Saint Gabriel the Archangel

Gabriel is one of the most important angelic beings in the Bible and in Christian tradition, and his name appears four times in Scripture. Twice it appears in the Book of Daniel, where he explains the prophet's visions, and twice in the Gospel of Luke, where he announces the births of John the Baptist and of Jesus. His part is above all that of a messenger from God, closely tied to the announcement of salvation and of the Incarnation.

In Daniel he first appears after the vision of the ram and the goat. The prophet hears a voice ordering Gabriel to explain it, and Gabriel does, linking the symbols to events still to come. In the ninth chapter Gabriel returns while Daniel is praying. He is described as the one who had appeared in the earlier vision, and he comes at the hour of the evening offering to give the prophet understanding and to speak the prophecy of the seventy weeks. In both scenes he interprets and reveals. The text gives no biography of him and says nothing of his origin or of any earthly life. Scholars generally place the final form of the book in the Hellenistic period, around the middle of the second century before Christ, though the story is set in the age of the Babylonian exile.

In Luke's first chapter Gabriel appears in the temple at Jerusalem to the priest Zechariah and tells him that his wife, Elizabeth, will have a son, John, with a particular mission in the history of salvation. When Zechariah questions him, the angel gives his name and says that he stands in the presence of God. Six months later, Luke says, God sent Gabriel to Nazareth in Galilee, to Mary, who was promised in marriage to Joseph. He announced that she would bear Jesus, whom he called Son of the Most High, heir of David's throne, and Son of God. When Mary asked how this could be, Gabriel answered that the Holy Spirit would come upon her and the power of the Most High would overshadow her.

The title of archangel, which Christian tradition gives him, does not appear in the biblical passages that name him. His name is usually explained as "God is my strength" or "strength of God." Veneration of Gabriel grew gradually through the liturgy and Christian art, and in the Roman Catholic Church today he is celebrated on 29 September with Michael and Raphael. Before 1969 his own feast fell on 24 March. Islam also honors Gabriel as the messenger who brought revelation to Muhammad.

Saint Gabriel the Archangel, pray for us.