St Michael and All Angels

Michaelmass, St Michael and All Angels

Gentle and brave, gallant and bold.

Michaelmass, summer is coming to an end, a time when the beautiful warm weather starts to become a little cooler as autumn approaches.
September 21st is the time when the sun is at the autumn equinox and directly overhead at the tropics, the time of spring tides and full moon.

At Michaelmass in the agricultural world, the summer seasonal work was at a close and those working on the land would be looking for work elsewhere for the winter season. A time for change.

But angels! And St Michael…

The strange thing about angels is they are often in church, as wooden angels in the roof or in other places, but it is seldom that we talk about angels.
Outside the church, it’s different, people often talk about angels, guardian angels, messengers, spiritual beings, moving from one place to the next, moving from heaven to earth.
For many people, searching for some signs of spirituality the concept of angels is a real help. They are visible, in the form that we imagine them in, whereas God is very hard to imagine in any visual sense.

Michael is seen as the chief of archangels, a defender, guardian, protector of Israel. He is shown in Daniel as a warrior and of course in Revelation he is the slayer of the dragon and also the angel who cast out the Satan from the heavenly thrones.

Michaelmass is the celebration of St Michael who above all was;

Gentle and brave, gallant and bold.

Sermon on www.faithgoeswalkabout.org

Rev’d Sue Martin

Curate in Gayton Group of Parishes