Barachiel ( Hebrew: בַּרַכְאֵל ''Baraḵʾēl'', "God has blessed"), also known as Barakel, is one of the

Archangel Archangels () are the second lowest rank of angel in the Catholic hierarchy of angels, based on and put forward by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite in the 5th or 6th century in his book ''De Coelesti Hierarchia'' (''On the Celestial Hierarchy'') ...

s in

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

, as well as Byzantine Catholic and

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

tradition. He is the Archangel of Blessings. In the Third Book of Enoch, he is described as one of the angelic princes, with a myriad of some ministering angels attending him. He is described in the Almadel of Solomon as one of the chief angels of the first and fourth chora.Davidson, Gustav.
A Dictionary of Angels, including the Fallen Angels.
' New York: The Free Press, 1967, In Jewish tradition, he is often associated with blessings, the planet

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a Jupiter mass, mass more than 2.5 times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined a ...

, and the Sephirah of

Chesed (, also Romanization of Hebrew, Romanized: ) is a Hebrew language, Hebrew word that means 'kindness or love between people', specifically of the devotional piety of people towards God as well as of love or mercy of God towards humanity. It is fr ...

Iconography

icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic Church, Catholic, and Lutheranism, Lutheran churches. The most common subjects include Jesus, Mary, mother of ...

ography, Barachiel is sometimes shown holding a white

rose A rose is either a woody perennial plant, perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred Rose species, species and Garden roses, tens of thousands of cultivar ...

against the chest, or with rose petals scattered on the clothing, particularly the cloak. The scattering of rose petals was to symbolize or represent God's sweet blessings showering down on people. Barachiel is also depicted holding a bread basket or a staff, both of which symbolize the blessings of children that God bestows on parents.

Patronage

Barachiel's responsibilities are as varied as the blessings for which the archangel is named. Barachiel is also the chief of the

guardian angel A guardian angel is a type of angel that is assigned to protect and guide a particular person, group or nation. Belief in tutelary deity, tutelary beings can be traced throughout all antiquity. The idea of angels that guard over people played ...

s and it is written that Barachiel may be prayed to for all the benefits which the guardian angel is thought to confer if one is not praying to the guardian angel directly, but as an intercession. He is seen as an official saint in Byzantine Catholic and Eastern Orthodox tradition, in particular a patron of family and married life. He is also seen as the angel assigned by God to watch over converts (also called "adopted children of God") to assist them in their lives. He is also invoked as the special guardian of those born on Saturday. Barachiel is also traditionally associated with the month of February and the

Zodiac The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north and south celestial latitude of the ecliptic – the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. Within this zodiac ...

al sign Pisces.Sisung, Kelle S., editor. ''Angels A to Z''. New York: Gale Research, Inc. 1996. . He is also sometimes described as being the ruler of the planet

and the zodiacal sign Scorpio.

Literature

The Third Book of Enoch describes Archangel Barachiel as one of the Princes of the Host, who is appointed over the second heaven which is in the height of (Merom) Raqia. He and the other Holy Princes are also said to be accompanied by 496,000 myriads of Ministering Angels.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Barachiel Archangels in Christianity Angels in the Book of Enoch Archangels Kabbalah

Iconography

Patronage

Literature

See also

References

External links