Feast of the Guardian Angels

Angel of God, my guardian dear,

To whom God’s love commits me here.

Every this day/night be at my side,

To light, to guide, to rule, and guide. Amen.

Yes, we each have a guardian angel. The first duty of angels is to worship and adore the face of God. They also provide every human life with physical protection and spiritual guidance. Of the many Bible references, this one is very special to me: “For He will command angels to guard us in all His ways,” (Psalm 91).

I want to tell a story that came from another sister. She was in the car with five other Daughters of Charity and the sister who was driving was unaware of an upcoming stop sign. Another car was heading directly toward them. The five sisters ducked, lowering their heads to protect themselves from the inevitable collision. But the cars didn’t hit. How could this be? Truly, the providence of God sent their guardian angels to protect them all!

I’ll admit that I don’t think about my guardian angel enough. Certainly, I become aware on the feasts of the Archangels or when I narrowly avoid an accident. But for me, I have felt the presence of my guardian angel the most at my darkest moments, when I feel like I can’t pray. It could be the death of someone close, a seemingly impossible situation, or a failure. These are the times I have recourse to my greatest advocates: the Virgin Mary and my guardian angel. They pray for me when I don’t have the words. As the Creed says, “I believe in things seen and unseen.” It’s a reminder that, no matter how isolated I might feel, I am never truly alone.

Celebrate your guardian angel on their feast today and forever.