Saint Raphael the Archangel

Description

Raphael (/ˈræfiəl/; Hebrew: רְפָאֵל, translit. Rāfāʾēl, lit. ‘It is God who heals’, ‘God Heals’, ‘God, Please Heal’; Ancient Greek: Ραφαήλ, Coptic: ⲣⲁⲫⲁⲏⲗ, Arabic: رفائيل‎ or إسرافيل Ethiopic (Ge’ez):ሩፋኤል ) is an archangel responsible for healing in the traditions of most Abrahamic religions. Not all branches of these religions consider the identification of Raphael to be canonical.

In Christianity, Raphael is generally associated with an unnamed angel mentioned in the Gospel of John, who stirs the water at the healing pool of Bethesda. Raphael is recognized as an angel in the doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, as he is briefly mentioned in the Doctrine and Covenants. Raphael is mentioned in the Book of Tobit, which is accepted as canonical by Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and some Anglicans.

In Islam, Raphael is the fourth major angel; and in the Muslim tradition, he is known as Isrāfīl. Though unnamed in the Quran, hadith identifies Israfil with the angel of Quran 6:73. Within Islamic eschatology, Israfil is traditionally attributed to a trumpet, which is poised at his lips, and when God so commands he shall be ready to announce the Day of Resurrection.

The angels mentioned in the Torah, the older books of the Hebrew Bible, are without names. Shimon ben Lakish of Tiberias (AD 230–270), asserted that all the specific names for the angels were brought back by the Jews from Babylon, and modern commentators would tend to agree.

According to the Babylonian Talmud, Raphael is identified as one of the three angels that appeared to Abraham in the oak grove of Mamre, in the region of Hebron. (Gen. xviii; Bava Metzia 86b). Michael, as the greatest, walked in the middle, with Gabriel to his right and Raphael to his left (Yoma 37a). All three angels were commanded to carry out a specific mission. Gabriel’s mission was to destroy Sodom; Michael’s mission was to inform Sarah that she would give birth to Isaac in a year’s time; Raphael’s mission was to heal Abraham (from his recent circumcision) and save Lot. Rashi writes, “Although Raphael’s mission included two tasks, they were considered a single mission since they were both acts that saved people.”

Raphael is named in several Jewish apocryphal books. The Life of Adam and Eve lists the archangels as well: Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, Raphael and Joel. Medieval Jewish philosopher Maimonides made a Jewish angelic hierarchy, which includes the archangel Raphael.

Medieval French rabbi, author and Hebrew Bible commentator Rashi views Raphael as being one of the three angels that appeared to Abraham in the oak grove of Mamre in the Book of Genesis. Raphael is also mentioned in the Book of Enoch alongside archangels Michael, Gabriel and Uriel.