Feast of the Archangels: Prayers, Crafts & Kids’ Guide
Who are the Archangels?
Did you know that there are 7 Archangels noted in the Bible (Tobit 12:15)? But scripture has only revealed the names of three of them to us. You probably know their names already: St Michael, St. Gabriel and St. Raphael. As Archangels, they live in Heaven and are always in the presence of God. They are always listening to God and awaiting His orders. From Heaven, they are active in our lives on earth by helping us in the ways ordained by God. In fact, God has given every type of angel in Heaven a mission. So, the Archangels, Principalities and our Guardian angels, who make up the lowest triad in the hierarchy of angels, concern themselves with the welfare of every human person. If you would like to learn more about the nine choirs of angels who relentlessly obey God, check out this short reel:
Because, as humans, we are so weak, it’s probably a good idea to ask for as much Heavenly help as is available to us! After all, the battle is a spiritual one for the domination of our soul, and so it makes sense to ask for spiritual reinforcement from these angelic beings whose job is to fight for our salvation! We can, of course, pray straight to God, but He has given us the angels and saints to pray to as well…..to carry our prayers to His Heavenly throne. God has created this hierarchy, and I must admit, I feel very safe that He has taken all the trouble to create massive armies of angels as well as lots of saints to help us in our journey to Heaven, to Him. It shows a love that is boundless!
To prepare to celebrate this feast day with your kids, you could perhaps both watch the videos for each Archangel below and then start to learn the prayers to each of these angels in time for the feast day (see below). Once they have got to know this trio of Archangels, perhaps they could make models of the three Archangels (see below). Then on the feast day, perhaps they could say the prayer to St. Michael, St, Raphael and St. Gabriel before each model they have made and then enjoy some Angel Food Cake! The recipe for this is towards the end of this Reflection. It would be good if they could make it with you…as with all things, an immersive experience helps things remain in your child’s heart and mind!
Archangel Michael
St. Michael is the highest of the Archangels. His name means ‘Who is like God?’ St. Michael is the champion of all Christians and the Church, which we know from scripture and from Catholic Church Tradition. He leads the spiritual battle against the devil, which is raging on a daily basis for each of our souls.
Here is the most used prayer to St. Michael which might be appropriate for those who are 6 years and over to learn:
Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our defence against the wickedness and snares of the Devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan, and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.
written by Pope Leo XIII
Younger children might enjoy saying this shorter version:
Michael, Michael of the Morning, fresh chord of Heaven adorning, keep me safe throughout this day and in temptation drive the devil away. Amen.
Personally, I pray to St. Michael every morning, even before I get out of bed! I pray this as a prayer of protection before I start my day. I like to know that I am covered spiritually!
Archangel Gabriel
St. Gabriel’s name means, “God is my strength.” Archangel Gabriel delivers very important messages in the Bible. He visits Zachariah in the temple and delivers a message about the forthcoming birth of a child even though his wife was in her old age. He also tells the Virgin Mary that she will also be with child by the power of the Holy Spirit. These are powerful and strong messages from God through His servant, Archangel Gabriel.
Prayer to the Archangel Gabriel for children around 6 years of age:
St. Gabriel, Holy Archangel. You are known as the bearer of God’s secrets meant especially for His chosen ones. We are God’s children constantly keeping watch on God’s message.
Through your powerful intercession, may we receive God’s words and messages so that together with Mary, our Blessed Mother, we may give glory and praise to Him. May we also radiate God’s love to others by our exemplary deeds.
O St. Gabriel obtain for us the grace and present to God the Father the following requests (mention your intentions). We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord together with the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.
Prayer to the Archangel Gabriel for younger children:
O God, Who from among all Your angels chose the Archangel Gabriel to announce the mystery of the Incarnation.
O God, who lives and reigns forever and ever, grant that we who especially remember Archangel Gabriel on earth, may feel the benefit of his helping us from heaven, Amen.
I must admit that I have never prayed to Archangel Gabriel! But having researched into these amazing heavenly beings…I think I should start! I guess I will never see St. Raphael on earth as I don’t need the BIG messages that were delivered to The Virgin Mary and Zachariah in the Gospel of Luke!
Archangel Raphael
Raphael means “God heals”. We find him in the book of Tobit, in the Old Testament, healing Tobit of his blindness and releasing Tobit’s new daughter-in-law from a demon that so far had prevented her from getting married.
Here is a short prayer to Archangel Raphael for children. The entire prayer might be suitable for your six-year-old. If you have a younger child then perhaps just the first and the last parts will be enough?
Dear St. Raphael,
Healer of God’s grace,
I come to you in need of your loving embrace.
Guide me with your gentle light,
Bring healing to my body, mind, and spirit bright.
In times of pain, be my soothing balm,
Wrap me in your wings, bring calm.
St. Raphael, Archangel divine,
Let your healing energy in me shine.
Restore my health with your heavenly power,
In every moment, be with me hour by hour. Amen.
The Archangel Raphael is actually an angel that I have prayed to! I prayed to this angel when I was looking for a husband on a dating website which had the Archangel Raphael as their patron. I can’t remember which site this was now, but the reason that they took St. Raphael as their patron was probably because he is the ‘Patron Saint of happy meetings’. You can find how he brought together Tobias and Sarah, against multiple odds, in the Book of Tobit in the Old Testament. An interesting read.
Celebrating this Feast Day
Traditionally, this feast day was only to celebrate the Archangel Michael. During the course of time, the Catholic church changed this feast day to include Archangel Gabriel and Archangel Raphael.
The next video shows a fun way that children could use crafts to make an artistic creation of the three Archangels. The link to the templates of the Archangels doesn’t seem to work well, but I am sure that you can draw a nice angel for your child to colour in!
2. The following video show you how to make Angel Food cake! Personally, I think that the amount of granulated sugar could be halved and still provide structure – but that’s just me! Happy Feast Day!
If you prefer to make cupcakes, make sure to slightly overfill the cases and then flatten the mixture with a spatula while gently pushing down. Bake them in a pre-heated oven at 162 Celsius/ 325F for 25 to 30 minutes. When they come out of the oven, they should be golden brown. Then let them cool completely. Once cold, you will notice that the cupcakes have shrunken slightly from their original size. This is normal! Once cold, all you have to do is to top with whipped cream and fresh berries. Enjoy!
