GUARDIAN ANGELS

 

Guardian Angel
Guardian Angel

By Edward Matulanya 

The Roman Catholic Church teaches that guardian angels are real, spiritual beings assigned by God to protect and guide each person throughout life.

Existence and Role.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that "from its beginning until death, human life is surrounded by their watchful care and intercession. ‘Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life’" (Catechism of the Catholic Church [CCC], 1997, §336). Their role is not only to protect from physical harm but especially to assist in avoiding sin and achieving salvation (Catholic Answers, 2003).

Scriptural Basis.

Catholics point to passages such as Psalm 91:11 ("For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways") and Matthew 18:10 ("...their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven") as biblical support for the belief in guardian angels (New American Bible, 2011).

Tradition and Theology.

Early Church Fathers such as St. Jerome and St. Basil affirmed the existence of guardian angels. St. Thomas Aquinas, in his Summa Theologica, developed the theological explanation of angels’ nature and guardianship, teaching that each person is assigned an angel (Aquinas, trans. 1947).

Devotion and Feast Day.

The Church celebrates the Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels on October 2. This feast highlights gratitude for God’s providence through the angels and encourages devotion to them (Holy See, 2001). Catholics are encouraged to pray to their guardian angels for protection and guidance in daily life (Catholic Online News, 2023).

The Catholic doctrine of guardian angels finds its roots in Scripture. For example, Psalm 91:11 affirms God’s command to the angels to guard humanity, and Jesus in Matthew 18:10 speaks of “their angels” who behold the face of the Father. The early Fathers of the Church, such as St. Basil the Great and St. Jerome, explicitly taught that each faithful person has a guardian angel from birth (Jerome, as cited in Vatican Library, 2020).

Medieval Theology


Medieval scholastic theologians, particularly Thomas Aquinas, developed a systematic angelology. In the Summa Theologica, Aquinas explained that angels can guide individuals by working through human imagination and senses, though they do not coerce the will (Aquinas, trans. 1947/2020). This era solidified the concept of angels as personal guardians.

Liturgical Recognition

Although devotion to guardian angels existed early, the liturgical feast was formalized much later. Pope Paul V placed the feast on the Roman calendar in 1608, and Pope Clement X extended it universally in 1670, assigning October 2 as the date. Pope Leo XIII later elevated its liturgical rank (Vatican Library, 2020; Catholic Encyclopedia, 1909/2024).

Modern Doctrine and Catechesis

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (1992) confirms the traditional teaching, stating:

> “From its beginning until death, human life is surrounded by their watchful care and intercession. Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life” (Catechism, 1994/1997, para. 336).

The Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy (Congregation for Divine Worship, 2001/2002) also affirms the legitimacy of devotion to guardian angels, encouraging the faithful to cultivate it.

References 

Aquinas, T. (1947). Summa Theologica (Fathers of the English Dominican Province, Trans.). Benziger Bros. (Original work published ca. 1274).

Aquinas, T. (2020). Summa Theologica (Fathers of the English Dominican Province, Trans.). Christian Classics Ethereal Library. (Original work published 1947) https://www.newadvent.org/summa/

Catechism of the Catholic Church. (1997). Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Retrieved from https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/_INDEX.HTM

Catholic Answers. (2003). Guardian Angel. In Catholic Answers Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.catholic.com/encyclopedia/guardian-angel

Catholic Encyclopedia. (2024). Guardian Angel. In New Advent. (Original work published 1909) https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07049c.htm

Catholic Online News. (2023). Do you have a guardian angel? The Church’s answer. Retrieved from https://catholiconline.news/angels/do-you-have-a-guardian-angel-the-churchs-answer/

Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. (2002). Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy: Principles and Guidelines. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana. https://press.vatican.va/

Holy See. (2001). Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy. Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. Vatican.

New American Bible. (2011). United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Vatican Library. (2020). The devotion to the Guardian Angels. Vatican Library Newsletter, 12. https://www.vaticanlibrary.va/newsletter/202012EN.pdf

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