Saint Michael the Archangel

About Saint Michael the Archangel

Michael is the archangel Scripture presents as commander of the heavenly host. His name is a question in Hebrew — who is like God? — and it was the cry with which, tradition says, he faced down the pride of the fallen angel. Revelation shows him leading the battle against the dragon; the book of Daniel calls him a prince and guardian of the people.

Art almost always depicts him the same way: armour, raised sword, one foot planted on the serpent and a set of scales in the other hand, because tradition also entrusts him with weighing souls. He is not a warrior who enjoys war, he is a guardian — the one who stands between danger and whoever cannot defend themselves.

He is invoked for protection, courage and deliverance: by police officers, soldiers, paramedics, by people who work nights, by anyone in a hostile environment, by anyone afraid inside their own home. His feast is 29 September.

A message from Saint Michael is often sent to someone starting dangerous work, to someone living through a season of fear or threat, or as a blessing of protection over a house and a family.

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