(SBA) - My favorite children’s book at Christmas time is THE NATIVITY, illustrated by Julie Vivas. The text of the book is the story of Jesus’ birth, taken from the King James’ Bible. I love the artwork of Australian illustrator, Julie Vivas, because she portrays characters drawn as they probably would appear in real life. In THE NATIVITY, the characters of Joseph and Mary look like I imagine people who have just endured a long trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem would have looked at the time, but the character who warms my heart in the book is the Angel Gabriel who, when he appears to Mary to tell her that she will give birth to Jesus, looks a lot like an angel in ‘It’s a Wonderful Life” would have looked, although Gabriel has intact wings at that meeting. As Gabriel fulfills God’s commands during that time, speaking to the shepherds, advising the Magi and then attending Jesus’ birth, his dress and his wings become increasingly tattered and in the last scene, he is leaning against Mary, both exhausted by their endeavors.
Julie Vivas’ illustrations of the Angel Gabriel led me to wonder about how he fits into the Bible and so I did a little research last week. I discovered that the angel Gabriel (never given the title of “archangel” in the canonical Bible, although he is considered “above all other angels.”) He is mentioned by name in the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament, and in the Quran. In the Hebrew Bible, Gabriel appears to the prophet Daniel to explain his visions, appearing again in Daniel’s final vision, although he is not named. This is the first time that an angel is named in the Old Testament, where he is also termed, the “man of linen” and the protector of Israel. Gabriel is considered a “revealer,” a role that he assumes in other literature. In the New Testament, Gabriel appears to Zechariah foretelling the birth of his son, John the Baptist, and to the Virgin Mary telling her that she will give birth to God’s son. In Islam, Gabriel is sent by God to several prophets, including Muhammed. (Quran 96th chapter) It is clear throughout literature that Gabriel is not to be worshipped, as only God can answer prayers and it is He who sends Gabriel as his agent on Earth. In Rabbinic Judaism, Gabriel is sent to destroy Jerusalem (Ezekial) and in the Jewish Encyclopedia, Gabriel takes the form of a man and stands at the left hand of God. (Jesus stands at His right hand.)
When Gabriel appears to Zechariah in the New Testament, the angel tells him that his wife Elizabeth, barren into old age, will give birth to a son who will be named John, a man that will drink neither wine nor strong drink and will be filled with the Holy Ghost, even in his mother’s womb. John the Baptist will bring many souls to righteousness, and he is seen as the preparer of the children of Israel to accept Jesus as God’s son. Zechariah can hardly believe that this blessing will come to him and his wife, and the Angel Gabriel strikes him mute. He speaks again only to announce his son’s name, much to the confusion of the people surrounding the couple as it was the custom of the time to name the first son with his father’s name. When Gabriel appears to Mary, he tells her that her cousin Elizabeth will also give birth to a son. The Virgin Mary asks Gabriel how she can conceive as she has “known no man.” Gabriel responds that the Holy Ghost will come upon her and “the power of the Highest shall overshadow” her. The Virgin Mary accepts the miracle and goes to spend five months with her cousin Elizabeth, where the two women—one very old and one very young—must learn how to be mothers to two special men.
In the “four homilies of the Missus Est, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) interprets Gabriel’s name as “the strength of God.” In Intertestamental Literature (200 BC-50 AD) Gabriel is troubled by the cry of the souls of men and so God sends his angel to the fornicators and the “Watchers” (I assume these are individuals who do not fornicate, but simply watch the sin as it is committed) and commands Gabriel to set the two groups against each other, “for the length of days shall they not have.” (1 Enoch 10:9) Enoch names four angels, Michael, Raphael, Gabriel and Phanuel, each of whom has a specific set of tasks to perform. In 1921, Pope Benedict set Gabriel’s Feast Day as March 24th, but in 1969, his Feast Day was changed to September 29th, so it coincides with the Feast Days of Michael and Raphael. Gabriel is considered the patron saint of messengers, those who work in broadcasting and telecommunications, postal workers, clerics, diplomats and stamp collectors.
In Islam, Gabriel is tasked with transmitting the scriptures of God to the prophets and messengers and is also believed to have delivered God’s punishment to the Sodomites whose entire city was levelled as punishment for their sins. Gabriel can regulate feelings or perception in humans, particularly happiness or sadness. Gabriel is often portrayed in religious art as holding a trumpet, but the Bible never views him this way, neither does the Jewish or Muslim tradition. The first known depiction of Gabriel blowing a trumpet occurs in the “Hymn of the Armenian Saint Nerses Shnorhali” where the angel is portrayed as “the Protector of the Night.” An Armenian manuscript from 1455 shows Gabriel sounding his trumpet as the dead climb out of their graves. One thing that I have learned from my research of the Angel Gabriel is that there are many figures in religious belief that I know too little about. I hope to learn more in the next few months.
