ARTIST: Br. Robert Lentz, OFM
ARTWORK NARRATIVE:
According to the ancient Christian tradition, there are nine ranks of angels. The word "angel" comes from the Greek word for "messenger", and most angels either watch over human beings and the rest of creation or bring human beings messages from God. The Cherubim and Seraphim are different. As the highest ranks of angels, they ceaselessly praise the Holy Trinity. The Seraphim are depicted with six wings, based on descriptions in the Bible, such as Isaiah 8: 1-6. They are usually red, the color of fire.
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Seraph, plural seraphim, in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic literature, celestial being variously described as having two or three pairs of wings and serving as a throne guardian of God. Often called the burning ones, seraphim in the Old Testament appear in the Temple vision of the prophet Isaiah as six-winged creatures praising God in what is known in the Greek Orthodox church as the Trisagion ("Thrice Holy"): "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory" (Isaiah 6:3). In Christian angelology the seraphim are the highest-ranking celestial beings in the hierarchy of angels.