St. Michael the Archangel

Today, Tuesday, September 29th, is Michaelmas—a fixed date on the calendar honoring the archangel St. Michael. Traditionally, St. Michael was seen as a defender of Israel and the leader of God’s forces in defeating Lucifer. His appeal is widespread and longstanding. While saints often are associated with the Catholic church in popular culture, Lutherans also have a high regard for Michael. He’s also mentioned in the Quran and Muslims regard Michael as an important angel poised close to God. Despite all of this powerful, warlike imagery, Michael is strongly associated with healing—and ancient miracles of providing healing waters and security for the sick. It’s this kind of strong, protective imagery that’s associated with Michael in a vision of Daniel, who describes the angel as a “great prince” and “the protector of your people.” Down through the years, Michael has become a patron saint of paramedics, police officers and paratroopers. There are lots of references to Michael on the Web, most of them posted by Catholic groups. But, for a different approach to Michael’s ancient story, check out an in-depth article on Michael in the Jewish Encyclopedia online.