|
GABRIEL-An
archangel whose name means "God is my strength" and who is the one
of the most beloved of all members of the heavenly host. Gabriel is
also one of the highest ranked of all angels and is only one of two
(or three) actually named angels in the entire Bible, with Michael
and Raphael. Among the Jews, Gabriel's power and strength-as
implied by his very name-were frequently noted in legends and
tales. He has been called the angel of the power of God and also
the angel of judgment and has been equated with thunder and
majesty. In the role of judgment angel he will supposedly appear on
the last day and blow the final trumpet that will call all of the
living and the dead to come forth and face the final, irrevocable
judgment of the Lord. Known in the Arabic as Jibril, Gabriel has a
prominent role in Islamic teachings, for he believed to have
dictated the entire Qur'an, surah by surah, to Muhammad and is
called the angel of truth and the chief of the four favored
angels.
GADIEL-An angel who lives in the fifth of the
seventh heavens. his name was supposedly used as a word of power
among sorcerers and was carried upon or within charms and amulets
in the ancient world. Gadiel himself was apparently invoked as a
means of repelling evil.
GARDEN OF EDEN-See Eden, Garden of.
GAVRIEL-An alternative spelling for Gabriel.
GAZAIYA-Also Gazardiel, an angel who in some Jewish
legends is responsible for making certain that each day the sun
rises and sets as it should and always at the appropriate time.
According to another tradition, Gazaardiya helps to send the
prayers of the faithful upward so that they might be heard by
God.
GENIUS-A Latin term found in the religion of ancient
Rome for a king or guardian spirit or angel-like intelligence who
acted as guardian over an individual, a house, or even an entire
nation. The genius thus had a variety of understandings, but
perhaps the most common was a guardian spirit of the male (called a
genius) head of a house or family and of the female (the juno)
matron or house mother. The genius was derived largely from the
Greek daimon or daemon.
GERMAEL-An angel whose name means "majesty of God."
According to legend, he was one of the angels sent by God to create
Adam from the earth, a task also ascribed to several other angels,
including Gabriel, Michael, and Israfel. In one tale Germael, with
his fellow angels, failed in the undertaking because the world
would not surrender its dust, fearing as it did that humankind
would turn away from God. In the place of these angels God sent
forth from heaven the angel Azrael; this hardfisted angel did not
fail.
GETHSEMANE, ANGEL OF-The angel who came to Christ in
the garden of Gethsemane to give comfort and fortification during
the terrible doubt-filled hours before Jesus' arrest. While the
angel remains unnamed in Scripture, lore declares that it was
probably the famed archangel Gabriel, although it is possible that
the angel was actually the archangel Chamuel.
GEZURIYA-A member of the angelic choir or order of
powers who has command over at least six other angels. One of them
is Gazardiya, the angel who ensures the daily movement of the
sun.
GLORIOUS ONES-The name used in the Second Book of
Enoch for the seven great archangels whom Enoch visited while on
tour of the heavens. He met them during his arrival at the sixth
heaven.
GLORY, ANGELS OF-A group of angels who, as written
in the Third Book of Enoch, reside in the highest heaven, called
arabot by the Hebrew tradition of Enoch. They are said to number
660,000, standing in the high, honorific place near the very throne
of God. They thus lead the very heavens in endless praise of God.
The angel Sandalphon, one of the great angelic princes, has also
been called an angel of glory.
GNOSTICISM-A heretical sect of Christianity that
flourished in the first centuries A.D. It stressed the existence of
two main worlds, a perfect and good spiritual one and an imperfect
and wicked material one. The Gnostics also had a belief in
angellike beings, such as the aeons and archons.
GOD, ANGEL OF-The term used often interchangeably
with the angel of the Lord to describe an angelic visitor who is
fulfilling some mission. Under certain circumstances, however, the
name has also been used to denote God himself. The latter
understanding is especially appropiate when interpreting angel of
God or angel of the Lord as it appears in the Old Testament.
GONFALONS-A group or even choir of angels who form
part of the "imperial host" described by John Milton in his
Paradise Lost. They are spoken of by the angel Raphael.
GRIGORI-The Hebrew name for the watchers. (See
watchers.)
GUARDIAN ANGELS-Also called tutelary angels, the
well established and widely accepted belief that all people (as
well as nations, cities, and churches) have a special angel who
stays with them, watching over their lives and encouraging their
spiritual well-being and happiness. Many deny that guardian angels
could possibly exist, but others state, with the support of
Scripture, theological writings, and common sense, that they do
live, even if mortals forget or refuse to acknowledge their
presense. The idea of the guardian angel is found in Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam, and the roots of the belief date to the
earliest times. St. Thomas Aquinas, one of history's foremost
experts on angels, stated that all people have guardian angels.
They remain with one throughout life, staying ever at one's side
even during sin. They foster good works and help to direct the soul
to salvation, but only if the soul is so inclined to be led.They
cannot influence the will, but they do act upon the senses and
project themselves upon the imagination and intellect, discouraging
evil acts. According to Thomas, the angels remain even after death,
standing with the soul in heaven; there, however, it does not
encourage salvation, but assists in the glimpsing of the final
brightness of eternal bliss. All guardian angels are taken from the
lowest ranks of the celestial hierarchy, namely the choir of
angels.
GUARDS-A type of angelic sentinel mentioned several
times by John Milton in Paradise Lost. It is unclear whether the
guards according to Milton were their own angelic choir or were
merely posted angels from some other choir and receiving duties as
guards.
<--MY RING SITE MAP-->
|