In Orthodoxy, the cult of angels, or, as they are also called, celestial ethereal forces, is widespread. The leader and head of the hierarchy of the latter is considered the archangel Michael, a photo of the iconographic image of which is posted below. This Hebrew name means "who is like God." Over twenty centuries, his veneration in the popular church masses has grown and strengthened, taking its place in the spiritual practice of Eastern Christianity. We will talk about how they pray to Archangel Michael in this article.
The daily veneration of Archangel Michael
Among all prayer texts that mention the archangel Michael, daily prayer is the most common. There are several options for it, but we will give here one of the translations into Russian.
The text of the daily prayer to the Archangel Michael
Lord, great God, the King who has no beginning! Send your archangel Michael to help your servants (names).
Protect us, archangel, from all visible and invisible enemies. Oh, the great archangel of God Michael! Demon crusher, restrain all the enemies that fight me and make them like sheep, pacifying their evil hearts. Crush them like the wind blows dust. Oh, the great archangel of God Michael! The six-winged first lord and commander of the heavenly army - cherubim and seraphim, be me help in misfortunes, troubles and sorrows. Be me refuge in the desert and in the sea. Oh, the great archangel of God Michael! Deliver me from the seduction of the devil when you hear me, the sinner, praying to you and invoking your name. Be me an ambulance and conquer all those who resist me with the power of the holy and life-giving cross of the Lord, with the prayers of the Most Holy Theotokos and all saints! Oh, the great archangel of God Michael! Help me, the sinner (name), and free me from earthquakes, floods, fires, wars and accidental death, from all evil, from flattering enemies, from the evil one, always save me, now and forever, and forever and ever. Amen.
The Origin of Daily Prayer to Archangel Michael
Such is the veneration that Archangel Michael receives in the bosom of the church. Prayer for every day in this edition is a translation of one folk prayer, which comes from the peasant environment of the XVI century.
There is, however, a version that the original text of this prayer served as the final prayer of the canon to the angelic terrible governor, written by Tsar John the Terrible under the name of Parthenius the Ugly. Not everyone agrees with this. Some historians indicate that this text, which refers to the archangel Michael, is a Catholic prayer, translated into Church Slavonic after significant processing for the purpose of Orthodox worship. An indirect argument for this is that a list of this prayer was discovered that did not happen later than the middle of the 16th century.
The cult of the Archangel Michael: from prayer to conspiracy
It should be noted that the role played by the archangel Michael in Russian society is a very strong defense against all sorts of enemies and misfortunes. This led to the rapid transformation in the popular consciousness of the actual prayer practice into the practice of conspiracies. Therefore, very often texts that mention the archangel Michael (prayer for every day is no exception) were included not only in prayer books and liturgical books, but also in the lists of various conspiracies and incantations. Such things have always been popular in Russia, despite direct condemnation by the church. In fact, Orthodoxy and folk magic harmoniously coexisted among the people, supplementing each other and stimulating cultural development. For example, not without the influence of village healers and healers, Archangel Michael gained his influence on church piety. The very strong protection that he provided for believers in his strength made him one of the favorite characters in the church folklore. Thus, he gained a special position among other characters of the angelic world, who are revered in the Orthodox Church.
Some lists of this prayer are accompanied by postscripts. In them, among other things, it is reported that the person who reads this prayer, on the day of its reading, will avoid the temptations of the devil, evil spirits, offenses of enemies and will have great joy in his heart and soul. And if a person dies on the day on which he reads this prayer, his soul will be guaranteed to be saved and freed from hell.
Of course, this is far from the Orthodox interpretation of prayer, since personal piety, that is, what is called life in Christ, is paramount in the church. If security, joy and even the salvation of the soul are guaranteed only by the daily reading of this prayer, then what is the use of such piety and the church itself and its sacraments in general?
Unfortunately, this kind of superstitious attitude to the components of Christian life is not uncommon in the church fence, especially among the laity. However, the approach that postulates the self-acting power of a text is completely alien to genuine Christian spirituality.
Modern prayers to the archangel Michael
Those variants of prayer to the Archangel Michael that are widespread today differ little from each other. Most often, the discrepancies are caused by errors in translations and attempts to bring the Slavic text closer to the modern Russian language. All differences thus end with differences in endings and interchangeable synonyms.
Prayer for the President
In the past few years, one of the options for prayer began to contact the President of Russia, for some reason the archangel Michael is considered his personal patron. Every day's prayer for the president to the celestial commander is distributed in temples and monasteries, although it does not have official approval and blessing.
In this edition, the surname and name of the current president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, is indicated. For example: "Lord God, the great Tsar, who has no beginning, send, oh Almighty, your archangel Michael to the aid of your slave Vladimir."
Areas of responsibility of Michael (archangel)
It is no secret that in the church tradition there is a kind of division of labor between saints. That is, every saint is the patron of one or another sphere of human life. This tradition and angelic powers did not pass by. The archangel Michael is also involved. Patron of whom is this commander of the heavenly army? Of course, this is the military estate and everything concerning it is the army, the military industry, etc. But first of all, the archangel Michael is the patron of trade and business. Therefore, below we provide a translation of the corresponding prayer, which is read by faithful entrepreneurs who want to enlist the support of the great archangel in their earthly affairs. On the other hand, such a separation of duties is a rather arbitrary thing in Christianity and, essentially, alien to it. In fact, any saint can pray for anything. The same principle applies to angelic powers, among which the archangel Michael is no exception. Beadwork, cycling, construction, health, marriage, raising children - all this can be prayed to this servant of God.
Promoter of trade, Archangel Michael: an everyday prayer for trade
Oh, the great archangel of God Michael! In humility, I implore you, ask for blessings from God, may he bless with my blessing my deeds and works, with which I have been instructed to make the purchase and sale of earthly goods that have a need for them. Make me full of living faith in your help and intercession! Make me rich with everything that pleases the will of the Father in heaven, give me enough profit to be satisfied with my condition on earth, and not lose the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ in the next century. To you, oh, the great archangel of God Michael, I appeal. You previously kept me and protected, and the shore, so that I would not sin. Yes, I will not sin in the future against faith! Hear me now and come to my aid! I worked hard and you know my honest hands, in which there is no crime. Ask God for mercy, and repay me according to his labors according to his divine word. May the hands weary of labor be filled, so that I can live comfortably, serving God. Intercede for me, the great archangel of God Michael, may the Lord give me earthly goods according to my labors for his glory. Amen.
Archangel Michael - protector of the devil
Church tradition tells us that the head of the angels is the main enemy of Satan and all fallen spirits. The very name Michael bears the imprint of this ancient apocryphal legend, according to which the devil was once a bright angel and even the right hand of God named Dennitsa. However, he became proud, envying the man whom God exalted before the angels. Pride led Dennitsa to revolt against the Almighty. Then he said that he himself would be like God, and he would set his throne above the stars of God. Following him, a third of the angels fell away. But one of the archangels, hearing this impudence, exclaimed: “Who is like God?” - and led the angelic legions, who remained faithful to the Most High, against the presumptuous Dennitsa. In memory of this, they began to call him “who is like God,” that is, Michael in Hebrew. It is in this role that the demon-wrestler often depicts the archangel Michael, whose photo can be in this article. Therefore, Christians also often pray to him for protection from demons and witchcraft.
Prayer to the archangel Michael from the devil
Archangel of the Lord Michael! Help us sinners (names), and deliver us from all the tricks of the enemy of the human race, from great evil, demonic flattery, devilish error and demonic possession. Protect us, lest the crafty enemy touch us and harm us and our souls. Holy Archangel Michael of God, with your swift sword, turn away from us all unclean spirits that tempt us. Amen