Angels?

[ravynbynorthwynd]

so, what are some opinions on angels?

i don't know what i think but i have a reason why i ask, which i will get in to later.

but for now, do you believe they exsist?

[maldito]

I'm not christian, I don't believe in a supreme allmighty God. So, I don't believe in the messengers of that God. But... I love angels and the angelology. Once you get involved in that fasinating world, you can't go back -and no one wants to!.
My angel is Mitzræl.

[Toki Wartooth]

I'm actually not sure. I've always connected angels to be with Christianity and whatnot as opposed to Paganism, but I know others who believe in angels, and I've seen the 'Angelic Parthenon' on pagannews.com, so...

I really don't know, personally. I'm not sure if I believe, nor am I sure if I want to believe. It's not something I've thought that deeply on, but sometimes I do wonder.

[CryingEagle]

so, what are some opinions on angels?

i don't know what i think but i have a reason why i ask, which i will get in to later.

but for now, do you believe they exsist?

Yes! Angels do exist, they are with us everywhere we go! :halohead:

[Jodyg]

I am Pagan and whole heartly beleive in them but there not like say spirit guides or things of that nature. I think the Angels are what protects a lot of us from evil if we ask them too. I think they are described in every religion by many names as repersentations of divine goodness and protection from evil forces. If your not sure just ask a few Angles to come to you and see if the hair on the back of your neck stands up.

[CleftOfLight]

Well angels are not just a christain thing.Many other people have believed in angels long before the Jewish and hristain religions.

I believe in angels 100%.

[Hazel BlueMoon]

Angels are actually what my belief's stem from. They're genderless, unjudgemental and loving. I don't fully believe in a God/dess. I don't invoke the many different types of God/desses that people always talk about. I think it's facinating and they stem from beautiful stories, but Angels are truly what I've felt that was true. And Angels are in pretty much every religion. But, they are originally from the Pagan area (since Witchcraft is the first known religion).
I know I'm babbling on and on, I just really believe, and I wanted to share why and how I felt, I hope that helps you on your journey.
Blessed Be.

[Sequoia]

They're genderless, unjudgemental and loving.
I love angels.

Yes, I believe in them. I personally think that they were created, as humans were... I love hearing stories and mythos about them. I believe that they can SOMETIMES intervene in everyday life - maybe only to one person, or that person's perspective, but... *shrugs gently*

A tidbit of angel lore: Some people say that when you're laying in bed, and you feel what seems like a cat just jumped up on the bed, but there's no cat there, that weight is an angel. ;)

[LacyRoze]

Do I believe in angels?? You betcha!!

[BlackMagicalCat]

I believe in God and angels,also a host of other biengs created by God as well.

[ravynbynorthwynd]

the reason i ask is because i have two friends who claim to be angels, and i have a tendency to believe them...

[Verthandi]

Whether they exist or not, I simply cannot believe they are the all-encompassing, loving, genderless beings of pure light...unless you're referring to the angels that came out of the New Age era of the 1960s. Angels sound pretty frightening. I mean, you have the angel of death and war and everything, really. If there's a god/dess of something, there's probably going to be an angel of the same thing. Plus, there were things called nephilim, which resulted in angels mating with humans, so I can't believe there aren't at least male angels.

[maldito]

the reason i ask is because i have two friends who claim to be angels, and i have a tendency to believe them...

And, if I may ask, what are the reasons for you to believe them.
I don't know. For me, angels are beings or a higher plane and I don't like the idea that two persons might be angels. They for sure have to eat, sleep and other very secular activities, and I don't think that angels, in a fisic body or not do this things.
But, I'm open minded, maybe you can convince me your friend are angels.:hmmmmm:

[Ninjakitten]

I've seen angels. They've done things with or near me more than once, and I've had one reveal the Diety's messages to me. I've even seen them stand guard over people (like my sister) when they were making very spiritual decisions so they wouldn't be interrupted while pondering the Divine. I've even seen one before I even believed in them. I can't deny their existence because of just how strongly I experienced what I did.

[EponaCapaill]

I believe in Angels. I also believe that there are Angels who come to help us on the Earth, but I don't believe that they reveal themselves to us. I believe they take human form only as long as it takes to help us, but then they leave behind that form once the task is complete.
**hearing Alabama's song 'Angels Among Us' in my head~~"I believe there are angels among us, sent down to us from somewhere up above. They come to you and me in our darkest hour and leave us in the light of love."**

This song gave me chills the first time I heard it, it clearly stated what I had always believed. Still gives me chills.

BTW, my life was touched by an angel (was not a fan of the show) when I was about 10. Shortly after my brother was born, my mother had us all in the car, she made a left turn across traffic. She misjudged how fast the 18 wheeler was moving. We should have been killed. The back end of our car was lifted up and our car was pushed out of the way. There is no other explanation other than an angel, we believe my brothers angel, saved us.

[farm girl]

I believe in angels. Angels are not a judeo-christian concept. THey existed long before then in many other cultures, they just weren't called "angels".

[ravynbynorthwynd]

And, if I may ask, what are the reasons for you to believe them.
I don't know. For me, angels are beings or a higher plane and I don't like the idea that two persons might be angels. They for sure have to eat, sleep and other very secular activities, and I don't think that angels, in a fisic body or not do this things.
But, I'm open minded, maybe you can convince me your friend are angels.:hmmmmm:
thats actually a very long and complicated seris of events that i'd rather not get in to...in brief...

several of my freinds are very good at astrally projecting, (they call it "soul transfer" but i see that as the same thing). one of my friends has seen, on the astral plane mind, the wings of one of my friends, and he asserts that the other 2 (i forgot about the other one) are also angels. once again, there are also many other situations in which things happened that lends me to tend to believe what they say.

[Élistariel]

It depends on what you mean by angel.

If you mean a genderless human type being with feathered wings.
No.

If you mean, as is in the instance of cherubs a child's face with wings attached.
No.

If you mean a benevolent spirit that aids us in times of great need.
Yes.

If you mean a average Joe or Jill who helps others.
Yes.

[Sequoia]

Ravyn-

First thing first. Many many people, when seeing themselves as spiritual beings, report seeing or feeling wings. This is VERY common. This by no means constitute being an angel or angelic being. Many people feel that they are "something else", something more special than your average human, on "some other level" of existance. Whether it is called a past life, the astral plane, God's Kingdom, or whatever world of their choosing - they believe that they are inherantly different than the rest of the human beings around them, somehow specially chosen as "the one" or "the ones."

This is so common, I'm pretty sure they aren't the only "One." In fact, I know they aren't. I was The One when I was sixteen. You see? Disproved. ;)

That isn't to say that they aren't unique and special people. I'm sure they are. But they aren't likely to be reborn angels, or part of an apocolypse, or anything along those lines.

Secondly... angels aren't the kind of being that could be reborn into a human body. Perhaps they can inhabit them for a few minutes... perhaps. But angels are a creature of such a purely spiritual nature, it would almost certainly destroy them to inhabit the physical world for very long - if they can inhabit it at all.

The concept of an "angel" is usually a creature that is genderless, and is NOT a being in the cycles of rebirth and physical life. They exist in a spiritual way, "on a different level" if that makes it easier to understand.

Your friends are welcome to believe what they like - that they were Cleopatra in their past lives, that they are Angels, or that the sky is neon green with brown spots. But the likelihood of such things being real and true is very, very slim.

[enchancea]

Angels are actually what my belief's stem from. They're genderless, unjudgemental and loving. I don't fully believe in a God/dess. I don't invoke the many different types of God/desses that people always talk about. I think it's facinating and they stem from beautiful stories, but Angels are truly what I've felt that was true. And Angels are in pretty much every religion. But, they are originally from the Pagan area (since Witchcraft is the first known religion).
I know I'm babbling on and on, I just really believe, and I wanted to share why and how I felt, I hope that helps you on your journey.
Blessed Be.
That pretty much summed up my beliefs on angels also. As far as your friends thinking they are angels, I highly doubt it. And even if angels did go into human bodies I dont think they would run around and tell people about it.

[Flar's Freyja]

I'm not sure........I kind of feel that they're just spirit guides/protectors and the difference lies in what you call them is in your religious foundation...

Here's a great book about angels:

Angels on Assignment (http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art29288.asp)

[Mindflayer]

Angels are one extreme of the spectrum of personalities I guess you could say.

Devils are the other.


They balance each other out.

[SacredWithin]

I think of angels as comforters and protectors. I think they can also be very wise beings and will help if you ask.

[TYRRHENUS]

I don't. They're too "eastern" for me. I like the notion, but I don't think they exist.

[Toby Stimpson]

An interesting subject. I am tending to believe that the Malachi do exist on a certain level, as many other of the 'mythological' beings we think of do. Now, when taking an angel into context one must make two very important things: seperate the metaphor from the reality. A few here have stated that Angels are NOT a sole Christian idea, that they exist to soem extent in many other religious and spiritual traditions. The archetype of winged messanger beings exist in Islam, Zoroastrianism, Judaism...and also when you think of it...the description and function of an angel is not so far removed from the Pagan mythologies. After all, in Greece, is it not true that the Wind Gods Boreus, Zephyr..etc, appear very similar to an angel...and what of Hermes? The Messanger of the Gods with winged shoes. It is true that the Christian and subsequently Islamic forms of the Angels do come from Judaism, however there have been several visions of Angels worldwide reported by members of these religions, even by the most undevout. I would say to this questoion that as a being, Angels could be a name and form given to another more general race of astral beings...and the mythology around them should not be taken completly literally. That being said, Angelology has formed a back bone of many different magickal system and they are associated with the planets and astrology. To say "thy don't exist' merely becasue they are of a Christian source is in my mind quiet foolish, you ignore a very powerful group of spirits. I am not a Christian, I lean more towards the Hindy side of things, and Hinduism doesnt have an exact match of an Angel archetype...but again that doesnt mean that they do not exist in atleast soem form soemwhere. Namaste

Tobias

[David19]

I agree with Galadraal, i believe in them, but i don't think there 'in every pantheon', there might be certain beings that resemble them, maybe even could be called angels, but what annoys me is when someone says they don't believe in angels 'cause their Christian, Jewish or Muslim, etc, when if you're truly polytheistic, you can believe in other gods and spirits, just accepting that those spirits aren't in your pantheon.

Another thing i don't like is when someone says 'angels aren't just Christian, Jewish or Muslim, Zoroastrian, etc' then they'll call on the archangel Michael, Uriel, etc, Michael is Yahweh's warrior and/or servant, he's in the Jewish (and Christian, Islamic, etc) pantheon, i really doubt he serves every single god, especially if Yahweh is enemy of a few gods.

Like Galadraal said (i think ;)), angels seem to originate with winged supernatural beings of the Middle East, which would probably be the djinn (this is what a Sumerian recon, who i greatly respect and knows a lot, told me), IMO, i think there are different tribes and clans of these beings, Yahweh seems to have a lot of them, which are usually the ones you hear about, and maybe there are others, independent, who act like supernatural mercernaries.

Although the last part is getting into a personal theory of mine, which, if i talk about it any more, will probably get a lot wierder ;) lol!.

[ViolinGoddess]

I work with angels all the time. But originally I thought they didn't exsist. I thought (being the good little prodestant that I am) that they were just made up by catholics to distract us from pray directly to God. Just like the saints. Apparently the catholics beleive that we are not worthy of talking directly to God so we need intermediaries like angels and saints. I dont' beleiv e this. Until this one night not too long after I awakened to magick........

The people that taught me magick did not, however teach me sheilding until months after I awakened to magick and being aware of other entities. One night I became aware that there was an entity on the ouside of my bedroom window, clinging to the wall. I knew it was waitng for me. ANd I didn't want to go to bed. But night came and eventually I had to sleep. So I got into bed and turned out the light. (PS. I have a mild form of epilepsy) Then I went into a seizure (when this happens all my mental walls shut down, which is why I can't be watching tv or listening to music when I have a seizure in case something disurbing is presented, my mind can't filter it out) Immediately the entity entered my room and entered my mind. It came to me and said something to the effect of "you didn't think you could continue to go unnoticed, id you"?

Needless to say I woke up from the seizure scared out of my mind and I got out of bed intending on calling my best friend (one of the people who had introduced me to magick) for help. But my fiancee (who is also a christian) stopped me and offered to pray with me to get rid of it. My original thinking was that it was a "magical thingy" so I needed magick to stop it. But when he offered the prayer, I decided to try it.

He was the one who prayed, I just held his hand. In his prayer he asked that God send his angels to surround our appartment and immediately as he said those words I could sense that the bad entity was gone and that there actually was a ring of angels surrounding our appartment. I was amazed.

Ever since them I've made very good friends with a few of the archangels, Michael in particular. I can ask them questions and have them check in on my friends if need be. I also send them on jobs if people I know or situations I know of need their help. Recently, a friend emailed me and told me that his wife was having a horrible time and was suicidal and basically badness was coming at her from many places in her life all at once. So he asked me to send her an angel. Or several. So I did. I asked God to send as many as nessiccary. To heal her heart, give her hope, and give her peace. My friend emailed me back two days later tellingme that they had had two good days (relatively). I was glad to hear that.

If you'd like to educate yourself about the christian angel mythos I suggest this website:

http://www.sarahsarchangels.com/
The opening page is kind of lengthy, but about half way down there is a bar that says "Enter The Angelic Realm". Push that button. That will get you to the good stuff.

Violin Goddess

[Mesektet]

so, what are some opinions on angels?

i don't know what i think but i have a reason why i ask, which i will get in to later.

but for now, do you believe they exsist?

Very much so, in an incomprehensible form and function. They are, from my experience, chalked up into the catagory "unseen beings in unseen worlds"

[omar]

Some of the Archangels were pre- Christian Gods.

[River]

Hm...

I guess they might.

But I am the kind of person who wont believe something until I see it.

[ViolinGoddess]

the reason i ask is because i have two friends who claim to be angels, and i have a tendency to believe them...

Those people are called angelkin. A type of otherkin. If you don'tknow what otherkin is. It's aperson who has the spirit/soul or past life memories of being something "other" than human. Generally the species of otherkin you can be are legendary/mythological creatures like elves, pixsies, vampires, werewoves, pheonixes, dragons, mermaids, cat creatures, gryphons, dwarves, etc. Except for ORCs, Tolkein made those up.

Violin Goddess

[David19]

Some of the Archangels were pre- Christian Gods.

I don't think that's true, as far as i know the archangels, such as Michael, Uriel, etc are Jewish supernatural beings, and in fact, Michael, i think, is the protector of Israel and (angelic) patron of the Jews.

Angels don't appear in every culture, there are various supernatural beings that people assume are 'just the same' as angels, when they're not e.g. some people think that angels were in Sumeria 'cause of a belief in a personal god, which was a god who protected you and took your case to the gods of fate (Enlil and some others, i think?), people say that's exactly what angels do, when in fact, the Sumerian god was a god, not an angel.

Also, when people say they work with the angels, even though i do believe them, some of them seem to take away and try and 'wussify' them, e.g. they seem to forget that Michael is Yahweh's warrior, my guess is he's not all 'love and light', warriors do kill (to protect or whatever).

[Toby Stimpson]

I don't think that's true, as far as i know the archangels, such as Michael, Uriel, etc are Jewish supernatural beings, and in fact, Michael, i think, is the protector of Israel and (angelic) patron of the Jews.

Angels don't appear in every culture, there are various supernatural beings that people assume are 'just the same' as angels, when they're not e.g. some people think that angels were in Sumeria 'cause of a belief in a personal god, which was a god who protected you and took your case to the gods of fate (Enlil and some others, i think?), people say that's exactly what angels do, when in fact, the Sumerian god was a god, not an angel.

Also, when people say they work with the angels, even though i do believe them, some of them seem to take away and try and 'wussify' them, e.g. they seem to forget that Michael is Yahweh's warrior, my guess is he's not all 'love and light', warriors do kill (to protect or whatever).


Just a note on that...there is evidence to conclude that some beings found within the jewish Christian mythos originate in Zoroastrianism...Michael could be considered and extrapolated to be a from of the demigod Rashnu, who is described as the ahura of Justice, who holds the scales to weigh the souls of of the dead upon death.

HOWEVER and here is the important thing...in Zoroastrianism these demigods are not Gods, there is no real adequate way in our language to express what an Ahura is. Its higher than an Angel, but its lower than a god. In some ways it could be said that these are debased IndoAryan deities...but one cannot with that assumption then conclude that Michael of Christinaity = debased God...becasue he is a form of a form of a form. This does not take away from the Individuality of Michael in his christian sense...becasue Ima strong believer that despite evolutionary theories in mythology...each new example or each new face constitutes a new being.

[omar]

The saints listed in the Culdees Church of Wales are the god/godess, St. Anne or Anu:St. Bridget or Bride: St. Brenden or Bran & St.Corneille or Cernunnos.

[Toby Stimpson]

The saints listed in the Culdees Church of Wales are the god/godess, St. Anne or Anu:St. Bridget or Bride: St. Brenden or Bran & St.Corneille or Cernunnos.

Those are the saints...these are the angels...but I agree that some of the more elusive 'historical' Saints were perhaps modelled in history and legend on Gods.

[SilentDreams]

Angels as in the Christian sense? I don't believe in them. To do so would bring forth all Christian beliefs and well, you can see where that leads me.

Angels as another form of being? I'm not too sure. Really I haven't thought on the issue all that much. So at the moment, I'm not willing to give a definite "Yes" or "No". I'll have to consider this more and get back with my answer.

But for now, it's very possible in my mind.

[Sanura]

I really like this thread, it's interesting. I personaly believe there are angels but I just don't often try to connect with them.

[sweetfairy]

we have angels and fallen angels..
thus i believe they are all around us . just like magic and more...

[omar]

The Culdees Church took the Celtic gods & turned them into saint. Cernnunos is the horned god with deer antlers. Bran,Bride & Anu were all Celtic gods.

[Toby Stimpson]

The Culdees Church took the Celtic gods & turned them into saint. Cernnunos is the horned god with deer antlers. Bran,Bride & Anu were all Celtic gods.

mhmm....yes....who are you arguing with? I think peopel agree with you Omar :).

[Sage Rainsong]

I used to work with them heavily early on in my path. They are extremely powerful beings that should not be called upon lightly. I don't work with them at all anymore for various reasons.

[David19]

I used to work with them heavily early on in my path. They are extremely powerful beings that should not be called upon lightly. I don't work with them at all anymore for various reasons.

That's what i've heard too, that angels shouldn't be treated lightly, i know a lot of people say their all 'love and light' but to me, i don't think this is true, and this is just from what i've read, it seems like, in Judaism, there were angels of death, destruction, war, etc.

Someone that i respect told me, and i agree with him, that if you want to work with angels, you should treat them as any supernatural being you want to work with, e.g. don't think that angels are there to do things for you or are 'just waiting' to help you, and don't think their all 'love and light and fluffy'.

Also, what makes me mad about some people is the way they'll say they work with angels, and say 'their not just Jewish/Christian/Muslim/etc' and they'll still ask Michael, Uriel, etc for help, considering Michael is Yahweh's warrior and patron of Israel, i doubt he works for other deities, also he is a warrior, so my guess is Yahweh has him doing several non-fluffy things (just like any warrior).

But, anyway, i agree with you :).

Also, would you mind saying if your experiences were good working with them or did you get what you wanted, if it's not too personal :).

[Sage Rainsong]

That's what i've heard too, that angels shouldn't be treated lightly, i know a lot of people say their all 'love and light' but to me, i don't think this is true, and this is just from what i've read, it seems like, in Judaism, there were angels of death, destruction, war, etc.

Someone that i respect told me, and i agree with him, that if you want to work with angels, you should treat them as any supernatural being you want to work with, e.g. don't think that angels are there to do things for you or are 'just waiting' to help you, and don't think their all 'love and light and fluffy'.



They are willing to help you but you must be respectful. Many people seem to think of them as only capable of divine love or whatever but there is angel lore that suggests that if we were to see certain angels we would die.



Also, what makes me mad about some people is the way they'll say they work with angels, and say 'their not just Jewish/Christian/Muslim/etc' and they'll still ask Michael, Uriel, etc for help, considering Michael is Yahweh's warrior and patron of Israel, i doubt he works for other deities, also he is a warrior, so my guess is Yahweh has him doing several non-fluffy things (just like any warrior).

I don't believe them to be "universal bridges" either.


Also, would you mind saying if your experiences were good working with them or did you get what you wanted, if it's not too personal :).


Disclaimer: This is only based on my feelings and experiences. Don't take any of these personally please.


Well it's not that facinating but before I started to work with angels I was a witch already. I was still insecure and I realize now that I got into angel magic because I was still a little afraid of going to hell deep down. Also, I was also going through a sort of new agey period in my life because of the company I kept. I felt their energy powerfully and so did thoes around me. However, it was getting a little rediculous. I was reading books that would suggest that I should ask the angels what to wear before I got dressed in the morning. I felt like I was loosing my connection to the Earth as well as my will. I mean I couldn't get dressed without asking for their help. I know it sounds a little strange and pathetic but hey, thats what happened. So I stopped working with them in order to reclaim my will and my connection to nature. It is doubtful that I will work with them again. I am glad that I went through it though because I learned a lot about myself and my beliefs.

[Darkest Eve]

Bump

(Because it could use some new replies! Also relates to otherkin I suppose...)

:)

[Meadhbh]

Sure their out there. But as a pagan type person there is no real reason for us to meet. I think they are more concerned with the faiths that have more to do with them.

[Solya]

I believe angels exist. They're not just "love and light" all the time and I think that they're not just here to help us out either. I feel connected with them somehow... partially because of my upbringing, but also because I was attracted/attached to them from a very young age onward... but I do not often ask them for help. I always feel like they have better things to do than help me do something I can also do on my own!

But I do like the feeling they give me, though. It's very peaceful and warm most of the time. They only felt threatening on one occasion when I was stuck in a really negative place with my soul... so my guess is that the 'purer' you are of heart, the easier your work with them will be...

[Philosophia]

I love angels. They have a prominant spot in my path but, like Sage Rainsong stated, they are powerful beings.