Wisdom, Chapter 18, Verse 25
To these the
destroyer yielded, these he feared;
for this sole trial of anger sufficed.
This verse is
referring to the destroyer angel sent to kill the Egyptian first born.
The particular term "destroying angel"
(malakh ha-mashhit) occurs twice in the Bible, in II Samuel 24:16 and its
parallel, I Chronicles 21:15. Other allusions to this "destroyer"
(mashhit), can be found in Exodus 12:23 and Isaiah 54:16. The story of
Sennacherib's siege of Jerusalem may also allude to a destroying angel,
although the term used there is simply malakh. In the cultures of the ancient
Near East, gods were believed to be responsible for death and destruction. The
Bible, however, does not portray such a configuration. Instead, the destructive
agents act according to God's instruction: they are His messengers and it is
the Lord who initiates death and destruction.
THE PLAGUES OF EGYPT The destroying angel seems to be alluded to
in the Bible's description of the slaying of the firstborn, where he is called
ha-mashhit: for the Lord will pass over the door and not let the Destroyer
enter and smite your home (Ex. 12:23). While is stated explicitly that the Lord
passed through Egypt to smite the firstborn (Ex. 12:12–13), and the text of the
Passover Haggadah expounds this to mean, "I and not an angel," verse
23 attests that the Lord was accompanied by the destroying angel, whose nature
is to strike down all whom he encounters, unless – as here – the Lord restrains
him. This seems to be the intention of the Mekhilta's comment on verse 22, None
of you shall go outside the door of his house until morning: "This indicates
that when the destroying angel is given permission to do harm, he does not
distinguish between the righteous and the wicked." 3 The Psalmist's
account of the plagues of Egypt (Ps. 78:49) indicates that the plagues were
inflicted by mishlahat malakhei ra'im – a band of deadly [lit. evil] angels.
The talmudic sages used the term mishlahat to describe a band of destructive
creatures, specifically a wolf pack. 4 Kraus believes that this "band of
evil angels" does not refer to the destroying angel" (mashhit)
associated with the last plague (Ex. 12:23), but to the demonic powers that the
Lord dispatches with every affliction. 5
It seems, then, that we must distinguish the "destroying
angel," ha-mashhit, from the messengers of death who come to punish
individuals only. By contrast, the Destroyer is sent by the Lord to kill
multitudes through a plague. Unlike the deadly messengers, who bring both
natural and premature death, the Destroyer inflicts only a premature, painful
death. Still, this mashhit is controlled by God.
WRATH
Another implicit allusion to the destroying angel can be found in for
wrath [ketzef] has gone forth from the Lord: the plague has begun (Num. 17:11
[RSV 16:46]). Milgrom sees this wrath or anger as an independent entity,
similar to the Destroyer that acts on behalf of the Lord. 10 There are indeed
several references to it in the Bible. Thus (Num. 1:53), The Levites, however,
shall camp around the Tabernacle of the Pact, that the wrath [ketzef] may not
strike the Israelite community. Similarly, the mandate continues, No outsider
shall intrude upon you as you discharge the duties connected with the Shrine
and the altar, that wrath [ketzef] may not again strike the Israelites (Num.
18:5). 11 According to Rashi, this plague is spread by the Angel of Death, who is
also known as "the Anger before the Lord with the authority to kill."
In the Talmud, the Angel of Death (malakh ha-mavet)
has assistants, one of whom is actually named Ketzef: "Rav Hisda said:
'They are: Fury, Anger and Wrath [Ketzef], Destroyer and Breaker and
Annihilator'". 13 Elsewhere, Ketzef is the name of an angel of destruction
(Targum Yerushalmi, Numbers 17:11). He is also specifically noted as acting on
behalf of God, not as an independent entity: Wrath [ketzef] has gone forth from
the Lord (Num. 17:11). The Sages
regarded the Destroyer as an amoral force that could be overcome only through
sacrificial blood, incense, or some other ritual. However, these rituals were
directed to God, not to the Destroyer himself. 14 In the ancient Near East,
incense was burned for the gods to placate them and still their anger. Egyptian
reliefs depict Canaanite priests standing on a high place and offering incense
to Pharaoh, who is massacring the inhabitants of a city. 15 In both of the
biblical stories about the Destroyer (the Tenth Plague and the threshing floor
of Araunah), the plague is halted by a ritual act (placing blood on the
doorpost, building an altar, burning incense), but it is God, not His
messenger, who responds.
The Angel
of Death receives his instructions from God. When permitted to take the souls
of human beings, he does not distinguish between the good and the wicked. His
function is to take men's souls. Only a chosen few of the nation's ancestors
died by the Divine kiss and were not given over to this angel’s control. 21 He
was created by God on the first day of Creation, operates under His authority,
and performs His behest. Nevertheless, he is granted a degree of autonomy in
his actions and choices, 22 certain actions by human beings making him more
likely to strike them. 23
CONCLUSION The destroying angel is explicitly
mentioned twice in the Bible (II Sam. 24:16; I Chron. 21:15). In addition,
there are several other passages in the Bible and rabbinic literature that
refer to destructive supernatural forces. The idea of the destroying angel as
an independent force, acting of its own accord, is foreign to the Hebrew Bible,
which emphasizes that God is in control of these destructive forces so as to
negate polytheistic beliefs. The angel can do nothing on its own initiative and
must only act in compliance with the will of God. It is He alone who deals
death and gives life.
Eid Al-Adha Facts
- Unlike regular prayers, prayers for Eid al-Adha takes place in any large, open field. There Muslims from many mosques congregate together. Usually, mosques collaborate together to find a field that is convenient for everyone to go to. In the United States, Eid prayers often occur in parks.
- Festivities begin with a prayer service, followed by a brief sermon on the morning of the first day. During the prayer, Muslims recite verses from the Quran, lead by an Imam, prostrate to God, and send their peace to Muhammad and Abraham.
- Since this
festival occurs immediately after the Day of Arafah, many of those who go
to pilgrimage celebrate it in Mina (Saudi Arabia), where thousands of
animals are slaughtered for sacrifice.
- It is
customary for Muslims perform a ritual body washing shower, called
"ghusl," before walking to the place of prayers. This is
in accordance with the tradition of the Prophet Muhammad.
Eid al-Adha Top Events and Things to Do
- Often, a
large party is thrown by Muslims on one of the three days of Eid al-Adha.
Meat from slaughtered animals is served.
- It is
customary for Muslim men who have lost loved ones visit graveyards on Eid
al-Adha.
- It is Islamic
tradition to wear your most beautiful clothes on the first day of Eid
al-Adha. A few days before Eid al-Adha, Muslims shop for their new
Eid clothes. Merchants in Islamic countries often hold their biggest
sales before Eid al-Adha.
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The work of researchers who
reported detecting the signal left behind by the rapid expansion of space
billions of years ago is rooted in the efforts of a Belgian priest whose
mathematical computations in the 1920s laid the groundwork for the Big Bang
theory. Msgr. George Lemaitre, a mathematician who studied alongside leading
scientists of the first half of the 20th century exploring the origins of the
universe, suggested that the cosmos began as a super-dense "primeval
atom" that underwent some type of reaction that initiated the expansion of
the universe which continues today. The priest's conclusions challenged the
conventional hypothesis proposed by luminaries such as Albert Einstein and Fred
Hoyle that the universe was in a steady state. Researchers in cosmology over
the decades refined Msgr. Lemaitre's idea, leading to what became widely known
as the Big Bang theory and later ideas that signs of the Big Bang can be
detected. The most recent evidence supporting the Big Bang emerged March 17
when a team of scientists announced they detected polarization in light caused
by primordial gravitational waves originating from the Big Bang. The
measurements were made with the Background Imaging of Cosmic Extragalactic
Polarization experiment, or Biceps2, located at near the South Pole
"Read
these counsels slowly. Pause to meditate on these thoughts. They are things
that I whisper in your ear-confiding them-as a friend, as a brother, as a
father. And they are being heard by God. I won't tell you anything new. I will
only stir your memory, so that some thought will arise and strike you; and so
you will better your life and set out along ways of prayer and of Love. And in
the end you will be a more worthy soul."
40. Don't hinder the work of the Paraclete: seek union with Christ so
as to be purified, and feel with him the insults, the spits, and the blows, and
the thorns, and the weight of the Cross..., and the nails tearing through your
flesh, and the agony of a forsaken death. And enter through our Lord's open
side until you find sure refuge there in his wounded Heart.
·
Please
Pray for Senator
McCain and our country; asking Our Lady of Beauraing to
intercede.
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