And when we pass'd a little forth, I heard
A crying, "Blessed Mary! pray for us,
Michael and Peter! all ye saintly host!"

(Dante, Purgatory, Canto XII, 51)

As he passes among the souls of the envious Purgatory, the great Christian poet Dante hears mysterious voices recalling examples of charity – the opposite of envy. Even among the suffering souls, whose eyes are sewn shut, litanies arise. They implore the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and immediately afterward – and before Peter and all the Saints – the name of “Michael.” In the previous canto, Dante had already seen the image of St Michael’s great antagonist, Lucifer, the “most noble” of the angels, who fell from heaven like lightning.

The sword against evil

Even in the Divine Comedy we see the comparison between Michael, described in the Bible as the head of the heavenly armies; and the leader of the angels who rose up against God, and were cast into Hell. St Michael is the Prince of Heavenly Hosts who fights against evil, defending the Church and the Faith against the assaults of Satan. And even Dante, in the 13^th century, recognized the power of the intercession of St Michael, who is venerated in both East and West.

“Who is like unto God?”

One can hardly count the number of cathedrals, shrines, monasteries, chapels - but also mountains, caves and hills – named for St Michael the Archangel. The name “Michael,” which is mentioned five times in the Bible, is derived from a Hebrew expression meaning “Who is like unto God?”

The prayer of Pope Leo XIII

St Michael, the angelic warrior, is an incredibly popular saint, of whom numerous stories are told. One such story dates back to 13 October 1884.

The Pope at the time, Leo XIII, had just finished celebrating Mass at a chapel in the Vatican, when he paused for several minutes. His face, according to witnesses, showed both horror and wonder. Immediately afterward, Pope Leo went to his study, sat down at his desk, and wrote out a prayer to St Michael the Archangel. He then called his secretary and ordered him to make copies of the prayer, and have them sent to all the Bishops of the world, with the command to recite the prayer at the end of every Mass.

Pope Leo revealed that he had seen a chilling vision of “legions of demons” attacking the Church, and almost destroying it. Then he saw the St Michael intervening decisively to defend the Church – not immediately, but much later, and only after the faithful had multiplied their fervent prayers to the Archangel.

In our times, the custom of reciting the St Michael Prayer after Mass has fallen into disuse. But the custom was recalled by Saint John Paul II at the Regina Coeli on 24 April 1994: “Although today this prayer is no longer recited at the end of Mass,” he said, “I ask everyone not to forget it, and to recite it to obtain help in the battle against the forces of darkness and against the spirit of this world.”

Raphael is the protagonist of an entire book of the Bible. The archangel accompanies Tobias, the young son of Tobit and Anna, when Tobit asks Tobias to carry out a delicate mission that will require a long and dangerous journey.

Tobit’s great heart

The story recounted in the Book of Tobit takes place during the time of the revolt of the Maccabees. Tobit, the boy’s father, is a generous man who gives of himself to alleviate the suffering of his fellow Jews during the period of the deportation in Assyria. He shares his goods with the poor, gives alms prodigally, and punctually pays tithes on the income he receives from his land and his cattle. His piety goes so far as to lead him to bury the abandoned dead. In the twists and turns of life, Tobit loses all that he has, including – following an act of charity – his sight. At this point, Tobit asks his son for help.

The wayfarer

Tobias’s father asks him to travel to a distant place to recover a large sum of money he had left in trust with a friend. The young man is willing to go, and at his father’s suggestion, he looks for a guide. The first person Tobias meets is a wayfarer who is familiar with the area; the man agrees to accompany him. As they camp by the Tigris river, a great fish attacks the boy, who at first is frightened. But the wayfarer – who is the archangel Raphael in disguise – tells him to capture the fish and to put aside its heart, liver and gall.

Sarah

When they have almost reached their destination, the archangel urges Tobias to stop to visit some of his relatives, where his cousin Sarah lives. According to Mosaic law, Tobias is entitled to marry her. Sarah had been married to seven men in succession, all of whom had been killed by the demon Asmodeus on their wedding night. The young woman would have killed herself for shame, and refrained only so as not to cause yet more sorrow to her parents. She agrees to become Tobias’ wife. The wayfarer tells Tobias that he can overcome the demon by placing the fish’s heart and liver on burning incense, creating a smoke that will make the demon flee.

The secret unveiled

After the wedding, Tobias returns to his father, for now he knows how to heal Tobit’s blindness. Tobias anoints his father’s eyes with gall from the fish, and Tobit sees. Tobias would like to pay the wayfarer for all his help, but taking both father and son aside, the traveling companion reveals his true identity. He explains that God, who was moved by the prayers and charity of both father and son, sent him to heal and guide them. He says of himself, “I am Raphael, one of the seven holy angels who present the prayers of the saints and enter into the presence of the Holy One.” This sacred story gave rise to a medieval practice: whenever an adolescent or youth left home for the first time, he carried with him a small image of himself in the place of Tobias, accompanied by the archangel.