Catholic Do’s and Don’ts Regarding Angels 

In the first two segments of our Angelic Assistance Series we made some important distinctions about angels (and demons) which brought the Church’s clarity to our understanding of these spiritual beings. These teachings result in a number of Do’s and Don’ts about angels which we would do well to follow for our spiritual benefit.

First let’s look at a few Don’ts:

It is common to hear well-meaning people say that a human being (especially a child) has become “an angel in heaven” after death. This never happens, and we should never believe it or say it. Even though we share some spiritual characteristics (such as mind and will), angels and humans have different natures, and humans never become angels, or vice versa.

Cultic religions such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses or the Mormons are confused about this. They have no teaching on natural law as the Catholic Church does, so as a result, these religions believe that angels morph into human beings when they come to earth, or that humans miraculously turn into angels when they die. These religions do not embrace the truth of Christ, so they easily confuse the truth about the rest of creation as well. We are never to join them or believe their doctrines. 

Related to this – and much scarier – is the terrible power of the occult in our society. Because the occult world is dominated by fallen angels, we are never, ever, to participate in occult practices, such as playing with Ouija boards, consulting mediums, fortunetellers, or psychics, or attending séances of any sort. These practices lead to spiritual death because they try to use the power of the spiritual world for personal gain. Any gain they grant for a time is an illusion because all they really do is bind the participants to the power of demons. 

We should not have anything to do with occult forms of entertainment either, such as ghost hunters, paranormal investigations, etc. Those who do so place themselves under the deceptive minds and wills of demons. Those shows are deceptions and illusions that lead us away from God. Our attitude toward them should always be what we profess in our Baptismal Promises: “I reject Satan and all his works and all his empty promises.”

A final Don’t: we should not try to name our guardian angel or any other angel. The Church forbids this. Angels are the firstborn sons of God, not our pets. They already have the names that God gave them, and they do not want us to be so focused on them as to distract us from God and His saving Will. 

Despite these important caveats, there are many things we can do to nurture our relationship with our own guardian angel, and we should do them often. These have to do with those spiritual characteristics we have in common with the angels: mind and will. 

We should often strengthen our devotion to our guardian angel through prayer, fasting, and study. Prayer is the language of purely spiritual beings. Fasting overcomes the flesh and strengthens our spiritual nature. Study of the Catholic Faith binds us more perfectly to the truth of Christ so that we are not susceptible to the lies of demons in this world. 

It is also good to ask our guardian angel’s help in the practical problems of living out our Christian vocations. Padre Pio used to “send” his guardian angel to assist a human soul who asked for his help. Padre Pio’s guardian angel would then coordinate with the individual’s guardian angel to help the person in need. I’m sure angels love to work that way, but always remember that your guardian angel’s primary mission is to assist you in getting to heaven!

We can and should also ask our guardian angels to open doors for us. Remember the story of the angel in the Acts of the Apostles who was sent to the jail where Peter was imprisoned and then sliced through the chains and iron gates as if they were butter? (See Acts 12.) Angels don’t pay our bills or fix our broken appliances for us, but they very often open doors to new opportunities and graces that will help us do the things we need to do to fulfill our Christian vocations. 

If you didn’t get a chance to read the first two installments of this series, you can find them here.

Thank you for joining me in this Angelic Assistance Series. Always remember to thank God for your guardian angel – only in heaven will you truly know how much he has done to protect you from the power of the Evil One.

Source: Peter Darcy, Natures of Fire: God’s Magnificent Angels, 2021.

Your friend in Christ,

Thomas J McKenna
http://www.catholicaction.org/

P.S. If you haven't had a chance to make your pledge to the Spiritual Bouquet for the upcoming USCCB Fall Assembly, please do so now.