The Nine Choirs, making up the bene ha elohim, they are all there. And very well described by Hebrew and Christian scholars, thanks to times of revelation and perhaps disaster, though one would be hard put to determine the nature of each event. The First Triad is made of Three Choirs, the Seraphim, Cherubim, and Thrones or Ophanim, as I prefer to call them. And this First Triad is in general locked to the glory of God. They are in His thrall, thrive in the light which can blind or dazzle others, and almost never get very far from the light at all.
At times when I am angry and making speeches to all of Heaven, I accuse them... if you'll pardon the expression again - of being held to God as if by a magnet and not having a free will or personality such as we possess. But they have these things, they do, even the Ophanim, who are in general the least articulate or eloquent - in fact, Ophanim are likely to say nothing for eons - and any of these First Triad can be sent by God to do this and that, and have appeared on Earth, and some of the Seraphim have made rather spectacular appearances to men and women as well. To their credit, they adore God utterly, they experience without reserve the ecstasy of His presence, and He fills them completely so that they do not ask questions of Him and they are more docile, or more truly aware of God, depending on one's point of view.
The Second Triad has Three Choirs which have been given the names by men of Dominations, Virtues, and Powers. But to tell the truth, there is very little difference between these angels and the First Triad. The Second Triad is a little farther from the Light of God and perhaps as close as it can come, given its endowments, and perhaps it is not so clever when it comes to logic or questions. Who knows? Certainly, the Second is more docile altogether; but then there is more coming and going from the Second Triad, from Earth to Heaven, then from the devoted and magnetized, and sometimes arrogant Seraphim. You can see how this could lead to much discussion.
Both triads sing continuously when they are in Heaven, and most of the time when they are on Earth; their songs rise to Heaven spontaneously and continuously; they don't erupt with the deliberate jubilation of my song or the songs of those like me. Nor do they fall silent for long periods as our kind - Archangels - are apt to do.
When you're dead you'll be able to hear the song of all these triads. It would destroy you now if you did. We've let you hear part of the Din of Heaven, but that's all it can be to you, a din - the sound of song, and mingled laughter, and seemingly erratic eruptions of beautiful sound.
The Lowest Triad is supposed to include Principalities, Archangels, and Angels, but this is misleading, as I said. For we, the Archangels, are in fact the most powerful and the most important, have the most personality, and are the most questioning and concerned.
The other angels think we are flawed on that account. It does not occur to the average Seraph to plead for mercy for mankind.
But here you have a rough scheme of things. The angels are innumerable. And there is mobility among angels, some drifting closer to God than others, and then away when the majesty is too great for them, and they choose to slip back and sing a softer song. It's continuous.
Now the important thing is that the Guardian Angels of Earth, the Watchers, those who became intent upon Creation, came from all these ranks! Even from the very Seraphim there have come Guardians who have spent millions of years on Earth and then gone Home. Going and coming is common. The disposition I describe is innate but not fixed.
Angels aren't perfect. You can see that already. They are Created Beings. They don't know everything God knows, that's obvious to you and everyone else. But they know a great deal; they know all that can be known in Time if they wish to know it; and that is where angels differ, you see. Some wish to know everything in Time, and some care only for God and God's reflection in those of His most devoted souls.
In other words, everyone's right about it, and everybody's sort of wrong - but more right than wrong. Angels are individuals, that is the key. We Who Fell are no single species, unless being the brightest, the most clever, and the most comprehending makes us a species, which I don't think it does.
no subject
At times when I am angry and making speeches to all of Heaven, I accuse them... if you'll pardon the expression again - of being held to God as if by a magnet and not having a free will or personality such as we possess. But they have these things, they do, even the Ophanim, who are in general the least articulate or eloquent - in fact, Ophanim are likely to say nothing for eons - and any of these First Triad can be sent by God to do this and that, and have appeared on Earth, and some of the Seraphim have made rather spectacular appearances to men and women as well. To their credit, they adore God utterly, they experience without reserve the ecstasy of His presence, and He fills them completely so that they do not ask questions of Him and they are more docile, or more truly aware of God, depending on one's point of view.
The Second Triad has Three Choirs which have been given the names by men of Dominations, Virtues, and Powers. But to tell the truth, there is very little difference between these angels and the First Triad. The Second Triad is a little farther from the Light of God and perhaps as close as it can come, given its endowments, and perhaps it is not so clever when it comes to logic or questions. Who knows? Certainly, the Second is more docile altogether; but then there is more coming and going from the Second Triad, from Earth to Heaven, then from the devoted and magnetized, and sometimes arrogant Seraphim. You can see how this could lead to much discussion.
Both triads sing continuously when they are in Heaven, and most of the time when they are on Earth; their songs rise to Heaven spontaneously and continuously; they don't erupt with the deliberate jubilation of my song or the songs of those like me. Nor do they fall silent for long periods as our kind - Archangels - are apt to do.
When you're dead you'll be able to hear the song of all these triads. It would destroy you now if you did. We've let you hear part of the Din of Heaven, but that's all it can be to you, a din - the sound of song, and mingled laughter, and seemingly erratic eruptions of beautiful sound.
The Lowest Triad is supposed to include Principalities, Archangels, and Angels, but this is misleading, as I said. For we, the Archangels, are in fact the most powerful and the most important, have the most personality, and are the most questioning and concerned.
The other angels think we are flawed on that account. It does not occur to the average Seraph to plead for mercy for mankind.
But here you have a rough scheme of things. The angels are innumerable. And there is mobility among angels, some drifting closer to God than others, and then away when the majesty is too great for them, and they choose to slip back and sing a softer song. It's continuous.
Now the important thing is that the Guardian Angels of Earth, the Watchers, those who became intent upon Creation, came from all these ranks! Even from the very Seraphim there have come Guardians who have spent millions of years on Earth and then gone Home. Going and coming is common. The disposition I describe is innate but not fixed.
Angels aren't perfect. You can see that already. They are Created Beings. They don't know everything God knows, that's obvious to you and everyone else. But they know a great deal; they know all that can be known in Time if they wish to know it; and that is where angels differ, you see. Some wish to know everything in Time, and some care only for God and God's reflection in those of His most devoted souls.
In other words, everyone's right about it, and everybody's sort of wrong - but more right than wrong. Angels are individuals, that is the key. We Who Fell are no single species, unless being the brightest, the most clever, and the most comprehending makes us a species, which I don't think it does.