Today at my SSPX chapel Father talked about the importance of the angles especially our guardian angel and how over looked they are. I know I am a great offender here. Like Father said, I usually say the Guardian angel prayer at night before retiring. Then I usually, callously put him out of my head. Hardly giving my angel the respect due to him. In a way the guardian angles are like the old parish priest. They are the ones in the trenches fighting for our souls.
Father began his sermon with a short story about two priests in a rectory. One night one priest heard voices coming from the room next door. The first priest knew it was only him and the other priest who lived in room next door. He heard 3 voices have a conversation from the second priests room. The next day he confronted his fellow priest and found out he was talking to the angles. One was an Archangel the other his guardian angle. The priest in the next room did something most of us never think of. He began a relationship with is own Guardian angel who became not only a protector but also a friend.
Father said this phrase came from Pope Leo I, or Leo the great who was quoted as saying “make friends with the holy angles”. Leo I also firmly believed in the power of the angles as God’s tool of intercession. Our guardian angels enjoy helping us and guiding us and when we acknowledge them they are very happy. Father said when you get your automobile blessed your guardian angel will travel with you everywhere and protect you from highway calamities.
A few years ago I read a Biography of Padre Pio by the one time Vatican exorcist, Fr. Gabriele Amorth. Fr. Amorth said Padre Pio was also a great believer in using your Guardian Angel as both an aid and friend. In fact Padre Pio was probably the first to use “instant text messenger”. He would use Guardian angles to relay messages. He would have his guardian angel to contact the guardian angle of someone who he wanted/needed to talk to. Every time he would receive that person a day or two later and he would say, “I had a feeling you needed to see me”.
If you find out a person died and you got a desire to pray for them chances are its their Guardian angel asking for prayers for their souls. They are in our lives more than we realize but appreciated not nearly enough.
Father closed by giving us some ideas of how to Thank our angels and bring them more into our lives. Probably the simplest is to offer your Holy Communion to them. That was something I did this morning. I get a lot of inspiration in my daily rosary. I plan to incorporate my guardian angle in this especially reflecting on the first joyfull mystery, the annunciation where the angel appeared to Our Lady.
Padre Pio emphasized the importance of guardian angels as constant companions who guide and protect us throughout our lives. He encouraged people to develop a close relationship with their guardian angels, invoking their help and recognizing their presence in daily life.
The saint’s deep bond with his guardian angel was not only a source of comfort and guidance for him but also a powerful tool in his ministry. He frequently called upon his angel to assist him in his work, especially in the confessional, where he would ask the angel to help him understand the penitent’s sins and provide the most appropriate counsel.
Given the state of today’s church and government I need a good friend to help me. If I overlook my own guardian angel then I am a fool.