Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, archangels
(Revelation 12:7-12ab; John 1:47-51)
Not everyone prays to St. Michael. Some people may think it is like believing in
ghosts. But those who do, feel under siege
and in need of supernatural help.
The “Prayer to St. Michael” was composed by Pope Leo XIII
toward the end of the nineteenth century.
He mandated that It be said after all “low masses,” that is masses
without singing. Leo, like his predecessor and three successors, felt hemmed in
by the Italian government. The papacy had lost jurisdiction over a vast part of
central Italy and thought their ability to govern the universal Church
weakened. The original culprits against
whom Michael’s interference was requested were the Italian nationalists. When the issue was resolved with the creation
of the Vatican state, Pope Pius XI mandated the prayer continued with a new
intention, the conversion of Russia. The
obligation of saying the prayer after low masses was removed during Vatican
II. But the prayer has continued to be
said, albeit with new intentions. Many
people with an addiction to pornography feel the need for St. Michael’s help to
overcome their weakness.
Angels are God’s emissaries.
They are a powerful means that God uses to accomplish His purposes. If it helps us to pray, we should beseech to
these intermediaries. St. Michael seems
to have a record of success. But if we pray
more intensely to God directly, He is the origin of any assistance we might receive.
