Seven Archangels

The concept of Seven Archangels is found in some works of early Jewish literature and in Christianity. In those texts, they are referenced as the angels who serve God directly. The Catholic Church venerates seven archangels: in the Latin Christianity three are invoked by name (Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael) while the Eastern Catholic Churches name seven. The Lutheranism and the Anglicanism generally recognize three to five archangels: Michael and Gabriel, as well as Raphael, Uriel and Jerahmeel. In parts of Oriental Orthodox Christianity and Eastern Orthodox Christianity, Eight Archangels may be honoured, including Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, as well as Salathiel, Jegudiel, Barachiel and Jeremiel (in the Coptic tradition the latter four are named as Surael, Sakakael, Sarathael and Ananael). The Eight Archangels are commemorated on the Feast of the Archangels. The term archangel itself is not found in the Hebrew Bible or the Christian Old Testament, and in the Greek New Testament the term archangel only occurs in 1 Thessalonians 4 () and the Epistle of Jude (), where it is used of Michael, who in Daniel 10 () is called 'one of the chief princes,' and 'the great prince'. In the Septuagint, this is rendered "the great angel." The idea of seven archangels is most explicitly stated in the deuterocanonical/apocryphal Book of Tobit when Raphael reveals himself, declaring: "I am Raphael, one of the seven angels who stand in the glorious presence of the Lord, ready to serve him." () The other two angels mentioned by name in the Bibles used by Catholics and Protestants are the archangel Michael and the angel Gabriel; Uriel is named in 2 Esdras (4:1 and 5:20) and Jerahmeel is named in 2 Esdras 4:36, a book that is regarded as canonical by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, the Georgian and Russian Orthodox Churches, and falls within the Apocrypha section of the Protestant Bible used by Lutherans and Anglicans. The names of other archangels come from tradition. tells about "seven rejoices" that are "the eyes of the Lord, Which scan to and from throughout the whole earth.