Gabriel

Annunciation by Anton Raphael Mengs—Gabriel appears to the virgin Mary.

In Abrahamic religions, Gabriel (Bulgarian: Гавраил, Hebrew: גַּבְרִיאֵל, Modern Gavri'el Tiberian Gaḇrîʼēl - the strength of God; Latin: Gabrielus; Turkish: Cebrail; Greek: Γαβριήλ, Gabriēl; Arabic: جبريل, Jibrīl or جبرائيل Jibrail; Aramaic: Gabri-el, "God is my strong man/hero"^[1]) is an archangel who serves as a messenger from God. He first appears in the Old Testament Book of Daniel, delivering explanations of Daniel's visions. Based on two passages in the Gospel of Luke, Gabriel foretold the births of both John the Baptist and Jesus. Christians of the catholic traditions refer to him as Saint Gabriel the Archangel.

Islamic views state that Jibrail was the medium through whom God revealed the Qur'an to Muhammad, and that he sent a message to most prophets, if not all, revealing their obligations. He is called the chief of the four favored angels and the spirit of truth. He is called, by Muslims, the created Holy Spirit (Islam) that spoke to Muhammad,^[2][3] which is not to be confused with the Holy Spirit of God in Christianity who is revered as God Himself. Gabriel is also mentioned in Bahá'í Faith texts, specifically in Bahá'u'lláh's mystical work Seven Valleys.

According to the Biblical verses which specifically refer to him, Gabriel is likened to a mortal male. He is usually portrayed as male, but sometimes also androgynous or female, as in some New Age beliefs or contemporary art imagery.^{[4][5][6][7][8][9][10]} In many nativity plays in schools, Gabriel is played by a female.

Christian references

Gabriel making the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary. Painting by El Greco, 1575 (Museo del Prado, Madrid).

Old Testament

In the book of Daniel, chapters 8:15-26 and 9:20-27, a being resembling a man and identified as Gabriel appears to the prophet Daniel to give him "skill and understanding" regarding his visions. In chapters 10:5-12:13, an unidentified being "dressed in linen" with the appearance of a man speaks with Daniel regarding future events. He tells Daniel that he had been sent to him but had been withstood by the "prince of the kingdom of Persia" for 21 days and that Michael (who is called a "chief prince") had to intervene in order for him to reach Daniel. This messenger is not specifically named but is interpreted contextually by some Christians to be Gabriel once again.

New Testament

First, concerning John the Baptist, an angel appeared to his parents, as narrated in Luke 1:10–20 (MKJV):

"And all the multitude of the people were praying outside at the time of incense. (11) And an angel of the Lord appeared to him as he was standing on the right of the altar of incense. (12) And seeing this, Zacharias was troubled, and fear fell on him.

(13) But the angel said to him, Do not fear, Zacharias. For your prayer is heard, and your wife Elizabeth shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. (14) And you shall have joy and gladness, and many shall rejoice at his birth. (15) For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall neither drink wine nor strong drink. And he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. (16) And he shall turn many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God. (17) And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

(18) And Zacharias said to the angel, By what shall I know this? For I am old, and my wife is advanced in her days.

(19) And answering, the angel said to him, I am Gabriel, who stands before God. And I am sent to speak to you and to show you these glad tidings. (20) And behold, you shall be silent and not able to speak until the day that these things shall be performed, because you did not believe my words which shall be fulfilled in their time.[end]

Shortly afterwards, announcing the forthcoming birth of Jesus, Gabriel is said to appear again, this time to Elizabeth's close relative Mary; see Luke 1:26–37 (MKJV)

(26) And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, (27) to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. (28) And the angel came in to her and said, Hail, one receiving grace, the Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women.

(29) And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what kind of greeting this might be. (30) And the angel said to her, Do not fear, Mary, for you have found favor with God. (31) And behold! You shall conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. (32) He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Highest. And the Lord God shall give him the throne of his father David. (33) And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

(34) Then Mary said to the angel, How shall this be, since I do not know a man?

(35) And the angel answered and said to her, The Holy Spirit shall come on you, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow you. Therefore also that Holy One which will be born of you shall be called Son of God. (36) And behold, your cousin Elizabeth also conceived a son in her old age. And this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. (37) For with God nothing shall be impossible.[end]

Gabriel only appears in these two passages in Luke and not in the other three Gospels.

Pseudepigraphy

According to the non-canonical Enoch 9:1–2, Gabriel, along with Michael, Raphael, Uriel and Suriel hear the cries of humanity under the strain of the Nephilim. It was their beseeching of "the Ancient of Days" (Yahweh), that prompted God to call Enoch to prophethood.

After Enoch informed the Watchers of their fall from grace, Yahweh sent the archangels to earth to complete various tasks. In Enoch 10:13, Gabriel was to "Go to the biters, to the reprobates, to the children of fornication, the offspring of the Watchers, from among men; bring them forth and excite them against one another. Let them perish under mutual slaughter; for length of days shall not be theirs." And so, Gabriel instigated wars among the Giants (the children of the Watchers).

Enoch 20:7 says that Gabriel presides over "Ikisat" (the fiery serpents) or Seraphim, Cherubim, and paradise, while Enoch 40:9 states that Gabriel presides over "all that is powerful." Gabriel sits on the left hand of God with Metatron.

Gabriel's Horn

Icons of Saint Gabriel (left) and Saint Helena (right) in the Church of Saint Mary, an Episcopal Church in Sagada, Mountain Province, Philippines.

In English-speaking culture, the image of Gabriel as the angel that shall blow the trumpet blast that initiates the end of time and the general resurrection at the Last Judgment, which has no source in the Hebrew Bible or the New Testament,^[11] is a familiar trope; (This might be taken from Norse Heimdall who according to legends, will sound the Gjallarhorn, alerting the Æsir to the onset of Ragnarök where the world ends and is reborn.) it ranges from its first appearance in English in John Milton's Paradise Lost (1667)^[12] to African-American spirituals: in Marc Connelly's play based on spirituals, The Green Pastures (1930), Gabriel has his beloved trumpet constantly with him, and the Lord has to warn him not to blow it too soon.^[13] Four years later "Blow, Gabriel, Blow" was introduced by Ethel Merman in Cole Porter's Anything Goes (1934). The mathematical figure given the modern name "Gabriel's Horn", was invented by Evangelista Torricelli (1608–1647); it is a paradoxical solid of revolution that has infinite surface area, but finite volume.

In Islamic tradition, though not specified in the Qur'an, the trumpeter sounding the trump of doom^[14] is not Gabriel, but Israfel.

The earliest identification of Gabriel as the trumpeter that S. Vernon McCasland was able to trace was in an Armenian illuminated manuscript dated 1455, at the Walters Art Museum, Baltimore.^[15]

Feast days

Icon of Gabriel, Byzantium, ca. 1387–1395 (Tretyakov Gallery)

The feast of Saint Gabriel was included for the first time in the General Roman Calendar in 1921, for celebration on March 24. In 1969 it was transferred to 29 September for celebration together with St. Michael and St. Raphael.^[16] The Church of England has also adopted the 29 September date.

The Eastern Orthodox Church and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine Rite celebrate his feast day on 8 November (for those churches that follow the traditional Julian Calendar, 8 November currently falls on 21 November of the modern Gregorian Calendar, a difference of 13 days). Eastern Orthodox commemorate him, not only on his November feast, but also on two other days: 26 March is the "Synaxis of the Archangel Gabriel" and celebrates his role in the Annunciation. 13 July is also known as the "Synaxis of the Archangel Gabriel", and celebrates all the appearances and miracles attributed to Gabriel throughout history. The feast was first established on Mount Athos when, in the ninth century, during the reign of Emperor Basil II and the Empress Constantina Porphyrogenitus, while Nicholas II Chrysoberges|Nicholas Chrysoverges was Patriarch of Constantinople, the Archangel appeared in a cell near Karyes, where he wrote with his finger on a stone tablet the hymn to the Theotokos, "It is truly meet..." (see Axion Estin).^[17]

The Ethiopian Church celebrates his feast on 28 December, with a sizeable number of its believers making a pilgrimage to a church dedicated to "Saint Gabriel" in Kulubi on that day.^[18]

Additionally Gabriel is the patron saint of messengers, those who work for broadcasting and telecommunications such as radio and television, remote sensing, and postal workers.

Latter-Day Saint view

In Latter-day Saint theology, Gabriel lived in this mortal life as the patriarch Noah. Gabriel and Noah are regarded as the same individual; Noah being his mortal name and Gabriel being his heavenly name.^[19] See also: Noah, Michael (archangel), Adam.

Muslim references

The Arabic name for Gabriel is Jibral, Jibril, Jibrīl,Jibrael,Djibril, Jabrilæ or Jibrail (جبريل, جبرائيل, IPA: [dʒibræːʔiːl], [dʒibrɛ̈ʔiːl], or [dʒibriːl]) Muslims believe Gabriel to have been the angel who revealed the Qur'an to the prophet Muhammad.

Gabriel's physical appearance is described in the Hadith (Sahih al-Bukhari, 4:54:4:55):

Na By Abu Ishaq-Ash-Shaibani: I asked Zir bin Hubaish regarding the Statement of God: "And was at a distance of but two bow-lengths or (even) nearer; So did (God) convey the inspiration to his servant (Gabriel) and then he (Gabriel) Conveyed (that to Muhammad). (^{[Qur'an 53:9]}) From ‘Abdullaah ibn Mas‘ood, who said: the Messenger of God saw Gabriel in his true form. He had six hundred wings, each of which covered the horizon. There fell from his wings jewels, pearls and rubies, only God knows about them."^[20]

Gabriel is regarded with the exact same respect by Muslims as all of the Prophets, and upon saying his name or referring to him a Muslim repeats: "peace be upon him". Gabriel's primary tasks are to bring messages from God to his messengers. As in Christianity, Gabriel is said to be the angel that informed Mary (Arabic Maryamمريم) of how she would conceive Jesus (Isa):

She placed a screen (to screen herself) from them; then we sent to her our Ruh [angel Jibrael (Gabriel)], and he appeared before her in the form of a man in all respects. She said: "Verily! I seek refuge with the Most Beneficent (God) from you, if you do fear God." (The angel) said: "I am only a Messenger from your Lord, (to announce) to you the gift of a righteous son." She said: "How can I have a son, when no man has touched me, nor am I unchaste?" He said: "So (it will be), your Lord said: 'That is easy for me (God): And (we wish) to appoint him as a sign to mankind and a mercy from us (God), and it is a matter (already) decreed, (by God).' "
(Quran, ^{[Qur'an 19:17]})

Muslims believe Gabriel to have accompanied Muhammad in his ascension to the heavens, where Muhammad also is said to have met previous messengers of God, and was informed about the Islamic prayer (Bukhari Sahih al-Bukhari, 1:8:345). Muslims also believe that Gabriel descends to Earth on the night of Laylat al-Qadr ("The Night of Destiny") not "the night of power" as some people think , its a night in the last ten days of the holy month of Ramadan in the Islamic calendar which is believed to be the night in which the Quran was first revealed.

Arts and media

Visual art

Icon of Archangel Gabriel, "Of the Golden Locks" ("Златые власы") from Novgorod, 12th-century (State Russian Museum, St Petersburg).

In chronological order (to see each item, follow the link in the footnote):^[21]

• Archangel Gabriel (Triptych), early 10th century, Benaki Museum
• The Archangel Gabriel, Pisan, c. 1325/1350, National Gallery of Art
• The Archangel Gabriel, Masolino da Panicale, c. 1420/30, National Gallery of Art
• Justice between the Archangels Michael and Gabriel, Jacobello del Fiore, 1421
• Merode Altarpiece (Triptych), Robert Campin, c. 1425, Metropolitan Museum of Art
• The Angel Gabriel, Agostino di Duccio, c. 1450
• Annunciation, Leonardo Da Vinci, c. 1475
• The Angel Gabriel, Neroccio d'Landi, c. 1490
• The Angel Gabriel, late 15th–early 16th century, Flemish, National Gallery of Art
• The Angel Gabriel, Ferrari Gaudenzio, 1511, National Gallery, London
• Gabriel delivering the AnnunciationEl Greco, 1575 (pictured above)
• Go Down Death, Aaron Douglas, 1934

Music

• The eccentric English hagiographer and antiquarian, Sabine Baring-Gould (1834–1924), wrote the English lyrics to Gabriel's Message, which he translated from the Basque Christmas carol Birjina gaztetto bat zegoen, which was probably related to the 13th or 14th century Latin chant Angelus Ad Virginem which itself is based on the Biblical account of the Annunciation in the New Testament Gospel of Luke.

Literature

• In his epic poem Paradise Lost, John Milton made Gabriel chief of the angelic guards placed over Paradise.
• The Hebrew poem "Elifelet" (אליפלט) by Nathan Alterman, put to music and often heard on the Israeli Radio, tells of a heroic, self-sacrificing Israeli soldier being killed in battle. Upon the protagonist's death, the angel Gabriel descends to Earth, in order to comfort the spirit of the fallen hero and take him up to Heaven.^[22][23]
• Salman Rushdie's Satanic Verses has his main character be the modern incarnation of Gabriel.

Radio, film and television

• In the radio series Quiet, Please, episode #82 "Portrait Of A Character" (9 January 1949) is narrated by an individual known only as "Gabe", who enters a repair shop seeking to have his worn-out horn fixed. He mentions to the silent owner of the store that he requires the horn be repaired as soon as possible, because his "boss" is of the opinion that he (Gabe) will have a large event to play for soon. The story follows the lives of various immoral individuals and their sins being observed by Gabe as an unobserved third party waiting only for his "boss" to exact a suitable level of justice.^[24]
• In an episode of the original 1959 The Twilight Zone, entitled "A Passage for Trumpet", trumpet player Joey Crown (played by Jack Klugman) makes a decision to live or die with the help of a trumpet player who later turns out to be the angel Gabriel.
• In The Prophecy trilogy of the 1990s, Gabriel (played by Christopher Walken) is portrayed as a villain and is jealous of humans for being God's favorites and wishes to destroy them all. In the second one, he is banished to be a human and it causes him to change his opinion of them. After helping Danyael out through the third movie, he is granted a second chance as an angel and ascends to Heaven once again.
• In the 2004 film Van Helsing (film), Plays off Van Helsing's first name being Gabriel. It is stated he is the "God's Left Hand". 
• The 2005 film Constantine features an angelic character named Gabriel (played by Tilda Swinton), but this is not in fact the biblical archangel; the relation of the movie's character to the biblical character and the reason for the use of the name are taken directly from the hierarchy created by Garth Ennis in the trade paperback Dangerous Habits. "Realising that he now simply cannot afford to die, John seeks aid from The Snob (the Angel Gabriel) - again he is rebuked, Gabriel feels that because John has broken the Ten Commandments, he deserves to go to hell"
• The 2007 Australian film Gabriel tells the story of an "Arc" Angel who fights to bring light back to purgatory—a place where darkness rules—and save the souls of the city's inhabitants. Andy Whitfield portrays the title role.
• The 2007 American film Salvation tells the story of the murder of the Knights Templar in 1307 by the Catholic Church for heresy. The souls of two of the Knights burned at the stake, Malchezidek and Gabriel (played by J.A. Steel) are condemned to continue the heavenly battle between good and evil, fighting for the souls of men.^[25]
• In the television series Supernatural season 5 episode, "Changing Channels" (2009), it is revealed that the recurring character the Trickster is actually the archangel Gabriel, played by the actor Richard Speight, Jr..
• In the 2010 movie, Legion, Gabriel is played by Kevin Durand. He leads the armies of angels to enact God's will and exterminate humanity.

Other media

• In the Shin Megami Tensei series of video games, Gabriel is portrayed as the only female Seraph and, in the second installment, stands apart from the other Seraphim when their goals diverge from God's.

Galleries of Gabriel in art

Roman Catholic Marian art paintings

Annunciation by Mariotto Albertinelli, 15th century

Annunciation by Murillo, 1655

Annunciation by Pietro Perugino, 1489

Annunciation by Botticelli, 1490

Statues of Gabriel

Statue of Archangel Gabriel, Bermatingen

Statue of Archangel Gabriel, Waldburg

Gabriel on the facade of the Cathedral of Reims

Statue in Budapest

See also

• Angels in Islam
• Angelus
• Fleur de lys
• Annunciation
• List of names referring to El

Notes

References

• Bamberger, Bernard Jacob, (15 March 2006). Fallen Angels: Soldiers of Satan's Realm. Jewish Publication Society of America. ISBN 0-8276-0797-0
• Briggs, Constance Victoria, 1997. The Encyclopedia of Angels: An A-to-Z Guide with Nearly 4,000 Entries. Plume. ISBN 0-452-27921-6.
• Bunson, Matthew, (1996). Angels A to Z: A Who's Who of the Heavenly Host. Three Rivers Press. ISBN 0-517-88537-9.
• Cruz, Joan C. 1999. Angels and Devils. Tan Books & Publishers. ISBN 0-89555-638-3.
• Davidson, Gustav. A Dictionary of Angels: Including the Fallen Angels. Free Press. ISBN 0-02-907052-X
• Graham, Billy, 1994. Angels: God's Secret Agents. W Pub Group; Minibook edition. ISBN 0-8499-5074-0
• Guiley, Rosemary, 1996. Encyclopedia of Angels. ISBN 0-8160-2988-1
• Kreeft, Peter J. 1995. Angels and Demons: What Do We Really Know About Them? Ignatius Press. ISBN 0-89870-550-9
• Lewis, James R. (1995). Angels A to Z. Visible Ink Press. ISBN 0-7876-0652-9
• Melville, Francis, 2001. The Book of Angels: Turn to Your Angels for Guidance, Comfort, and Inspiration. Barron's Educational Series; 1st edition. ISBN 0-7641-5403-6
• Ronner, John, 1993. Know Your Angels: The Angel Almanac With Biographies of 100 Prominent Angels in Legend & Folklore-And Much More! Mamre Press. ISBN 0-932945-40-6.

External links

• Catholic Encyclopedia
• Jewish Encyclopedia
• Icons of Archangel Gabriel
• Entheomedia.org

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