From a conversation on the 3rd week after Pentecost

In the essay “From a conversation on the 3rd week after Pentecost” St. Gregory the Great (Dvoeslov) draws parallels between the various degrees of spiritual perfection of people and the ranks of the angelic hierarchy. The saint claims that righteous people who have reached certain spiritual heights receive their lot (fate, place) in accordance with various angelic ranks. For example: 1. Dominance. Those who master themselves, their weaknesses and desires, are so pure that they can be called “gods” (as Moses was called a god to Pharaoh). 2. Thrones. Those who tirelessly dominate themselves remain in the fear of God and receive the gift of judging others. Their minds are occupied with Divine contemplation, and God “sits on them as on his throne.” They rule the Church, and they judge even the elect. 3. Cherubim. Those who are filled with great love for God and neighbor. Since “cherubim” means fullness of knowledge, and love is the fulfillment of the law, those filled with love receive a lot among the cherubim. 4. Seraphim. Those who are inflamed by the fire of “mountain contemplation” (heavenly, spiritual), burn with the desire to see the Creator, reject everything earthly, and are nourished by the love of the eternal. They themselves burn with love and ignite others with it, enlightening their minds. St. Gregory calls on listeners to self-examination - to consider their secret deeds and thoughts in order to determine whether they have any of the listed virtues and whether they find their lot among these ranks. The saint calls for an active spiritual life, self-improvement and the pursuit of holiness. The highest spiritual states, comparable to those of angels, are achievable for humans through self-control, purity, fear of God, Divine contemplation and, above all, love for God and neighbor. From the testimony of scripture we know that there are angels, archangels, powers, authorities, principalities, dominions, thrones, cherubim and seraphim. Almost every page of Holy Scripture testifies to the existence of angels and archangels. And, as you know, the books of the prophets often talk about cherubim and seraphim. The Apostle Paul enumerates four names of ranks in his letter to the Ephesians, saying: above all principality and authority and power and dominion (Eph. 1:21). He again, writing to the Colossians, says: if they are thrones, if they are dominions, if they are principalities, if they are authorities (Col. 1:16). He had already written about dominions, principalities and powers (in his epistle) to the Ephesians, but, intending to speak about the same thing in his epistle to the Colossians, he placed thrones in the first place, about which he had not yet said anything to the Ephesians. And so, if to these four (ranks), which he spoke about (in the letter) to the Ephesians, that is, to the principalities, authorities, powers and dominions, we add thrones, then there will be five ranks, which are depicted separately. And if we add to these angels, archangels, cherubim and seraphim, then, obviously, there are nine ranks of angels. But why would we count these faces of unfallen angels if we did not explain their ministries? In Greek, messengers are called angels, and the highest messengers are called archangels. But you need to know that the word angel is the name of a position, not a nature. For these holy spirits of the heavenly fatherland, although they are always spirits, cannot always be called angels, because they are then only angels when something is proclaimed through them, which is why the Psalmist says: make angels your spirits (Ps. 103:4), as if it were said: “Who makes those whom he always has spirits, when he wants, also angels.” Those who proclaim the least are called angels, and those who proclaim the greatest are called archangels. Therefore, it is not an angel who is sent to the Virgin Mary, but the archangel Gabriel; since the highest angel had to come to this service, because the highest of all was announced. They are also called by special names in order to denote their actions by their very names. For in this holy city, where the citizens, from the contemplation of Almighty God, have completely complete knowledge, proper names are obtained not because it is as if without names it is impossible to recognize persons there, but because when one of them comes to us for some kind of service, then from serving with us he receives a name for himself. So Michael means: who is like God, Gabriel is the power of God, and Raphael is the healing of God. Therefore, whenever something is done that shows extraordinary power, it is said that Michael is sent to make it clear through the very action and name that no one can do what God can do. Therefore, about this ancient enemy, who through pride wanted to become like God, saying: I will ascend into heaven, I will set my throne above the stars of heaven, I will sit on the mountain of the covenant (testamenti), in the countries of the north I will ascend above the clouds, I will be like the Most High (Is. 14:13-14), it is said that when he, at the end of the world, before being cast into the final torment, will be left in his strength ( Rev. 9:3, 10–11, 16:6 et seq.), then he will fight with the archangel Michael, as John says: there was a battle with the archangel Michael (Apoc. 12:7), so that the one who, out of pride, wanted to be like God, being overthrown by Michael, would know that through pride no one achieves likeness to God. Also, Gabriel was sent to Mary, called the power of God, because he came to announce the One who was pleased to appear humiliated to defeat the powers of the air, and about whom the Psalmist says: lift up your gates, O princes, and lift up the everlasting gates, and the King of glory will come in. Who is the King of Glory? The Lord is strong and mighty, the Lord is strong in battle (Ps. 23:7:8); and further the Lord of those hosts is the King of glory (Ps. 23:10). And so, it was necessary that He who, being the Lord of hosts and mighty in battle, came to battle against the powers of the air, should be proclaimed through the power of God. Raphael means, as we said, the healing of God, because he, touching the eyes of Tobias, as if according to the custom of healing, erased the darkness of his blindness. Consequently, it was fitting for one who is sent to heal to be called the doctor of God. But having touched on the explanation of angelic names, we will briefly explain the names and their very positions. Powers are those spirits through which signs and wonders are most often performed. Authorities are those who, above others in their rank, have received the power to subordinate opposing forces to their superiors, so that these, being curbed by their power, cannot tempt people as much as they themselves want. Principalities are those who rule over the kindest spirits of the angels, and, having others under them, dispose of them when something needs to be done, and rule over them in the performance of Divine ministries. Dominions are those that far exceed in power even the authorities themselves. For to command (properly) means to be (only) first among others, and to dominate also means to rule over one’s subordinates. Consequently, dominions are those orders of angels that are distinguished by extreme power, since others are subject to them for obedience. Thrones are those ranks on which Almighty God always sits to carry out judgment. For since seats are called thrones in Latin, those (of the spirits) are called thrones of God, which are so greatly filled with the grace of the deity that the Lord sits on them and carries out His judgments on them. This is why the Psalmist says: You sat on the throne and judged righteousness (Ps. 9:5). Cherubim means completeness of knowledge, and these highest ranks are called cherubim because they have more perfect knowledge the closer they contemplate the Lordship of God, so that as they contemplate their Creator closer, they, in accordance with their dignity, know everything as much as is possible for a creature. Seraphim are those orders of holy spirits who, due to their special closeness to their Creator, burn with incomparable love for Him. For seraphim mean those who burn, or set on fire; since they are so united with God that there are no other spirits between them and God, they burn the more the closer they see Him. Their love is truly a flame, because the more clearly they contemplate the lordship of His deity, the more they are inflamed with love for Him... But what good is it for us to touch on this about angelic spirits if we do not try to use it with proper discernment and for our own prosperity? For since this higher citizenship consists of angels and men, and we believe that it includes as many of the human race as there are chosen angels left there, as it is written; set the limits of the tongues according to the number of the angels of God (Deut. 32:8); then we must extract something from these characteristics of the above-mentioned citizens in favor of our activities, and ignite in ourselves a good zeal for success in virtues. For since we believe that as many people will enter there, as many angels remain there; then it is necessary that the people themselves, who return to the heavenly fatherland, returning there, imitate one of its ranks, because the actions of people clearly correspond to the degrees of all ranks, and people, by similarity of activity, should be counted among their lot. For there are very many who accept little, but do not cease to piously proclaim this little to the brethren: therefore, such are included in the number of angels. Some, being filled with the gifts of Divine generosity, can themselves accept and proclaim to others the highest of heavenly mysteries: where can they be counted if not among the archangels? Others work miracles and produce signs: where would it be more appropriate for them to be, if not in the rank and number of the heavenly powers? Some expel evil spirits from the bodies they possess, driving them away with the power of prayer and the power given to them: where should they receive a lot corresponding to their merit, if not among the heavenly authorities? Some with arbitrary virtues surpass the merits of the most chosen people, and since they are better and kinder, they also rule over the chosen brethren: where will they receive their lot, if not among the authorities? Some are so dominant over themselves, over all their weaknesses and over all desires, that for their purity, in all fairness, they are called gods by people; why is it said to Moses: Behold, I have given you a god to Pharaoh (Ex. 7:1): where are they going, if not among the dominions? Some, while they rule over themselves with vigilant diligence and watch themselves with careful attention, constantly clinging to the fear of God, among other gifts of virtue, they receive that gift to be judges of others; truly, when whose minds are occupied with Divine contemplation, then God, sitting on them as on his throne, tests the affairs of others and wisely rules everything from this seat: what are these minds if not the thrones of their Creator? or where to rank them, if not among the number of thrones. When the holy church is governed by them, the very elect are often judged by them for some of their weaknesses. Some are so filled with love for God and neighbor that, in fairness, they can be called cherubim: for since a cherub, as we said above, means fullness of knowledge, and from the words of Paul we learn that the fulfillment of the law is love (Rom. 13:10); then all those who are more filled with love for God and neighbor than others receive a lot corresponding to their merits among the cherubim. Finally, there are those who, having been inflamed by the fire of mountain contemplation, burn with the desire only to behold their Creator, desire nothing in this world, are fed only by love for the eternal, reject everything earthly, ascend in mind above everything temporary, love and burn and calm down in their very burning, loving they burn, but love grief, and others whom they only touch with a word immediately inflame with love for God: what can we call them, if not seraphim, whose heart engulfed in fire both shines and ignites; since they enlighten the eyes of the mind to contemplate heavenly things and arouse tears in them to cleanse the rust of vices? and where can they, so inflamed with love for their Creator, receive a lot worthy of their merit, if not among the seraphim? But while I say this, beloved brethren, go inside yourselves and consider your secret deeds and thoughts. See if you are doing any good within yourself. See if you find the lot of your rank among those ranks that we briefly touched upon. Woe to that soul that does not recognize in itself any of the blessings we have calculated! But grief threatens her even more, if she knows that she does not have these blessings, and yet does not groan. So, my brethren, every one of these must groan greatly, because he does not groan. And so, let us think about the gifts received by the chosen ones, and let us love with all our strength such a blessed lot. He who is not aware of the gifts of grace in himself, let him groan. And whoever recognizes many in himself, let him not envy others who are large, since these heavenly ranks of blessed spirits were created in such a way that some are placed above others. You might be interested in: