Sermon – Feast of the Holy Guardian Angels​ – October 2, 2026

If listening to an apostle of Christ is equivalent to listening to Christ, then the apostle of Christ takes Christ's place. Therefore, he is the apostle of Christ. In ancient times, the apostle served as the king's representative; everything done to the apostle was considered as if it had been done to the king.

Therefore, Christ appoints us as His apostles, saying, "He who listens to you listens to me, and he who rejects you rejects me" (Lk 10:16). From this, our extremely weighty duty arises: to be like Him, to act like Him, to be other Messiahs; for this is what it means to be a Christian: to be another Messiah.

To act like Jesus, we need a great deal of help. One of the sources of help we have is our guardian angel. But how does a guardian angel act? Saint Thomas Aquinas answers this question: In his work on angels, he states that the protection of angels is directly related to the workings of Divine Providence.

God governs all of creation, and one way He exercises this will is through secondary causes: to achieve a particular effect, He uses created things as tools, just as a carpenter uses a hammer to drive nails or a comb to straighten hair.

In the spiritual realm, God governs lower beings through higher ones; angels, using their superior intelligence, advise, guide, and direct humans in their pursuit of good . As Saint Thomas reminds us, angels cannot directly force our minds or eliminate our free will. Instead, they offer us sacred ideas; they present these blessings, but never impose them.

Saint Alfonso offers invaluable advice on how both priests and lay people should cooperate with these heavenly protectors.

He advises priests that a confessor should never enter the confessional without first invoking his own Guardian Angel and the Guardian Angels of the confessors.

The angel of the penitent works internally to guide the sinner's heart toward sincere repentance and honest confession; the angel of the priest, meanwhile, imparts wisdom to the priest to offer the appropriate spiritual remedy to the confessor.

As for secular people: When faced with a difficult or tense conversation—especially when dealing with someone who is angry or reluctant—they should pray to that person's Guardian Angel beforehand.

Because that person's angel always wishes them true spiritual well-being, they will help prepare their heart and mind to accept truth and love .

Ultimately, we should pray to our guardian angels and listen to them. This applies to all of us: Listen to your Guardian Angel.

The Almighty God has bestowed upon us these heavenly companions not as passive observers, but as active guides to lead us toward a greater good.

God offers us opportunities for growth through these heavenly helpers; let us follow their inspiration so that God may guide us to ever higher spiritual heights.

Let us ask for this favor from the Blessed Virgin Mary.