THE guardian angel of life sometimes flies so high that man
cannot see it ; but he always is looking down upon us, and will
soon hover nearer to us. —Richter.
The idea of guardian angels is taken from the fact that they
guarded and defended our Savior ; hence, too, they are employed
to defend the members of His mystical body. These are as dear
to Christ as the apple of His own eye, and the motive that lie presents
for not harming even the least one of these, is because their
angels continually behold the face of their Father in heaven.
—Rev. Moses Kieffer, D. D.
You will always find that, in proportion to the earnestness of
our own faith, its tendency to accept a spiritual personality increases
; and that the most vital and beautiful Christian temper
rests joyfully in its conviction of the multitudinous ministry of
living angels, infinitely varied in rank and power. —John Ruskin.
There is a third function ascribed to these angelic natures,
which brings them even nearer to our sympathies ; they are the
deputed guardians of the just and innocent. St. Raphael is the
prince of the guardian angels. The Jews held that the angels deputed
to Lot were his guardian angels. The Fathers of the Christian
Church taught that every human being, from the hour of his
birth to that of his death, is accompanied by an angel appointed
to watch over him. The Mohommedans give to each of us a good
and evil angel ; but the early Christians supposed us to be attended
each by a good angel only, who undertakes that office, not merely
from duty to God, and out of obedience and great humility, but as
inspired by exceeding charity and love towards his human charge.
—Mrs. Jameson,
Angels dear
Bear her perfect soul above,
Seraph of the skies' sweet love.
—Bryan Waller Proeter.
I was in heaven one day when all the prayers
Came in, and angels bore them up the stairs
Unto a place where he
Who has ordained such ministry,
Should sort them so that in that palace bright
The presence-chamber might be duly dight;
For they were like to flowers of various bloom;
And a divinest fragrance filled the room.
Then did I see how the great sorter chose,
One flower that seemed to me a hedgling rose,
And from the tangled press
Of that irregular loveliness,
Set it apart— and— "This," I heard him say,
"Is for the Master;" so upon his way
He would have passed ; then I to him :
"Whence is the rose? thou of cherubim
The chiefest?" "Knowest thou not?" he said and smiled,
"This is the first prayer of a little child." —T. E. Brown.
