Uriel

Uriel (in Hebrew "God is my light" or "fire of God"), called Uriil in Romanian, is an archangel honoured in Orthodox tradition, above all the Slavic one, among the seven archangels. He is not a saint with an earthly life but a bodiless power, and what is known of him comes from non-⁠canonical writings and from liturgical tradition. The Synaxis of the archangels is kept on 8 November by the old calendar (21 November on the new style).

The name and the sources

The name is explained as "fire of God", and in later times it was linked with "light", partly because a tradition says Uriel enlightened Ezra. The canonical books of the Bible do not mention him. He appears in the book called Third Ezra in the Slavic tradition, which is not part of the canon, as the angel sent by God to teach the prophet Ezra and to explain the hidden ways of the Lord.

The story is told in the Russian sources. Ezra is told to weigh the weight of fire, to measure the breath of the wind and to bring back a day that has passed. When he answers that no man can do these things, the angel shows him that he cannot grasp even what is nearest to him, much less the way of the Most High. Then he shows him a burning furnace that passes, leaving smoke, and a cloud full of water that pours out, leaving drops. The Orthodox reading sees in this the nearness of the coming of the Saviour, since less time remains than has gone by.

Uriel also appears in the apocryphal Book of Enoch, as one of the holy angels set over thunder and earthquake, who accompanies Enoch and gives him explanations. There he is also sent to warn Noah of the flood to come. These books are not part of the Church's teaching, and in apocryphal, kabbalistic and occult writings his name has been confused with that of other angels.

Veneration in the Church

Orthodox tradition, especially the Russian, names the seven archangels who stand before the throne of God: Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Selaphiel, Jegudiel and Barachiel. Canonical Scripture names Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, the last in the Book of Tobit. The names of the others come from uninspired writings and from liturgical tradition. The Synaxis of the Archangel Michael and the other bodiless powers is kept on 8 November, and every Monday of the year the services are dedicated to the angels.

The Russian sources call Uriel the enlightener of those in darkness and the guide of those who have gone astray, who kindles hearts with the love of God. For this reason he is counted a patron of scholars and men of learning. A further tradition says he was set to guard paradise after the expulsion of Adam, but Genesis 3:24 speaks of cherubim, so this is an interpretation of tradition.

On icons the archangel is painted holding a drawn sword in the right hand, at the chest, and a flame of fire in the left, lowered. The image shows his zeal for God. The Jews count him among the four angels named in the night prayer before sleep, and the Ethiopian Church honours him in July. He has also entered art and literature, among others in the tragedies of Joost van den Vondel and in John Milton's "Paradise Lost", where he is the ruler of the sun.