Up until now I had decided to avoid doing any research about angels. I thought that it would be best to just receive and accept what comes so that I wasn't confusing what I was getting with what other people had found to be true. My prior understanding of angels came only from the biblical perspective, so it wasn't like I had much knowledge of angel lore before I started to see them and talk to them (in early November of this year).

I am now more comfortable with the fact that I see and talk to angels (as well as other spirits). I don't feel as if I need to validate my experiences with Spirit, but it seems that other people need a point of reference. Having completely accepted that this is real for me, I decided it was time to start reading.

I studied the Bible extensively when I was young, so there was no need for me to re-read it. For example, I am well aware that the Bible states that there are fallen angels. Christianity states that Lucifer was created as an archangel and that he chose to fall away from God. From there he became known as Satan or the Devil. Later in the Bible it states that Satan can choose to appear as an angel of light. This is where many fundamental Christians get concerned about communicating directly with spirit. Personally, I think that even if it was Satan that appeared as an angel of light it wouldn't matter as long as the message given was one of love and positivity for all! Christianity comes from the point of view that Satan would appear to you as an angel of light to deceive you and mislead you in some way. Bottom line, no matter what kind of spirit you encounter if the message is anything less than good you just move on. I am no more at risk from an evil or "bad" spirit than I am from a human with wicked intentions.

The Bible is only one source of angel lore. Judaism is ripe with stories of angels as well as Muslim history and even Paganism shares stories of angels. In other words, the Christians don't own the angels. Angels appear throughout history in many forms and in many religions. There are even Native American stories about the "winged people". It is fascinating to learn about all of this!

One of my friends gave me a book called The Dictionary of Angels by Gustav Davidson. He researched angels for many years and found that much of angel lore is confusing because the stories of angels change so much. There are a few points in his book though that resonated with the experiences that I've had. First, he states that the archangel Michael has over a hundred names and is most commonly known in many traditions as Metatron. Other archangels are known to have many names or the same names spelled different ways. Sandalphon is a known archangel, but in Arabaic history his name is spelled Sandolfon. When I read this I was amazed! This was the name that was given to me by the gold angel that appeared to me over the Thanksgiving holiday! I had trouble understanding his name and thought it might have been Sandifer, but I knew that I wasn't saying it or spelling it correctly. Previously, I had no idea that there was an angel known as Sandalphon (this is the more common spelling, but the Arabaic spelling resonated more with me).

There were three other angel names that I was given that appear in this Dictionary of Angels. Gadiel, Gadriel and Daniel. Of course, this book is just one persons research and experience. Just as my experience is very personal. It was just delightful for me to read something about someone else that shared very similar experiences as me.

Some traditions believe that even fallen angels are still under the direction of God. Yet others believe that Satan was merely an adversary and this meaning is very different from the view of Satan in Christianity. The Christian view is to fear Satan and it almost gives him as much power as God, which most traditions repudiate. In any case, all things are possible.

I have Lutheran, Catholic and Jewish friends that have been extremely supportive of me during this very bizarre time. Even when they've had concerns they've been willing to ask questions and have discussions with me. I can't express enough how immensely important this has been for me. I thank them very much for being so dear!

This is a wonderful journey. A Merry Christmas to you all.
Cheryl