Uriel; Archangel With The Fiery Sword

By James Donahue

Uriel has long been listed among the seven primary archangels. The Roman Catholic Church accepted Uriel as an archangel for many centuries, but later removed the name because this angel is not named in The Bible. The name and most of what we know of Uriel is found in other ancient apocryphal books, most of them Hebrew in origin.

Nevertheless, Uriel appears to be one of the more important angels in that realm. He sometimes is known by other names with Auriel among the most common alternative references. This name is interpreted to mean “God is My Light” or “God is Light.” Some refer to Uriel as the “Fire of God.” His very symbol is an open hand holding a flame which is offered as a “Flame of Love” toward all of mankind.

Some believe Uriel may be one of the cherubs guarding the gate of Eden and that he stands at that gate with a fiery s word. The Book of Enoch states that Uriel is the angel who “watches over thunder and terror.”

If all of the old books are correct, this is one very busy angel. He is believed to be the “Regent of the Sun” in the Book of the Revelation that calls forth the birds of the air to feast upon the fallen bodies following the great Battle of Armageddon.

Uriel also is said to have been placed in charge of Hades. He was the angel that warned Noah of the looming flood, and he was the angel that corrected Moses for failing to circumcise his son.

Uriel is known as the Archangel of Salvation, the Angel of Sunday, the Angel of Poetry and a patron of the arts.

In her Living Ethics books, Russian philosopher Helena Roerich one wrote: “Uriel personifies the Divine Fire that comes down from the Third Aspect of Deity – Universal Mind – penetrating each plane until it reaches the physical. There, the fire ignites the fusion in the center of the Sun, the fission at the center of the Earth, and the kundalini at the base of the spine. It creates worlds, universes and life – which then await the quickening impulse of the Second Aspect to evolve and g row.”

There even is a special invocation for this archangel. It reads:

Glory to God and his deeds,
for everything is good and wonderful.
Holy Archangel Uriel,
protect and look after rivers,
their waters we drink,
life springs up from them;
make grass sprout for cattle,
make man yield bread out of the land,
wine to enliven his heart,
oil and food to give him force.