BOOK REVIEW - Encyclopedia of Angels
Mike
978-0-7387-1462-2 262 pages Paperback $21.95 (U.S.) $25.50 (Canada)
A few centuries ago this book would have been: a) invaluable; b)
impossible to produce; and c) the result of years of painstaking
research and writing in the scriptorium of some European monastery.
Of course, as an encyclopedia, it is intended primarily as a reference
work and is not meant to be “read”. Consequently, my review is based
on an overview of the work based on a number of entries with which I
am familiar.
This is an extensive, though by no means comprehensive, listing of
angels, their attributes, works and assorted facts. The total number
of angels in existence, according to some authorities, is in the
vicinity of four BILLION (!), so a comprehensive listing is quite out
of the question.
Of course, among the angels listed are many who sided with Satan
during the rebellion in heaven. Despite the fact that they are
considered to be demons at this time, they started their existence as
angels. Excluded from the listing are the majority of Enochian Magick
angels, which would need their own volume to deal with properly. Also
excluded are those angels about whom nothing except their name is
known.
One thing which becomes apparent as one studies angels (as many in the
New Age community do) is that there is often serious disagreement
about the name, function, and even rank of various members of the
angelic hierarchy. Some of these were caused by translations (a
number of early Middle Eastern languages were written without the use
of vowels); while some are based on differing opinions of authorities
(Dante and John Milton have very different opinions regarding
Beelzebub). This can lead to a certain amount of confusion.
As well as containing information on hundreds of angelic beings from
Abrahamic and non-Abrahamic cultures there is information on the ranks
of angels (choirs, dominions, thrones, etc.), sources of information
(writers, books, and religions), and various other data. All of this
is result of years of study and research being condensed down into a
usable size and format. While angelology is not a main interest of
mine (it is of several close acquaintances, however) I recognize its
appeal to a large number of individuals today.
The appendix includes three separate invocations for guardian angels.
If you are interested in angelology this is a worthwhile addition t6o
your library. I would not, necessarily, class it as the best book I
have read on the subject, but it is easy to use and the index expands
its usefulness.
paul...@verizon.net
> your library. I would not, necessarily, class it as the best book I
> have read on the subject, but it is easy to use and the index expands
> its usefulness.
Have to look this one over, but the best I've come across remains
Davidson's, entitled A Dictionary of Angels.
Damaeus
Mike <gleaso...@comcast.net> posted the following message
on Mon, 23 Mar 2009 10:29:46 -0700 (PDT):
> Encyclopedia of Angels by Richard Webster © 2009 Llewellyn ISBN:
> 978-0-7387-1462-2 262 pages Paperback $21.95 (U.S.) $25.50 (Canada)
>
> A few centuries ago this book would have been: a) invaluable; b)
> impossible to produce; and c) the result of years of painstaking
> research and writing in the scriptorium of some European monastery.
Such a book does not have to be accurate, only imaginative and logical for
its cast of characters and behaviors to be used within the mind as yeast
to help the person's awareness rise.
Damaeus
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