In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
We live so immersed in and preoccupied with the realities of this material world that
we easily forget about the spiritual realities.
Many Catholics no longer believe in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist,
or in the virginity of Mary, or in the existence of angels and they believe that God is so
good and merciful that after this life, everyone will be forgiven and go to heaven sooner or later.
The truth is that God is infinitely merciful and is always willing to forgive, but He respects
human freedom.
And the sad thing is that there are many human beings who do not want to have anything to
do with God and reject Him directly.
And God will only have the option to respect their decision for all eternity if they want
to go to hell with the demons.
On the other hand we can say that they live so involved in the things of this world
that they put aside God, the saints and angels, as if they were things from beyond the grave,
which it would be better not to speak of or not to believe in.
However, for Catholics the existence of angels is a truth of faith.
And to put the angels and the saints aside is to deprive yourself of immense blessings
from God for our earthly life.
We hope that these videos help us to reflect on the supernatural world and on these angelic
beings that surround us and help us, especially our guardian angel, and thus we can more easily
overcome the difficulties and problems of daily life.
Saint Francis of Assisi who lived from 1182 to 1226 had a great veneration and love for
the angels, who are with us in the fight and go with us through the shadows of death.
Saint Francis of Assisi said that such companions had to be venerated everywhere
that we had to invoke at least those who are our custodians.
He taught us not to offend their sight and not to dare to do in their presence what one
would not do before men.
And in the choir we chant in the presence of the angels.
Saint Francis of Assisi wanted as many brothers as possible to gather in the choir and chant
there with devotion.
Regarding the Archangel Saint Michael, who has the task of leading souls to God, he said
many times that he must be venerated even more.
And so, in honor of Saint Michael the Archangel, he devoutly fasted the Lent that goes from
the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary to the Feast of Saint Michael
the Archangel.
He used to say, “Everyone should offer some praise or some special offering to God in
honor of such a great prince.”
Blessed Osanna of Mantua who lived between the years 1449 and 1505 tells us that many
angels appear, are her friends and help her even in the simple things of daily life.
Let's listen to some examples.
She had taken upon herself the obligation to help some sick people by making sure they
do not lack anything that would be useful to them.
She once was away from them, because she had other things to do and she didn't have time
for everything.
And unknown to anyone, she was taken by an angel to that place of the sick and she attended
them normally.
Another time she had to carry water to a house and not being able to carry the vessel due
to her lack of strength, she commended herself to the Lord and an angel came to her and took
her and the vessel with water where she wanted to go.
While in Carbonarola, Italy, she did all the housework and often went to the Po river to
fetch water on her back.
But because she was weak from so many fasts, she could not put the pot on her back no matter
how hard she tried.
She then entrusted herself to God and an angel came to her and helped her place the vessel
on her back.
Her relatives realized this, especially when she brought large pitchers that not even a
strong woman could lift from the ground.
They wanted to help her, but she refused their help.
And Blessed Osanna of Mantua notes: On one occasion, the Marquis's maid was ill and almost
ready to die.
I went to visit her.
The Marquis called me, and while he was speaking, the maid died.
In those moments my mind was raised to pray for the maid.
My soul saw Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary with a great crowd of angels and God told
me that the servant had been saved, but that she needed to purge some offenses against God.
And God gave the blessing to the castle of the Marquis and, when the vision disappeared,
only one angel remained,
who before disappearing also gave the blessing.
In the life of Saint John of Ávila who lived from 1499 to 1569, a witness tells us that
he had heard, while the saint was alive, that while he was on a road four robbers came out to rob him,
and by wanting to unsheathe the swords, they remained in the middle of drawing them,
motionless and trembling, the Saint seeing them like this asked them what they
wanted, and then they prostrated themselves on their knees before him and asked his forgiveness
for their attempt.
They told him how they were going to rob him and they had seen two angels next to him who
threatened them.
Saint John of Ávila raised them up and hugged them, and with much love the Saint begged
them to depart from such a life and that the right way to do so was to confess and turn to God.
He invited them to confess and they excused themselves at that time, promising to do so
and leaving Saint John of Ávila.
The same witness himself certifies: One very dark and gloomy night, very late, a priest
was asked to take the Blessed Sacrament to a man who was very ill, at 3 miles or around
5 kilometers from there.
And the priest, seeing the darkness of the night, the distance and rough road, he was
somewhat doubtful and, finally, leaving with the Blessed Sacrament, he found at the door
two young men very willing and handsome with lighted white wax axes, who accompanied him
back and forth along a flat and peaceful road.
The priest, admiring this event, considering the roughness of the mountains and the ease
of the round trip and the peace of the road, was determined to write this case to Saint John of Ávila.
The priest received a letter from the saint saying: "Brother, you don't have to doubt
the young men who accompanied you that night carrying the Blessed Sacrament to that man
who was very ill, because they were two angels who assist in the presence of God."
Blessed Sebastián de Aparicio y del Pardo who lived from 1502 to 1600
told several times that, coming with his carts to the Puebla convent, a cart got stuck in a swamp.
He was alone and afflicted.
At that moment a young man dressed in white, who looked like an Indian, came to his aid
and told him that he was coming to help him.
Looking at him attentively, he replied: "What help can you give me, when eight oxen cannot pull the cart?"
And the young man, encouraging the oxen, in an instant pulled the cart out of the jam.
Wanting to thank him, he was no longer there and, exclaiming, the servant of God had told him:
"You're not from here", implying that he had been an angel.
While lying under a cart one night, it began to rain and in his tribulation he saw a young
man of remarkable beauty who, with a vihuela in his hands, began to play heavenly music.
Blessed Sebastián de Aparicio y del Pardo having forgotten his discomfort, he was happy
and went to recognize that young man,
but the more he quickened his pace, the more the
young man moved away, until he disappeared.
Was he an angel of God?
This was considered by a witness priest, whom the servant of God had told.
Saint Martin de Porres who lived from 1579 to 1639 many times had communication with angels,
although not much is known about this aspect of his life.
A witness claims to have heard the religious of the convent and it was public and widely
known that the servant of God, whipping himself through the convent as if in a procession,
was illuminated by four very beautiful youths who were understood to be angels.
Another witness stated:
This witness saw that every night the servant of God would go to
bed at a little past one o'clock in the morning and then pray before Saint Veronica where
he stayed for more than an hour, and then he went inside a tall chest of drawers that
were in the cell, where he kept his clothes from the infirmary.
He crossed his arms and put half his body inside them, leaving the other half outside
hanging, being in this way for a very long time.
And this witness saw that every night, a large three-colored cat entered through a window
and fell from the cell to the infirmary cloister, the colors of the cat were white, black and brown.
And the cat approached Saint Martin de Porres and with his paws began to pull on the habit
as if signaling that it was time for some exercise.
Saint Martin de Porres left the cell after the cat and went to ring the bell, which he
always had a devotion to do.
Who could this intelligent cat be, who woke him up every night, if not an angel of God?
Other times, as we have already noted in one of our videos, when he left to pray with the
Community, the religious saw that two angels were illuminating him with torches in their hands.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen