On October 24th, we celebrate the feast of The Archangel, St. Raphael. The name ‘Raphael’ means ‘God has healed’, which is fitting because of all the acts of healing attributed to the Archangel on Earth, Scripture tells us.
Raphael first arrives in Scripture in the book of Tobit under the disguise of a human traveling with Tobias in his youth. Later in Tobit 12:15, he makes himself known to be the Archangel called Raphael. He is believed to be one of the 7 Archangels that sit before the throne of the Lord (Revelations 8:2). The healing works of Raphael include healing Tobias of his blindness in his elder years, as well as the deliverance of Tobias’ daughter in law from a demon that tormented her
The liturgy for St. Raphael’s feast day is all taken from Tobit as a testament to all his works of healing:
THE COLLECT: O God, who sent the blessed Archangel Raphael to accompany Your servant Tobias on his journey, grant that we, Your servants, may also be guarded by him always and strengthened by his assistance. Through our Lord.
St. Raphael, ora pro nobis!
This post was written by Mary Broussard, an SJCA pupil in the Rhetoric Stage of her curiculum.
The authors of this blog are the tutors of Saint John of the Cross Academy: