10/2/2015 – Friday of 26th week in ordinary time – Guardian Angels – Baruch 1:15-22

       In our first reading today, the prophet Baruch tells us how the people in Israel were contrite for their sins during their exile in Babylon, how they recognized the ways they and their leaders strayed from the faith to which God was calling them. The people recognized the ways that they rejected the word of God in their lives, the ways that they turned away from him even though he brought them to the dessert to the land of milk and honey.

        Sometimes we don’t understand what God is communicating to us, so he sends special messengers our way.  We in the Catholic Church believe in angels. In fact, we just celebrated the feast of the Archangels earlier in the week.  We see angels as spiritual being who were created by God.  Our English word “angel” comes from the Greek word “angelos”, which means “messenger”.  Today, we celebrate the feast of the Guardian Angels.  We see the role of the guardian angel as to guide us to good thoughts, in good works, and in good words, to keep us from succumbing to evil. Since the 17th century, the Church has celebrated a feast honoring the Guardian Angels in month of October.  We talk about how our American society is becoming more secular, but I was looking at an article from Time Magazine from 2008 that quoted statistics from a study on religious belief in American conducted by Baylor University, which stated that 55% of those surveyed agreed with the statement that “I was protected from harm by a guardian angel.”  Very interesting. 

         I love the prayer to the Guardian Angels.  It is a favorite prayer of many Catholic children, and many Catholic adults remember this prayer from their childhood.  If you remember this prayer, please join me in praying it: 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 and rule and guide. Amen. 
         In the prayers that we say, we communicate with God and we grow in our faith.  May the angels and the saints hear our prayers and pray for us as members of the kingdom of God.