hit me about angels that I received from Eknath Easwaren's site:

Make yourself familiar with the angels, and behold them frequently in spirit; for without being seen, they are present with you.
   – Saint Francis de Sales

"When the word “angel” is used, we can understand it as a personification of the forces for good in the world. Who will deny that forgiveness is one of the greatest forces on the face of the earth? Show me a man or a woman who can forgive completely and I will show you an angel. 

"If you want to see an angel, you have only to see a person who can return love for hatred. He is not just a person, he is a force. Similarly, a woman who has boundless patience is a powerful force that can transform antipathy into sympathy, ill will into good will, hatred into love.

"There is another meaning as well: there are beneficial forces in life, ready to support those who are sincere but who find their capacities not adequate to the challenges that life presents.

"When you are needed by others, when you have something valuable to contribute, these beneficial forces will support you, and give you greater health, greater energy, longer life, and deeper creativity. Life may strike at you, and challenges can hurtle themselves against you, but you will feel equal to them. Deeper forces from within will support you, hold you up, and act as a shield.

"We are not alone in the universe. We are surrounded by mighty creative forces."

 The Thought for the Day is today's entry from Eknath Easwaran's Words to Live By. (Copyright 1999 and 2005 by The Blue Mountain Center of Meditation.)

I can agree with the thought that an angel is a "personification of the forces for good in the world." I've experienced the goodness of others and God moments/synchronicities that I could attribute to "angels."

What do you think of angels?