The General characteristics of Angels in Supernatural - Research Paper Example

The supernatural has been considered as immaterial in western thought for the large part of the 20th century. In the context of the current 20th century there has been a resurgence of interest in it albeit for the commodified kind. The current portrayal of supernatural phenomena has some fundamental differences from the understanding of the supernatural held by traditional theology. This marked contrast has been quite evident in most modern portrayals of angles such as in “Angels” but the contrast is most evident in the “Supernatural “series. In biblical terms “An angel is, by definition, a messenger. The Bible has over three hundred references to angels, and defines two groups of angelic messengers. Heavenly angels carry out the commands of God, while fallen angels carry out acts of deceit and wickedness”(christcenteredmall.com/teachings/angels_). In contrast the angels in “Supernatural” are postmodern beings who can change to be anything they want to be good or capricious contingent on the circumstances. It is said “Even though God is there father, all angels except the Archangels has never actually seen God or his true face. According to Anna Milton, only four angels have actually met God and seen his true face. These four are said to be the Archangels.” (supernatural.wikia.com/Angelic possession) In traditional theology God is the centrality of all that occurs even when it comes to even angels, while in the commoditized “Supernatural” series God is a simply a reference point needed to embellish the story and does not have any thematic role. This is not surprising as it is the philosophy of the current times, which seem to have rediscovered God and the spiritual but only to serve human purposes. This paper will therefore discuss the commoditized supernatural phenomena of Angels as portrayed in the television series ‘Supernatural’ and compare it to traditional culture in terms of characteristics in general, hierarchy and classification, behavior, powers and abilities. The General characteristics of Angels in ‘Supernatural’ One of the characters of the series Anna Milton portrays the general character of Angels to one of the other main characters as “being emotionless, not permitted to have feelings or free will. She even goes on to compare angels to marble statues, in the sense that theyre both powerful, cold, loyal and have no choice”(absoluteastronomy.com, Supernatural). Nevertheless the series portrays angels with a more diverse set of characteristics. Castiel the chief angel is caught once actually showing loyalty to the brothers Winchester. Further having ordered to kill Anna, Castiel actually shows remorse, which is quite a display of emotion for a being, which was supposed to be emotionless. In the episode ‘Dark side of the moon’ Angel Michael shows the emotion of anger and pride towards his fellow angels Lucifer and Michael. Further “In "Dark Side of the Moon", Zachariah shows signs of anger and pride. In "My Bloody Valentine", cupids are shown to be very cheerful, emotional, and love giving hugs.”(Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Anna Milton’s accuracy can therefore be questioned in terms of her remarks about unemotional angels. In fact their emotions are pretty evident over the series but what is also evident is that the angels appear to hold their emotional side back, maybe as a sign that it can be misconstrued as a weakness. They appear to be as some humans in this score who think of emotions as an expression of self-doubt as well as a sign of weakness. Anna is also said to have revealed that Angels don’t have sex, and the only way they can have sex is by possessing humans. We will discuss the notion of angels possessing humans but Anna’s remark appears to be indicative of the fact that Angels cannot have sex but do have lust. In most folklore there is popular description of forces of darkness that can have sex and force sex on humans and it appears that Supernatural’ angels are depicted in similar vein but are more subtle in this aspect even as they can be capricious. Angels of this TV series do appear to show filial connections. “Angels consider themselves family to one another, referring to each other as brothers and sisters. The angels also refer to God as their father”. (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). They do appear to be under some sort of a command and obey structures. This is evident from the following statement made about archangels which states “But like the rest of the angels, they are tied down to rules of fate set by God and have to be careful what power to use and when.”(Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). The General characteristics of Angels in ‘Bible’ The Biblical Angel is a fully obedient angel as stated “Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word (King James Version, Psalms 103:20); they do his pleasure (in verse 21; they dispute not any divine commands, but readily address themselves to the execution of them. Nor do they delay, but fly swiftly: They do his commandments at hearing, or as soon as they hear the voice of his word”.(Henry Matthew). Further more the Biblical angel is reverent “And again, when he bringeth in the first begotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him ” (King James Version, Hebrews 103:20) as certainly dignified as elucidatively highlighted “Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.” (King James Version, Jude 9)). “Michael did not mock or accuse the devil. God hasn’t called us to judge the devil, to condemn the devil” (Guzik, David 2011). Certainly a very dignified approach to an archenemy of the archangel. No such dignity is seen in the series being reviewed. They are also wise and intelligent s indicated “To fetch about this form of speech hath thy servant Joab done this thing: and my lord [is] wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all [things] that [are] in the earth”(King James Version 2 Samuel 14:20) In light of the sexual nuances of the angels in “Supernatural” it must be said that the Angels of Biblical origin are sexless as detailed “And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage. But they, which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage. Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection”(King James Version, Luke 20:34-36). The contrast also must be made in light of the leaning to be capricious of the commodified angels that the biblical angels are holy as specified in Revelation 14:10. In terms of The characteristics or the nature of the angels the TV series has cut the mold somewhat closer to the Bible but more rooted in human philosophies and thinking but the term angels has been given to feed in the supernatural element and differentiate from normal humans in the series. The Hierarchy of the Angles in ‘Supernatural’. Like the Biblical angels those in the TV series function according to a hierarchy. On top of the pyramid are the Archangels. “Archangels are extremely powerful celestial beings that were created by God, and are imbued with immense power and authority They were made before the other angels, power and authority They were made before the other angels, and were born in this order: Michael, Lucifer, Raphael and Gabriel”(Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). The series appears to portray that of the angles only these four have been in the presence of God. These Archangels while being similar to the others enjoy some extra powers and abilities, which the rest do not possess, and the common ones too are more accentuated for the archangels. In series 7 none of the achangels are active, as Michael and Lucifer appear to have got them trapped in hell whereas Raphael and Gabrielle are believed to have died. Seraphs are the next layer of the hierarchy. They are powerful but they work under the authority of the archangels. “Not much is known about them in Canon other then the complexion of their true visage which consists of: four different faces of earthly animals (one of a lion) and six enormous wings.”(Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Zechariah is an example of Seraphs in the series. The ordered third class of angels is the cupids or the cherubs. While they have an affinity to serve Michael they follow all the orders that originate in heaven. “They are responsible for manipulating affection in certain, special bloodlines likewise with Dean and Sam.” Finally there are the fallen angles of which kind there are two types. The first is Lucifer who got thrown into Hell by archangel Michael and the other category are those who left heaven voluntarily and fell to the earth. “When they "fall" to Earth, the angels can either possess a human keeping their powers or remove their grace, the source of an angels power, and become human “(absoluteastronomy.com, Supernatural). Though the departure from hell is voluntary these beings are till considered as traitors, but the plot allows them to find their grace and become angels again. Permanently exiled from heaven attempts are constantly made to capture and kill the fallen angels. Having fallen from heaven these angles are less powerful than the rest, other than the archangels who seem to retain their power. Prime examples of this are Gabriel who willingly left heaven and Lucifer who got thrown out. The Hierarchy of the Angles in ‘Bible’. “The Bible does not reveal an angelic hierarchy. God is the commander of His heavenly host (Isaiah 45:12). However, there are a few scriptures that infer delegated authority to some angels. Paul mentions "elect angels" (I Timothy 5:21) and says that "one star different from another star in glory" (I Corinthians 15:41), implying that each star (and each angel) is unique in glory and in position”. (christcenteredmall.com/teachings) Nevertheless the etymology of the word archangel and Biblical evidence points to a hierarchy. “The word archangel is mentioned twice in Scripture. The Greek word is archaggelos, which is a combination of archo (meaning "first" in political rank or power) and aggelos (meaning "messenger"). An archangel by definition is the first or highest angel and leader of the angels. It denotes a definite distinction of rank for a special angel”(christcenteredmall.com/teachings) Archangels would be also on top of the ladder as seen from the quote from Jude 9 in the pervious section. This is reinforced in “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation [even] to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book” (King James Version, Daniel 12:1) as well as Revelation 12:7.   Michael in these passages is the “--the guardian angel of Israel ("thy people"), (Dan 10:13 ). The transactions on earth affecting Gods people have their correspondences in heaven, in the conflict between good and bad angels; so at the last great contest on earth which shall decide the ascendency of Christianity (Rev 12:7-10 ). An archangel, not the Lord Jesus; for he is distinguished from "the Lord" in” .(Fausett el al). The next would be the Cherubim. “The cherubim for example have traits of both humans and animals”. (Richards’s 1991) Mentioned in the first book of the Bible Genesis in a poignant time of primeval world history as “So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden. Cherubim’s, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life”. (King Jams Version, Genesis 3:24) This is explained as follows. “He kept him out, and forbade him all hopes of a re-entry; for he placed at the east of the garden of Eden a detachment of cherubim, God’s hosts, armed with a dreadful and irresistible power, represented by flaming swords which turned every way, on that side the garden which lay next to the place whither Adam was sent, to keep the way that led to the tree of life, so that he could neither steal nor force an entry; for who can make a pass against an angel on his guard or gain a pass made good by such force?” (Matthew Henry). Then there are Seraphim’s as per Isaiah 6: 1-7 and Principalities and Powers in Ephesians 3:10. While there is angelic hierarchy both in the TV series as well as the Bible the command and control structures appear to be looser in the TV series. In fact it tends to be a reluctant adherence to authority. Speaking about the Archangels their submission happens as “ they are tied down to rules of fate set by God and have to be careful what power to use and when.” “(absoluteastronomy.com, Supernatural). Whereas the biblical angels are concerned our insight into their attitude of obedience can be gathered from their worship to God, which is described as follows. “Gods angels surround His throne, serving and worshipping Him continuously. Scripture commands them: "Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye him, all his hosts" (King James Version, Psalm 148:2). The prophet Micah said, "I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left" (I Kings 22:19). This awesome sight was also witnessed by John in Revelation 7:11: "And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God."(King James Version). There is something else instructive about these angels. In Revelation 4:10 is says they, "worship him that liveth for ever and ever."(King James Version) In Revelation 5:12 they chant, "Worthy is the Lamb." What we see as the angels worship God in Heaven is that everything is directed to God. God is the center of it all. They worship God with a single eye, completely focused upon Him and nothing else.” (Delaney,Jim) We can conclude that their obedience to God is a chasm more voluntary than those in ‘Supernatural”. The Powers of Angels in the TV series ‘Supernatural’ In the TV series and like in Bible, as well as common belief these celestial beings are indeed very powerful. In the series though they posses a series of powers which are named and classified. The first and most unusual one is that in the TV series Angels possess people. In the Bible only fallen Angels or demons possess people. In popular thought in many cultures there are good demons and bad demons and they both can posses people. In the series when demons posses’ people the vessels as the people are called find that their natural abilities are greatly elevated. The archangel’s abilities are more particular. “They specifically require the bodies of their respective true vessels, as other mortal vessels will eventually wither and decompose or even get destroyed while containing an archangel, as demonstrated with Nick while hosting Lucifer’.(Wikipedia.org, Supernatural).The following powers and abilities are worth mention. Possession: As already stated this is possible with all angels and demons in the series but permission must be obtained from the vessel where angels are concerned. Demons do to have to get permission. This ability appears to be central to most of the other powers exhibited by them. The Biblical Angels never posses people though can take human form. However, they could appear as strangers to test our hospitality in Hebrews 13:2. Teleportation: They can get to any location they need to. The series brings interest here by making some areas protected by ‘Enochian sigils’ into which areas the angels cannot teleport. The sounds of wings flapping and wind blowing can be heard when they teleport. Not just themselves they have the ability to teleport other as well. Telekinesis - Angels are able to move object with their minds. “Their telekinesis is powerful enough to throw beings across a room, break a humans neck, or pin them to a wall.” Castiel who through Telekinesis was able to engrave Enochian sigils into the ribs of the brothers Winchester without tearing the flesh displayed this. Archangels can also shatter houses, windows and doors at will when they perform Telekinesis. Superhuman Strength – Hosts occupied by their Angels begin to have superhuman strength. This makes it near impossible for humans to challenge them unless they are armed with special weapons. This follows the pattern of Biblical angles who are extremely strong as indicated in Angels are strong (I Chronicles 21:16; Revelation 18:21). Killing Touch : Castiel & Uriel especially displayed this. Only the placement of hands on foreheads is necessary for angels to exorcise demons and kill them. Though limited with Angels of lower ranks and ineffective with extremely powerful demons at least the demon can be prevented from escaping. As an example “Castiel was unable to kill Alastair, a white-eyed demon. Castiel has shown that this ability can be used to prevent a demon from escaping its host and forcing the demon back into its human body”.(Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Induced Sedation: Humans can be made unconscious by placing tow fingers on the foreheads. This is displayed by Castiel & Michael. Invulnerability - “Angels enhance the endurance to pain and the immunity systems of their human vessels.” (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). They are also unaffected by ailments. They can become drunk too but it takes an excessive amount of alcohol, which would kill a human being. “An example of enhanced endurance is when Uriel was completely unfazed when Castiel punched him through a brick wall. Or when Castiel was shot by Deans shotgun and even stabbed with Rubys knife.” (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Voice Mimicry: This is evidenced in both Castiel and Anna. “Angels have the ability to sound like any human they choose as shown when Castiel perfectly mimicked Bobby Singers and Deans voice, and also when Anna mimicked John Winchester´s employer”. (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Healing - Angels can heal people they can also resurrect them. “When an angel resurrects a human, all the scars or wounds the body previously had will vanish but an imprint of the angels hand will be on the body.” (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Time Manipulation: All angels display this. They have the ability to travel back and forth in time and they can make other accompany them as well. “According to Castiel, this is one of their most powerful abilities and is extremely hard to accomplish even when connected to Heaven and when disconnected from Heaven its nearly impossible for them”. (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Host possessed by Angles stop aging immediately. Telepathy - Angels can communicate using their minds and read minds of others. They can enter the dreams of a person as well. In the series we see this portrayed by displayed by Anna, Zachariah, Castiel and Michael. Memory Manipulation: Which is portrayed by Zachariah & Michael). It is the ability to adjust humans’ memories. They implant fake memories into humans while “Zachariah showed that angels can take away all the memories of a human making him or her forget his or her entire life”. (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Immortality: common to all angels. “Although angels can be killed, they are essentially immortal due to the fact that neither disease, viruses, nor time can kill them”. (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Supernatural Perception & Senses: “Angels have the ability to sense the true faces of demons, reapers and other creatures and spirits not visible to humans.” (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Evidenced in Castiel, Anna and Lucifer. Soul reading: Which only Castiel displays. Reaching into a human’s chest does this. This procedure is said to be painful but does not leave any physical damage on a permanent basis. Photographic Memory: “According to Castiel, the name of every prophet in existence is in engraved into the memory of every angel. Castiel was able to tell that Leah, the Whore of Babylon, is not a prophet.” (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Reality Warping: Is the ability by Gabriel & Zachariah create anything out of thin air. Zachariah in one episode created advanced stages of diseases within a person. Gabriel showed by creating living beings, which were identical copies of him. Astral Projection: Castiel the only one possessing this power appeared projected at least a part identity from his hosting the episode of "Lazarus Rising". He displayed the shadows of his wings to Dean as proof of himself. The Archangels powers given below are somewhat more specialized. Pyrokinesis: Displayed by Michael & Gabriel is the ability to set things ablaze. “Michael has shown the ability to kill another angel by setting them ablaze from within. Gabriel also demonstrated this when he made flames appear on two candles just by snapping his fingers. Castiel later displayed this ability after he was resurrected by God a second time and had his angelic abilities. Cryokinesis: Lucifer freezes objects with his breath. Electrokinesis: The ability to project electricity out of oneself as when Raphael first appeared before Dean and Castiel and surges of electricity came out of his back. Molecular Combustion: which Lucifer displayed. With a snap of his fingers, Lucifer caused Casitels to explode by making his molecules speed up their movements. Weather Manipulation (displayed by Lucifer, Michael & Raphael) - When all three of these archangels arrived on Earth, they disrupted the normal weather patterns of the area they arrived in causing blackouts and disasters. Holy White Light: “This ability looks very similar to Liliths demonic white energy blast, but is far more powerful. Raphael used this ability to make Castiel explode into several small pieces. Castiel used this ability to kill several monsters at the same time”. (Wikipedia.org, Supernatural). Shape shifting: Is the ability that Archangels Posses to change their shape or form to anything or anyone they choose. Granting Invulnerability (displayed by Raphael) - Archangels are able to disburse invulnerability to angelic powers. For instance Raphael made Crowley immune to Castiels killing touch. Powers of Angels in the Bible The Biblical angels too are extremely powerful. However unlike the beings in the TV Series there power is focused and driven by a purpose. As ministering spirits, angels carry out the commands of God pertaining to the heirs of salvation. This involves warning, guiding, protecting, comforting, providing, and delivering the children of God according to His perfect will. This is exemplified in the verse “The angel of the LORD encamped round about them that fear him, and delivered them”(King James Version, Psalms 34:7). The power of the Angles in the Bible is derived from them being the army of God. Again central is God and his purposes to all this. They are so under the command of God that the meaning Gabriel is man of God (Nave 1969). A relevant question is ‘What Is the Army of God?’. In the Bible angles make up the massive army of God almost to the number of stars in the sky (Hebrews 11:12, 12:22) and the fallen angels under the authority of Lucifer make up his enemies. The army of God is also referred to as the host of heaven. Isaiah says of them in 45:12 “I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, [even] my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded”(King James Version). God commands them and when they come down to earth it is on a mission for God, and not for any other purpose as those in the TV series. We see this when they provided water for Hagar in Genesis 21:17, Rescued Lot’s family in Genesis 19, in Isaiah 37:36 when they killed 137,000 men but most famously were involved extensively in the birth of Jesus as seen in Luke I &2, and Mathew 1. These are just a few instances. Their Job description is not just in relation to God’s children but they are involved in the fight against the ungodly. They are instrumental in bringing judgment (Matthew 13:41, 49), unexpected death sudden death (II Kings 19:35; Acts 12:23), and even pestilence (II Samuel 24:15-17), but all under the command of God and not because they are capricious as seen in ‘Supernatural”. This army of God is largely invisible but can take on human form as per the need (Numbers 22:22-31) but can take on human form (Genesis 18:2-8). When they are seen to humans they inspire awe, which people understand as fear as seen in Luke 1:12 And when Zacharias saw [him], he was troubled, and fear fell upon him” KJV. Conclusion As we have discussed in this paper the angels in the TV series appear to show commonalities with the Bible, but the divergences are profound. I have stated the proof and the verses to show the conclusion of what I found in the research. The research has been somewhat more expansive than what is provided here. What was really found was that post modern and humanistic thinking is behind the portrayal of the TV series? “Humanism is naturalistic and rejects the super naturalistic stance with its postulated Creator – God and cosmic Ruler”. (Qtd in Noebel; Battle for Truth” . The most recent trend is to make the super natural a fad but still reject the creator at the center and replace one’s own ideas there. The TV series supernatural has done that successfully. Citation Page Henry, Matthew. "Commentary on Genesis 3." . Blue Letter Bible. 1 Mar 1996. 2011. 12Nov2011.
 Guzik, David. "Study Guide for Jude 1." Enduring Word.2011 Jamieson, Robert; A.R. Fausset; and David Brown. "Commentary on Daniel 12." . Blue Letter Bible. 19 Feb 2000. 2011. 12 Nov 2011.
 KJV - King James Version." Blue Letter Bible. 1996-2011. 12 Nov 2011. < http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Hbr&c=1&t=KJV. Accessed 13/11/11. Nave, Orville.The Naves Topical Bible.(Zondervan, Michigan 1969) p313 Noebel,David.The Battle for the Truth.(Harvest Oregon,2001) p53 Richards Lawrence. Encyclopedia of the Bible(Zondervan,Michigna 1991) page 42 Salem Bible Church, 11 Ermer Road, Salem, NH 03079 
Pastor Jim Delaney: http://www.salembible.org/biblestudies/issues/howtheangelsworship.htm http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Supernatural_%28TV_series%29 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernatural_Role_Playing_Game#Other_Media http://www.christcenteredmall.com/teachings/angels_7.htm Read More