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I think because Demons are regarded as fallen angels. Such as the Devil being a fallen Angel.

just remember an Angel is just another name for a messenger - a deliverer of news (either good or bad)

Well it would seem an odd term to one who thinks of death as a bad thing. The way I see it, death is neutral, neither good or bad, simply a natural process. Thus there's nothing wrong with a "good" creature such as an angel to be associated with it.

Yes,, I can see what you are saying but, even retaining the notion of yin and yang within life and death it still doesn't sound right. I look at life that way.

Lucifer (the devil/satan) was the most beautiful angel and the highest ranking angle
I believe they were all created at the same time with individual traits based upon their purpose

temptedbyfate hit the nail on the head in their first post. Angel derives from a word that means "messenger" and therefore the "Angel of Death" is the "Messenger of Death". In a biblical sense death is not "bad" but it is not good either. It is something that just is because of mankind. The only reason people view death as bad is a) because they don't know what comes after and so they're afraid b) they think that they're afraid that they're going to the common view of what hell is c) because they mourn the loss of their loved ones or one of many other similar things. In the end it comes down to fear or loss. In a biblical sense it wasn't uncommon for angels to take life from humans because of "God's wrath".

If you're looking at it from a non=-biblical point of view, such as a guardian angel, than perhaps you could view it as an angel that comes to guide and guard your soul on it's way to "the other side".

I don't believe people should fear death - but embrace death as the next step in existence.
People fear the unknown or what may come next. Is there retribution for our evils that we've done in this life?

That is what makes "Death" seem so bad.

Agreed. I don't think death should be viewed as negative or bad, but as a natural part of life. After all, some say death isn't the end. What is there to fear?

Angels are the messengers of the Lord, they chased Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Paradise with a flaming sword, and marked the doors of those who would die during the Plagues called down upon the Egyptians. The Angel of Death ccomes and takes your hand and leads you to your reward upon your death. Guardian angels watch over you and protect you. They are not always warm and fuzzy, but go about their divine masters bidding.

well to me and Angel of death is the correct term . I mean they are the messenger / guide for one who is leaving their human form and need someone to help guide them to the here-after. so an Angel is the one I would want to help me do my transition from life to death ... I think it just depends on how one looks at death.

yes - there are different types and levels of angels...
Seraphim (4 wings)
Cherubim (2 wings)
Arch
I can't remember them all...
try this website: http://www.angelsghosts.com/types_of_angels

Angels are merely Messengers, so the Angel of Death is the "Bringer", or "Messenger" of Death.

I think it has something to do with even the good die and this way they have an angel to guide them to the afterlife or heaven or whatever it is you believe in. The Angel of Death is not so much a bad thing and a being that takes the souls of the dead to the next place.

If you look at it The Angel of Death isn't a bad Angel at all he is just there to guide the souls into the After life!

Contraditctions usually make for a lively debate lol

Personally I think most religions are fulll of contradictions.

Others have written about Angels being messengers which I go along with.

There has been a big interest in Angels in the UK in the last few years.....Angel workshops > come and get to know your personal Angel even.

I wonder if in twenty years or so this interest will throw up a more modern myth ?

Most people including myself are pretty ignorant regarding the histoy of religion.

It seems we pick something up and run with it if it pleases us.

Another way of looking at it is for those that suffer. To them the release of this life is a sought after event.

Still the idea has been stated that the angel is nothing more than a messenger, this along with the times death is a good thing should be considered.

There're historical references to the angel of death

In the old testament, the Jewish slaves marked their doorways so the angel of death would keep walking (and take the children of their oppresors (Egyptians) .

Catholic/Christian religion is full of holes and contradictions.. many others are as well. Expecting blind faith to carry people through and do not think too much!

Angels can be just messengers.. they have their hierarchy - that web site is a good one to check on it.

Remember the movie The Prophecy with Christopher Walken as Gabriel? An excellent show of angels and Lucifer as the fallen angel that he is.

Messenger that comes to a person when it is their time to 'die' and leave their mortal body behind and for their soul to ascend or descend.

To have a preaching moment... the angel of death was an old testament thing that god went through.... he had attitude problems and the Angel of Death did the dirty work... he's considered an angel because he is god's soldier....

if there is angels of good or better putted maybe angels of light. so do i belive there also is angels of darkness /evil. I dont see any reason to why it wouldent.

Angels were also said to be God's warriors as well as messengers so I don't see how they could be all warm and fuzzy types and fighters too. Oddly enough I saw a poll once that had twice as many people believing in Angels as ones that believe in God.

If Lucifer fell, why not others as well now serving as angels of Hell for lack of a better term?

In the movie, The Prophecy, angels are beings, not people who once lived. They are messengers, soldiers, and not without some human emotions.

The movie City of Angels, they were messengers of death, only to be seen by those who were about to die. Some could feel their presence and only could be seen if the angel so wished it. They could also choose to "fall from Heaven" and become human.

But basically, an angel is whatever anyone would wish them to be in their own minds.

Angels like others have said are messengers or solidiers of the higher powers, they may infact be on both sides of the spectrum.

If Death was just the next step to the life that comes after, then the Angel of Death is a guide there.

Angel of Death is not an oxymoron in any way. Tell me... who says 'angels' are always good? If you are a Theologian, you find that it's just not the case.

There are several references to the Angel of Death in biblical materials. Wikipedia gives lots of information.

The angel of death was sent to egypt by God to deliver death to all first born sons at the time; It is written moroni came as a mist in the night and all first born dies as was fortold by moses, its in the bible.

well I see this as the angel that comes and gets u when u die and tries to show u where the white light is so u can pass to the other side

I find it interesting that some people in here keep bringing up Satan and the fallen angels. I was raised Christian and in Christian religion, the angel of death has absolutely nothing to do with Satan and the fallen angels. God created the angel of death and the angel of death obeys God. God send the angel of death for those who are meant to die. Death is not a bad thing. It is natural. All humans die. We grow old and we die. Assuming nothing happens to cause an earlier death.

Now, religion aside, isn't the idea of an angel coming to escort you to your final resting place much better than being forced to find it all on your own? Death happens. It's part of life. I for one, would like an angel to appear to take me rather than going it alone. I guess it all depends on how you look at it. I see nothing wrong with the term "angel of death". I don't find it to be an oxymoron at all. I find it rather comforting to be honest.

I will say that in the old testament of the Bible, the angel of death was more scary. The Angel of Death was often reffered to as 'the right hand of God'. For good reason too, considering God sent this angel to wipe out a lot of people. Either way though, the Angel of Death and Satan are not connected.

Demons were cast out angels who went with lucifer when he was banished. The concept of a death angel goes back a long ways. it was particularly potent during times of plagues or pestilence. See or read Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allen Poe.

The Angel of death is there to confort u in your time of death

Oh I whole heartedly agree that the "angel of death" has nothing to do with the Christian religion.... all over the world there are harbringers of death... just some being that got the job of going to each person and tell them it's time to die.

Angels are spirit guides be them good or bad. They have a purpose. "angel of death" is just opposite a "guardian angel" etc.

Wow. This got very interesting. The various responses and opinions are very interesting. It didn't occur to me that Lucifer, the fallen angel in the bible could be linked at all with this. I didn't think about that.

But, I am more partial to the idea of messanger angels just doing their job. But I am very interested in see what others have to say.

As others have said, Lucifer is a fallen angel.

Being an angel doesn't neccessarily mean being good.

There are good and bad angels thats why. Angel of death doesnt need to nessicarly mean something bbad, many think that death is such a horrible sad thing (which it is sad) Doesnt mean death is a bad thing. Its the cycle of life and just like being born dieing is soemthing that must happen, so whether taking it good or bad is depended on the person. Angel of death, the grim reaper w.e could either be good or bad. Maybe depending on the soul?

I've seen a few really good answers in here but this is my opinion..for what it's worth :)

Death is nothing to be afraid, saddened or troubled by. It is a path we all must take one day. An Angel of Death is simply the one who helps us take that new path, a path of higher life.

For me, when my time has come, I will welcome this bringer of eternal life, this Angel of Death.

Angel of Death was messenger of God in the bible when Moses was calling the plauges to take the people out of Egypt.

My personal opinon, the angel of death is another term, loosely held, for the Holy Spirit or Gaberial, the first archangel of God.

The angel of death is differently used in all catagories of religon, so I couldn't give you a complete and well rounded answer. All I can give you is the christian belief. =p

well i dont know much about this but i think angel of death is a angel that carries your soul to heaven or hell

The idea of an angel comming at death to lead you on is a comforting ideal.

If you want to see an interesting take on it, watch the movie Prophecy.

Christopher Walken plays Gabriel who is in fact the Angel of Death in some interpretations of the biblical angels.

Not only is he a bit mean spirited but he's not interested in human happiness at all (referring to them as talking monkeys) He'll certainly give you pause before assuming that all angels are good and have our best interests at heart.

When Lucifer and others were cast out of Heaven, they still retained the term "angel", since afterall, they were angels from Heaven.

After being cast into Hell, they became known as Angels of Death.

The Angel of Death has always been and always will be the Angel that conveys the soul to the next realm. The Angel of Death has always been a guide.

The Grim Reaper is a soul collector and does the same job, but because many humans fear death, they have made this into something terrifying and something to fear.

here is a simple reason
1) death is not a good or bad thing, it is just a process. so it is simple for there to b an angle of death

As with previous posts, "Death" is a natural phenomenon. You cannot really categorize it as being good or bad. Angels of Death are but the physical manifestations of the concept of Death. In my opinion, one way of coping the event of Death would be to personify it or to give it a more visual manifestation; thus we have (one of these forms) the Angel of Death.

Oh, and as for cultures that associate angels with Death, I previously started a similar thread that generated responses discussing such.

Felix, just the movie I've mentioned already in that it portrays a more 'real' view on angels and hiearchy.

Felix Edit: You did and I apologize for being redundant. Although I don't know that it's a 'real' view but it is an interesting alternate perspective to the more accepted one of angels as pretty pretty happy lovey dovey beings :)

Didn't mean to hit enter.....

all people are equal in the eyes of death...hence how danse macabre began during the Middle Ages. People danced and played happy music while walking the streets dressed as skeletons and such... it was a celebration of life and when death comes, then go willingly. Death does not care if you are a peasant or a king.

Angel of death...

To me this saying is not contradicting for the many reasons

Angel doesn't mean all light and happiness... Look at Lucifer he was once an angel until he fell....
Actully in mytohology there are many angels that have fallen and our now not so called "good"

However, the angel of death... I look at it this way... for out world to be balanced we need life and death... humans bring us into life and the ANGEL OF DEATH lets people know when there time on earth is over and he SHOWS us the way to were we need to go.. The angel of death is not an evil creature that goes on killing spreas he shows the dead where they need to go... how is that bad or contradiction??

It is that when it is your time, it's your time - just accept and follow to the next realm. Live life and make good use of what you have because you never know when death will be knocking on your door.

The movie City of Angels had an interesting view on 'angels of death'

Angel of Death ?!

”David looked up and saw the angel of the LORD standing between heaven and earth, with a drawn sword in his hand extended over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown” Isaiah 37:36 says, “Then the angel of the LORD went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning — there were all the dead bodies!

I suppose the terms might sound contradicting depending on our thoughts of what we see as the meaning for words, but regardless of terminology the outcome is always the same.

Islamic lore has it that the angel Azrael wept for being assigned to the task of taking mens souls.

well whether the angel of Death is good or bad he is still there to take / guide the dead on their journey plain and simple.

It is believed to be many different meanings in many different countries as well as the Religions so... I feel however one wants to percieve it is totally up to them and I feel they are soldiers of God and when it is time to go well.... it is time to go . We just have to accept it and I think the Angel of death helps us do that.. just my opinion.

The angel of death is just that a angel of death. He is god's servent in that matter, to deal with those who die and to put them in their rightful place, be it heaven hell, or purgatory.

These posts have been interesting to read. As for myself, I agree it is a strange sounding term and almost like an oxymoron, but it is still a fitting title. I believe that there are angels all around us. Each has their own job to do. Some are here to protect us and guide us. I think the angel of Death is here to help to take us to the next level of our lives.

The devil was the most beautiful angel in heaven and one of god's most trusted, but he rose against god because he thought he could do a better job....


But death isn't a bad thing, and it should not be attributed with evil. The angel of death is a pure being that will take a suffering soul onto it's final resting place and that is a beautiful and good thing. It's not damning the soul to hell it's just ferrying it to its destined place. So no it's not an oxymoron. The Angel Of Death Helps us move to the next chapter of our souls and it could end suffering and pain

I beleve angel is seen as a messanger or servent of God. An angel of Death would simply be one of Gods servents bringing death.

God has angels for all sorts of things, death is only one. Quick trivia... does anyone know who the prosecuting angle is? Here's a hint it's the same one Jacob beat up.

Very interesting thread. Yeah I think I would agree that they are both forms of messengers of sorts.

Just like humans, angels have jobs. We have people to care for the and angels have theirs.

so im assuming there is more than one angel of death?and i wonder if you actually see him/her

This is similar to the question about possession. As humans capable of only really one direct thought in a moment, it's difficult to understand much less believe in the ability of anything else to do more. However, angels (from what we are told) are amazing beings with vast powers beyond our own...watching over billions of people. Why wouldn't one of those vast powers be a consciousness that could handle more than one thought at a time or even being in more than one place at a time.

The other side to that is of course that by christian standards, there is supposed to be billions of angels (more than stars in the sky I believe is a phrase used in the past for this number) and such an innumerable amount of angels could have lesser ones acting as 'minor' angels of death to keep things moving along at a steady pace :)

the angel of death brings you to the gates of heaven to be judged.

Angels can be dark and light..good or bad,or a mixture perhaps. Lucifer was a fallen angel.

They can also be neither.

I don't believe that the angel of death causes you to die they just take you away after you are already dead. they are more like a guide to your final destination.

But if it was caled monster of death it wouldnt be so appealing

I the confusion comes in because you have heard all these tales throughout life, what an 'angel' is, what good is, what bad is. Angels can be good, bad, or indifferent. Death doesn't have to be a bad thing. An ending can be a rebirth.

Kitsuna, you 'associate angels with "greater good'... but a study in Theology would give you a whole other perspective where you would find angels in many different roles.

Why are you associating death with something bad if you believe in angels at all? Assuming you believe in a afterlife with angels involved... you likly believe in a god and heaven... if you lived a good life death is a good thing.

The only thing to fear in death is nothing being afterward.

On angels being messengers.... they are God's messengers... not just a messenger in general...

There are both good and bad angels, as many people have pointed out on here, Lucifer and his demons ARE fallen angels.
Death is just the ending of someones life on earth, The people who believe in "the angel of death" also believe that once you die you go to heaven, thus death to them is a good thing because you would then go to "A better place"

Bizarre, but in my mind I view the Angel of Death as the Grimreaper!

No I believe the reaper and teh angle are something sompletely different.

Maybe ..but there are Angels of death so perhaps these Angels have names, like the Grim Reaper, Banshee or whatever :)

yes i see it like that but if you want to look at it in a different way the angle could only take the lives od the wicked and the sick that way it will be the greater good

and to answer another persons question depending on the legand satan is either god other son that thought he could run heaven better or he was just an angle that tried to over throw god

I suppose depending on your belief the reaper could be The angel of death, but most of the time they are not considered one and the same. The angel of death is never pictured as the reaper. so there :P

I dont think the angel is necissarily a bad angel or demon it has just been publisized as such. Whose to say the angel of death isnt just another spirit that takes us beyond the realm of the flesh?

I guess that one would have to start with the idea that death was a bad thing. If one believes in an afterlife, death is a transition and not necessarily evil.

The Angel of Death is just doing a job, helping people transition.

xXVampire -

But angels could also be something more than messengers of a god.

The Angel of Death is Gabriel the Arch Angel. The reason for there being a angel of death is the fact that life needs to be controlled and weeded out. If you are evil why not take thine life from you? If you are referring to the Christian angel that is?

death is an extension to our lives....who knows it may lead us to something even better. ive always thought angels were messenger...

The angel of death reflects man’s ambivalent nature toward death, as death is very difficult for many of us to cope with. The angel of death, or grim reaper as he is sometimes called, allows us to embody the concept of death into a tangible creature.

The idea of the angel of death is thousands of years old. The angel of death is or has been identified with Satan, and it is said that when Eve touched the tree of knowledge, she perceived the angel of death, and thought: "Now I shall die, and God will create another wife for Adam."

Well I am not sure exactly how much you know about angels from your post but if you read up on them a great many where not kind or gental creatchers most where to do dirty work as it were.

If you want to dig deeper then Lucifer him self was once an Angel and so were many of his henchmen.