IN THEORY:

A recent Baylor University survey showed that most Americans believe a guardian angel protects them. Researcher Christopher Bader said he was shocked to find that 55% of people believe in guardian angels. Do you believe in guardian angels, and what do you make of this trend of faith in the supernatural?

Belief in angels is certainly belief in the supernatural, but it is also quite biblical. The Bible teaches that angels are “all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation.” So God does send angels to help His people. The Bible also teaches that we may be in an angel’s presence and not know it: “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it” (Hebrews 13:2).

I don’t see a very strong biblical argument for the belief that every person has a particular guardian angel appointed to them. The closest thing I find is Jesus’ statement, “See that you do not despise one of these little ones [meaning children, probably], for I say to you, that their angels in heaven continually behold the face of My Father who is in heaven.”

Whether or not God appoints guardian angels, we do have Jesus’ sure promise: “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth.” The Holy Spirit is our comforter and our helper, the one who gives us spiritual gifts and guides us into all the truth. The Holy Spirit helps us in ways greater than any angel ever could.

PASTOR JON BARTA

Valley Baptist Church

Burbank

Judaism describes angels as spiritual creatures with unique characteristics.

The Hebrew word for an angel is “malach,” or messenger, and Jewish tradition holds that angels are divine couriers with specific missions. If an angel is assigned by God to guard someone, then it becomes a guardian angel.

Various Jewish texts refer to angels. For instance, the angel Gabriel lends us strength and courage, Michael guards our children, and Raphael is responsible for our physical and emotional well-being. In keeping with Jewish tradition, I do believe in angels and their ability to follow God’s orders, including protecting individuals or nations.

The Kabbalah emphasizes that every action we undertake creates a sphere of energy — which is similar in some ways to creating an angel. If someone performs a positive deed, then he creates a “good angel,” just as a negative deed begets a “bad angel.” While belief in angels has a place in the Judeo-Christian faith, I feel it is more important for us to focus on the impact our actions may have on humanity — specifically on those around us. Viewing spirituality in this way makes us more cognizant of our responsibility to make this world a kinder and gentler place.

RABBI SIMCHA BACKMAN

Chabad Jewish Center

Glendale

Last Monday in the Catholic Church, we celebrated the feast of the Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. At each Sunday Mass after the sermon, we say in the creed, “We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and Earth, of all that is seen and unseen.” What is unseen includes the angels.

We believe that angels are 100% spirit — they have no bodies, no materiality. Because they have no bodies they are, unlike humans, unrelated to each other. All humans have a similar DNA, which, by the way, can be traced through our mothers back to a common ancestor from northeast Africa. Humans are all related to one another. Angels are not.

Angels, like humans, have intellect and free will. Those who chose God are called angels; those who did not are called devils. Spiritual writers have said that temptations to sin come from the world, the flesh and the devil.

Catholics believe that God has appointed a guardian angel for each human being. Each year, we celebrate a feast in honor of our guardian angel. The following is a well-known prayer: “Angel of God, my guardian dear, to whom God’s love commits me here, ever this day, be at my side to light and guard, to rule and guide.”

Yes, I believe, and I was happy to see that 55% of those questioned also believe. It would help them to say the above prayer every day.

REV. GENE FRILOT

Incarnation Catholic Church

Glendale

For those of us who embrace the Judeo-Christian faith, it’s clear in the Bible that angels are a reality. For example, Psalm 91:11 tells us that God uses angels to protect us, and Luke 2:10 reminds us that they are God’s special envoys. Also, many of us believe in guardian angels because we’re convinced that in the past they have protected us from harm.

As a teenager, I was involved in a serious auto accident in which the car I was a passenger in was traveling at more than 110 miles an hour. At this particular time, seat belts weren’t required, so, of course, we weren’t wearing them. We ended up in a ditch, flew over an embankment and landed seven feet from a utility pole, but all three of us escaped with just a few bumps and bruises. I believe, and others have voiced the same opinion, that an angel must have protected me.

The fact that so many people believe in the supernatural, especially guardian angels, is interesting to me. I think this is the case because we as humans recognize that we can’t always depend on others for help. Recent events have reminded us that the government and financial institutions can only do so much for people. We need other sources of hope and peace. Many of us find these through religion and spirituality. It’s comforting to know that we’re not alone in this big universe, and that God actually cares about us. And yes, he does occasionally send angels to assist us at just the right time.

CHAPLAIN AL GARCILAZO

Glendale Adventist Medical Center

Glendale

So many quotes hop into my mind, such as, “Who can fathom thy ways, O Most High?” One of my favorites from Shakespeare is this one: “There is more to the universe than what is contained in your philosophy, Horatio.” And Jesus, after healing someone, said, “Go; your faith has made you well.”

The concept of guardian angels doesn’t fit into my own particular cosmology — but who am I to say that God doesn’t work that way? In a way, I am flabbergasted that so many Americans appear to believe in these heavenly helpers — but then, maybe that kind of belief, their faith, if you will, is making them well — and they don’t even have to darken the door of a house of worship!

Another quote: “There are no atheists in foxholes.” Maybe belief in guardian angels is the way our nonreligious brothers and sisters deal with “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,” to quote the bard once again. Think about it: Many of us believers have had to defend our faith from skeptics who say we believe because we don’t have the guts to look at the grave and say, “That’s the end.” The third-century church father Tertullian said, “Credo quae absurdum” — “I believe because it is absurd.”

While I wouldn’t go that far, there is something incredible about believing in a God who entered human history and redeemed Israel, but that’s the claim. Christians even believe that this God became flesh and dwelt among us. Hmm . . . maybe we believers share more than we realize with those who believe in guardian angels!

THE REV. C. L. “SKIP” LINDEMAN

La Cañada Congregational Church, United Church of Christ

La Cañada Flintridge

The concept of being assigned a guardian angel is pretty comforting in a world that is plagued by uncertainty and fears. I would say that most all time periods throughout history have had challenges, and guardian angels have been a handy way of suppressing our natural anxieties. Certainly today, with the economic and political climate being what they are, people will grasp for anything — person, spirit or institution — that promises hope. It’s the security blanket for our worries.

Believing in guardian angels is no different from believing that the government can bail us, even at a cost of $700 billion, out of the mess caused by our materialism. Or that drilling, drilling and more drilling in Alaska will solve a problem that has festered because of our disregard for the planet’s natural resources. Or that by sending new strategists to the front lines of wars, we will bypass the serious pains caused by injustice or justice not served.

Why do we accept these “guardians” over us, as wild and as extreme as they sound? Certainly not because they are tangible. No one really understands how big $700 billion, or drilling in the Arctic, or the ramifications of war will be on yet-unborn generations. But we believe in these extreme solutions, and that buys us enough anxiety relief to continue our lives as “normal.”

I believe in guardian angels. In the Armenian Orthodox tradition, angels are messengers, and the guardian variety deliver a message from God, which can only be love. Therefore, to be “guarded” by these beings throws the responsibility on our shoulders; that is, we need to adhere to their message, the message of love.

When we love, we are guarded and protected from all peril. We find tranquillity in our hearts, we radiate hope to others, and we effectuate peace in this world.

FR. VAZKEN MOVSESIAN

In His Shoes Mission

Armenian Church Youth Ministries

Glendale