St. Michael -- A Symbol for Faith in the Fight

A few years back, I was roaming through the Barnes and Noble bookstore and stumbled across a volume which caught my attention.


Titled "The Sword of St. Michael: The 82nd Airborne Division in World War II," it opens with a quote from John Milton's book, Paradise Lost:

"... but the Sword
Of Michael from the Armorie of God
Was giv'n him tempered so, that neither keen
Nor solid might resist the edge: it met
The sword of Satan with steep force to smite
Descending, in half cut sheere, nor staid,
But with swift wheele reverse, deep entering shar'd
All his right side; then Satan knew first pain ..."

The highly spiritual and religious quote cited above can spark a chill down one's spine.

This is the battle between good and evil crafted in poetic fashion.

But, what is the origin of this fierce spiritual warrior, Saint Michael, the patron of the airborne?

Three major religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all cite Michael as a great figure to be revered.

He's mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, the Christian New Testament, and the Quran.
The name Michael means "Who is like God?" in Hebrew.

The ultimate answer to his name is "no one."

The Bible records Michael's name with the title, archangel, which means "chief angel."
He is one of the chief angels of the heavenly army doing God's bidding in the fight against spiritual evil.

The Catholic Church has listed an additional title - saint, meaning holy one.

So, what is the historical link between Saint Michael and the military community?

During medieval times the Catholic Church chose Michael to be the patron of the military.

As a patron saint, he was an advocate and intercessor to God on behalf of the military.

According to the holy texts, there is a continuous spiritual war between good and evil going on, and it is fleshed out on the battlefield in both heaven and earth.

This spiritual battle is described in the Apostle Paul's Letter to the Church at Ephesus.

In Ephesians 6:10, he wrote, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, and against the authorities, and against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."

Christian religious texts say there is a relationship between our prayers to God, the archangel Michael's fight in the heavenly areas, and how our lives are affected on earth. To say it another way, there is a correlation between a service member's prayers and Michael's heavenly fight against evil.

Our prayers fuel Michael's fight, which in turn provides us with protection and assistance.

One can easily see why Saint Michael would be adopted as the patron of the airborne paratrooper in World War II.

There was great evil that needed to be conquered, both in Europe and in the Pacific.

Saint Michael is a symbol for us as a spiritual warrior, who stands ready to fight on behalf of the good.

He is, in a sense, a captivating and encouraging symbol.

For many who believe, we are drawn to God through Michael as a symbol of protection and assistance in the midst of a dangerous employment.

We take great comfort that God has placed such an advocate on the side of the good to help us succeed.

This is the faith we bring to the fight.

Never Compromise Your "Why"

Eric Liddell of Scotland won the Gold Medal in the 400 meters in the 1924 Olympics at Paris, France. But, he never set out to run the 400 there. He arrived representing Great Britain as the best 100 meter sprinter in the world and was expected to achieve gold medal status in it. Shockingly, he refused to compromise his spiritual beliefs and run the 100 meter qualifier on a Sunday. His Christian conviction was to stand down on the Sabbath. His Christian conviction can be summed up from an epic line in the movie, Chariots of Fire. He says to his sister, "God made me fast, and when I run, I feel his pleasure." This was his "Why." Business guru and consultant, Simon Sinek, who made famous the Golden Circle says: we know our 1) what to do, 2) and how to do it, but those who are dialed into their 3) "why," essentially are the most successful. The best companies and leaders know this. So did Eric, who, despite being the underdog in the 400 refused to compromise his "why", and won it. Never compromise your "why."

God's Hiddenness in Combat?

The end of the first chapter of the book and chapter with the same title reads like this: "To reflect on the place of Christian faith in combat is to be drawn into the complexity--the hellish, bewildering, puzzling, and tangled perplexity--battle itself. It is to look at a world that is unfathomable and is still, in some ways, ordinary. War is a living nightmare where God is not--and is." ~Preston Jones and Jody Beckman. On the final page of the book, the conclusion, on p. 54 reads, "Yet it is striking that war memoirs from victor and vanquished have so much in common. Combat veterans who know that they played a role in bringing down Hitler's evil regime still say that war is hell. The German film Downfall focuses on the collapse of Berlin in the Spring of 1945; the American film Saving Private Ryan depicts American Army Rangers in France, killing Germans and helping to make Germany's collapse possible. But the films feel the same. Being on the winning side does not stop combat from being a nightmare. [Theologian, Reinhold] Niebuhr's point is taken. Every person, in one way or another, is a crucifier of Christ. Warriors, perhaps like the centurion at Golgotha, know this better than anyone." So, where does this leave you and I? Two important terms define us, whether we want to admit it or not: Deus absconditus and Deus revelatus. This is Latin for "God hidden," and "God revealed." Time and space, as well as the meaning we derive from our experience makes it incredibly difficult to individually weave our way out of the hell of war, and it's lasting effects. It's just overwhelming: we can't see the forest through the trees. However, "God revealed," through the special revelation of Scripture, New Testament message of Christ on the Cross especially, makes total sense of the absurdity of war, and the possibility of hope; hope because three days later, Christ rose from the grave. His ability, above and beyond our own, gives us possibility, true hope and definition beyond the hiddenness of God. What we can not see in combat, or thereafter, we can see through faith because of the one who was there before us on the Cross. Was God hidden on the Cross? Jesus cried out, "My God, my God why have you forsaken me?" But, indeed, He was there.