Angels in Christian Theology

In Christian theology, angels are understood as spiritual beings created by God, primarily serving as messengers and intermediaries between the divine and humanity. They are depicted as possessing qualities of wisdom, power, and holiness, often portrayed in art and literature with human-like forms and wings. Angels play significant roles in guiding and protecting individuals, as well as executing God's will on Earth. While not central to the Christian gospel, the concept of angels enriches the understanding of the divine and the spiritual realm, highlighting the interaction between God and his creation. In this article, we will first examine the main themes of traditional teaching on angels from Holy Scripture and the church fathers, placing them in the religious, cultural and intellectual contexts in which they arose (section 1). We will then turn to the angelological synthesis developed by medieval scholastic theology, especially the doctrine of St Thomas Aquinas. Relying on both faith and metaphysical reason, scholastic theology explores the metaphysical nature of angels and the modalities of their spiritual operations, so as to better explain the supernatural mystery of the angels’ divine calling and sanctification, and the way in which they cooperate in the economy of salvation in Jesus Christ (section 2). While the Reformation did not challenge angelology but refocused it on scripture, the intellectual and cultural evolution of the modern and contemporary West led to a crisis of credibility in traditional teachings on angels. Angels have been expelled from the cosmos by the ‘disenchantment of the world’, of which the new vision of the universe induced by modern science is a major factor. Simultaneously, angels have been removed from what is considered revealed truths by the demythologization implemented by historical-critical exegesis (see Biblical Criticism and Modern Science). Therefore, contemporary theology seeks to update the traditional teaching while opening up new paths for an angelological doctrine, the theoretical and practical implications of which remain important (section 3). As a specific article in this encyclopaedia is dedicated to Satan and demons, we will confine ourselves here, as much as possible, to topics relating solely to ‘good angels’, even though the question of angels and demons is generally closely linked in theological reflection. There are only a few theologians, such as Karl Barth, who almost entirely dissociate angelology and demonology.