“Especially do the angels call forth the goods and
truths that are with a man, and set them in opposition to the evils and
falsities which the evil spirits excite. Thus the man is in the midst, and does
not perceive either the evil or the good; and being in the midst, he is in
freedom to turn himself either to the one or to the other. By such means do
angels from the Lord lead and protect a man, and this every moment, and every
moment of a moment; for if the angels were to intermit their care for a single
moment, the man would be precipitated into evil from which he could never afterward
be brought out. These things the angels do from the love they have from the
Lord, for they perceive nothing more delightful and happy than to remove evils
from a man, and lead him to heaven.”— Swedish philosopher,
mystic, and scientist Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772), Arcana Coelestia, Volume 8, translated
by John Clowes, revised and edited by John Faulkner Potts (1749-1756)
Angels are indeed with us every moment, but they’re
not just the winged messengers so familiar from religious readings or artistic
depictions (such as this one from Rembrandt, of an angel appearing to the
shepherds). Nor are they unfamiliar beings who appear in our lives suddenly and
disappear just as quickly.
No, angels are the friends and family, living and dead,
who constantly lead us, by word and deed, now or remembered, to our better
selves. We just have to be awake to their call.
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