In order to share in the glory experienced by our Blessed Mother, the angels, and all the saints, we need to understand the journey to which we are called in this life. Many of the saints have written about that journey. Later in this book, we will discuss some of those writings that articulate three stages of spiritual growth traditionally referred to as the Purgative, Illuminative, and Unitive Ways. As their names suggest, these three ways describe the ever-ascending Christian journey towards the heights of holiness. The Purgative Way describes the initial purification one goes through during the spiritual battle to overcome serious sin and sinful habits. The Illuminative Way describes the interior enlightenment one receives from God once our senses and disordered appetites are purified. The Unitive Way describes the result of arriving at the spiritual perfection of Divine Union to which we are called. We will then associate those writings with the eternal Celestial Hierarchy of Heaven in which the angels and saints currently participate and that will make up the one City of God forever. By understanding this Celestial Hierarchy and the varying degrees of glory contained within it, we are invited to strive for the highest heights so that we can participate in eternal glory to the greatest degree.
We begin, then, with an understanding of angels. As will be explained in detail, the natural ordering of the choirs of angels provides a map for our human journey. These angels not only assist us on that journey, their natures also show us the way and final goal.
Saint Thomas Aquinas as Our Guide
Among Saint Thomas Aquinas’ gifts to the Church is his explanation of the nature and role of angels. In the Summa Theologica (First Part, Questions 50–64), Aquinas writes about the substance, intellect, will, and origin of angels. Building on the theology of the earlier mentioned fifth- or sixth-century Syrian monk, Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, Aquinas deduces from the whole of the Scriptures that there is a hierarchical ordering in Heaven of nine distinct choirs of angels, divided into three triads that are referred to as the “Celestial Hierarchy.” Saint Thomas’ teaching can be challenging to understand without a thorough grasp of his foundational philosophical principles and language. He adopted Aristotle’s philosophical language and logic, which is based on human reasoning, and then integrated Christian revelation, which is above the natural knowledge our human reason can attain, to deduce theological insights in a systematic way. Here, we will only focus on what he teaches, rather than how he arrived at that conclusion. If you find yourself wondering, “How did Saint Thomas arrive at that?” you will have to turn to the Summa itself for the explanation.
The Origin of Angels
God alone exists from eternity; He created the angels. Aquinas speculates that angels were created at the same time as God created the universe, in one definitive and creative divine act. This is partly because some of the angels were created to govern the physical world and to minister to humans during their sojourns on earth. “The existence of the spiritual, non-corporeal beings that Sacred Scripture usually calls ‘angels’ is a truth of faith. The witness of Scripture is as clear as the unanimity of Tradition” (Catechism of the Catholic Church #328).
Angels were created in a state of sanctifying grace in the Empyrean Heaven (the highest Heaven); however, they did not behold the Beatific Vision from the instant of their creation. Instead, those who responded to grace by loving God immediately merited the Beatific Vision, which forever conforms their loving will to God’s will. This conforming grace is permanent and had to be merited by their first act of charity toward God and acceptance of His perfect will.
As part of the angelic nature, each angel was created to participate in God’s glory in varying degrees of clarity and intensity, but each is perfectly happy and fulfilled. The clarity with which they perceive the divine essence with their intellect, and the intensity in which they participate in divine love with their will, all flowing from the Beatific Vision, result in angels’ inability to sin. They are eternally fixed on God, forever love Him, and serve His will.
A third of the angels refused to love God by their first choice, so they never merited the Beatific Vision and lost all sanctifying grace in their spirits. Consequently, they were cast out of Heaven but still retain their natural powers, albeit without the aid of grace (See Revelation 12). These demons now are capable of and fully immerse themselves in two sins: pride and envy. These are spiritual sins, not requiring bodies to commit.
Lucifer, the “Light-Bearer” of God, might have been a Seraphim. Being the highest of the fallen angels, he is now called satan, which means “adversary” or “accuser.” Aquinas speculates that when Lucifer was created, he knew he could not become God, since he could not change his nature. But he wanted to become “like God,” being able to create by his own natural abilities, achieve final beatitude on his own, and to govern the lower angels according to his own will. By rejecting God, Lucifer rejected sanctifying grace. His higher rank and sinful example might have influenced the lower angels to mimic his choice. The angelic nature is such that once angels made an act of the will, that act is irrevocable. This is because of their superior intellect, which is capable of considering all relevant knowledge at once with perfect clarity. They do not “re-think” their decisions; they are definitive. Therefore, they remain steeped in the sin of pride and relentlessly use their natural powers to thwart man’s salvation, out of envy. They do this with a selfish spiritual sorrow and self-pity from which they will never repent.
The Substance of Angels
Angels are pure spirits, meaning they are not made up of a mixture of body and spirit as humans are. The word “angel” describes their function more than their nature. Their nature is that of a spirit made up of an intellect and will. Their function is to be an angel, meaning to be God’s messengers. The lowest choir of angels, the Guardian Angels, are most properly called angels since their exclusive function is to be messengers. The higher choirs also act as messengers at times, making it proper to refer to them as angels.
In a vision experienced by Daniel the prophet, it is revealed that surrounding God’s throne, “Thousands upon thousands were ministering to him, and myriads upon myriads stood before him” (Daniel 7:10). A myriad means 10,000, so Daniel saw tens of thousands of tens of thousands of angels. Aquinas states that angels “exist in exceeding great numbers, far beyond all material multitude.” In other words, he speculates that there are many more angels than humans. This is, in part, because there are no physical limitations on the number of angels, so God, in His boundless creativity and goodness, likely created an exceedingly great number. Furthermore, being purely spiritual beings, angels are of a higher order of perfection than material things, since they better mirror the eternal Godhead. The more perfect something is, the more of it God creates.
Within the human species, there are many different people who make up that one species. Humans are individualized by the unique qualities found in their material nature. Each angel, being purely spiritual in nature, is a single species and the only one of that species. Therefore, there are as many angelic species as there are angels. Each angelic species is also incorruptible, meaning they cannot die, become ill, or experience any form of decay.
Father Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, O.P., in his book REALITY—A Synthesis Of Thomistic Thought, explains it this way: “[I]f the angels are purely spiritual, you can find in them no principle of individuation, no principle capable of multiplying within one and the same species. Form unreceived in matter, they say with St. Thomas is simply unique. Whiteness, for example, if conceived as unreceived in this or that white thing, would be one and unique” (Chapter 23). In other words, we can say that there are many things that are, properly speaking, “white,” but only because “whiteness” as an immaterial concept is found in material things. When there is nothing material in which whiteness can reside, then only one non-material “whiteness” can exist. So with angels, since they are purely spiritual, then what is referred to as their “immaterial form” can reside only in one angel, making that angel the only species of its kind.
In Scripture, we read that angels have taken on bodily form at times. This action is purely a function of their angelic powers. The angel does not actually become human or become a living body; the form is only temporary for the fulfillment of their mission. Among appearances in the Old Testament, angels appeared to Abraham and then destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18). Jacob wrestled with an angel (Genesis 32:22–32). An angel appeared in the fiery furnace with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to protect them from the flames (Daniel 3). In the New Testament, the Archangel Gabriel appeared to the Blessed Virgin Mary (Luke 1:26–38). Saint Joseph had three dreams of angels (Matthew 1:20–24; 2:13, 19–20). Angels appeared at the empty tomb after Jesus’ resurrection (Matthew 28:1–7; Mark 16:1–7; Luke 24:1–7; John 20:1–2, 11–13). Saint Peter was released from prison by an angel (Acts 12:6–11).
While angels are spiritual beings not bound by physical constraints or time, they can interact within the physical world within time. Angels have the ability to be present in a specific location and to act in that location by exercising their angelic powers. This presence is not physical in a material sense but is a function of their angelic power and mission. Furthermore, although angels can move instantaneously by their will, their presence and actions in the physical world cannot take place simultaneously in multiple locations. They can be present and active only in one place at a time. For example, if an angel from the choir of the Powers, who are warrior angels, is directly engaging in spiritual combat within the life of someone in Russia at a certain moment in time, he cannot, at the exact same time, be engaging in spiritual combat in the life of someone in Canada. Hence, the need for an exceedingly great number of angels.
The Angelic Intellect
The knowledge that angels have differs from human knowledge. Humans learn through the five senses [sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch] as they interact with the physical world. They abstract what they learn, ponder it, and organize their thoughts through a process of reasoning, which requires effort and time. For example, humans know what a tree is because they have seen many trees with their eyes and touched them. They then formulate a concept of each tree they see in an abstract way, store that concept in their memory, and when they see another tree, they apply the abstracted concept of “tree” to a particular one, concluding that this also is a tree.
Angels do not learn; instead, they receive the fullness of their knowledge directly from God at the moment of their creation. Therefore, they do not go through a reasoning process. They simply know what they know and act on it. They do not know the physical world as humans do, due to their lack of sensory perception. However, they receive an intuitive understanding of the physical world directly from God and from their observation of human activity.
Each angel receives exactly what God chooses and what is necessary for the fulfillment of each one’s angelic mission. The higher angels, being closer to God, receive a clearer understanding of divine truths than the lower angels. They do not receive more truths. Rather, their knowledge is of a higher quality, not a greater quantity.
Angels possess a clear understanding of who they are in their angelic nature, and by extension, they know every other angel. This self-knowledge also provides them with a natural knowledge of the divine, since they are made in God’s image. God also imparts to each angel an infused knowledge of His Godhead, elevating that angel’s knowledge of divine mysteries and God’s will to a greater or lesser degree by grace.
Angels do not know the future, nor can they read our minds against our will. However, we can intentionally communicate to them through prayer by forming an intention and making an act of our will. But with their superior intellects, angels can anticipate our actions based on their observations. Just as a wife learns her husband’s habits and will anticipate his actions in a certain situation, angels have this ability to a far superior degree. Only God, however, knows all things, and only God can reveal the future to an angel if He chooses to do so.
Angels possess three types of knowledge: natural knowledge, infused knowledge, and Beatific knowledge. Their natural knowledge is derived from their angelic nature and is limited to understanding the essences and principles of created things. While using this knowledge, they can comprehend multiple truths under the same topic at once, as a united whole. They perceive the full picture instantaneously, bypassing the human process of rational deduction. Unlike humans, who reason sequentially, angels grasp both principles and conclusions in a single intellectual act, which is why they never change their minds.
Secondly, God bestows infused knowledge in the angels’ intellect and grants them deeper insight into divine mysteries. This knowledge surpasses their natural understanding of creation but does not include God’s complete understanding of His divine essence or the future. Angels can access and act upon this infused knowledge instantly and fully.
Thirdly, Beatific knowledge represents a direct, continuous, and experiential vision of God’s essence, transcending both natural and infused knowledge. This transcendent form of knowledge is not merely an intellectual access to information; it is a profound participation in the divine life, varying in clarity and intensity among the different choirs of angels, according to their natures. The Beatific Vision is the source of their eternal joy and union with God, granted as the ultimate fulfillment of their being.
The Angelic Will
Because angels have an intellectual capacity, they also have a will. The will is a necessary consequence of the intellect, but the intellect and will are distinct from each other. The intellect discerns a good and proposes it to the will to choose. In humans, free-will decisions are often influenced by desires or emotions. Humans may become confused about what is good and what is bad and must go through a process of reasoning and discerning. Angels do not need discernment. They know clearly what is good and what is evil and instantaneously choose the good.
The free will enables one to love or to hate. Every natural creature loves itself, seeking the greatest good for itself. In humans, when flawed thinking confuses the mind, disordered self-love chooses something that is not good for us. The good angels, however, have no flaw in their thinking. They perfectly love themselves and every other angel, and do only the good as they behold God’s perfection. The good they choose for themselves is not a selfish choice; rather, they choose God and His will above all else because it is the greatest good they can choose. Fallen angels, or demons, are completely separated from divine wisdom, so their choices are based on flawed thinking that flows from their pride and envy.
How Angels Act on One Another
Since the higher angelic choirs receive greater clarity and intensity of divine truths, they are also filled with a more intense love. As a result of that intense love, they share their clearer knowledge of divine truth with the lower angels by imparting what they know to them. The lower angels receive this knowledge, but because of their lower nature, are not able to receive the fullness of what is imparted any more than one person could impart the fullness of his knowledge to another. However, the lower angels receive all that is suited to their nature and find perfect contentment and joy in what they receive. The imparting of this knowledge cannot change a lower angel’s will. The lower angels cannot enlighten the higher angels any more than a small candle can brighten the radiant sun.
In a sense, the angels speak to one another, but not in utterances like humans. Their “speech” is a direct communication from one intellect to the other. Angels speak to God as they adore Him and consult His will. All angelic communication is done instantaneously, without any hindrance from space or time, since it is a purely spiritual communication. Angels can choose to speak to only one angel, or to several, or to all, simply by intending and willing it, but they cannot read each other’s minds.
How Angels Act on Humans and Creation
As purely spiritual beings, angels are closer to God in the hierarchy of creation, holding a higher place than humans, who are a composite of body and soul. According to Aquinas, the invisible spiritual world, to which angels belong, is higher and more perfect than the visible physical world. Because of their superior nature, good angels rule this world and demons try to destroy it. Nothing in the physical world occurs without God willing it, and the angels act as instruments of God’s will. The natural movements of the seasons, for example, are done at the direction of angels. They cannot perform miracles, since this is not in their natural powers. If God commands a miracle to take place, however, He will enact that miracle through the instrumentality of angels. According to Aquinas, this is done through the choir of the Virtues, which is entrusted with the governance of the natural world.
Angels cannot act directly upon the human will, but they can act upon the human intellect by imparting necessary truths. They can implant ideas in the human imagination, act upon appetites and desires, and stir up passions and emotions. Both the good angels and demons can do this. They can even cause images to appear or act upon man’s other senses as a way of communicating.
When an angel is sent to fulfill a certain task, God is the source and origin of that command. By being “sent,” angels act upon a person or place in this world or against a demon, fulfilling the duty they were sent to do. The nine choirs of angels form a hierarchy. The names of those nine choirs come from Scripture. Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite ordered the nine choirs this way, and Aquinas adopted his ordering: Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominions, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels, and Guardian Angels. Of these nine choirs, Aquinas speculates that God sends only the lower five choirs on mission. The highest three—Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones—do not directly interact with humans or the world. They are fully occupied with the contemplation of God, but they do pass on their knowledge to those angels who are sent on mission to assist them. The Dominions are not directly sent either because they govern the lower five choirs, coordinating their missions, similar to how a general in the military commands those under him, implementing the will of the commander-in-chief.
Angelic Guardianship and demonic Assault
Aquinas believes that each person, from the moment of birth, is assigned a guardian angel for protection and guidance during each one’s earthly life so that he can steadily be moved to God’s will. Guardian angels are unwavering in this mission. Within the womb, the mother’s Guardian Angel also protects the child.
God allows humans to face tests and trials, which are opportunities for spiritual growth and greater reliance on His providence. Temptations come in the form of incitements and allurements, originating from demons. God permits such demonic temptations but also provides the necessary grace to resist them, enabling humans to gain merit and spiritual strength. Hence, in the end, temptations can work to our benefit when they are overcome.
Satan, being the highest of the fallen angels, orchestrates many of these demonic temptations out of his envy. While he played an important role in introducing sin to humanity when he tempted Adam and Eve, each person’s sins result from free choices. Additionally, because humans are in a state of Original Sin, we sometimes commit sins that result more directly from our own fallen nature, not only from demonic influence. The demons are persistent in their temptations, but divine grace offers the strength to resist and overcome these temptations over time by forming virtue.
Next: Chapter Four—The Celestial Hierarchy
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