Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle.
Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host,
by the Divine Power of God,
cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who roam throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Saint Michael makes a great general in this fight between Christ and Satan for our souls! After all, we read in Revelation (12:7-9) that “there was a great battle in heaven; Michael and his angels fought with the dragon…and that great dragon…who is called the devil and Satan, who seduces the whole world…was cast unto the earth, and his angels [the demons] were thrown down with him.”
Saint Michael’s very name (in Hebrew, Micha’el meaning “Who is like God?”) denotes the war cry uttered in that battle. Note that when we talk about Satan or the devil here we are also referring to his “army” of fallen angels, the evil spirits referred to in the Saint Michael prayer.
As a special patron and protector of the Church, St. Michael has been assigned to fight against Satan; to protect faithful souls from him, especially at their death; to champion God’s people; and, further along this line, to escort them to their judgment.
Pope Leo XIII saw to it that the Saint Michael prayer was recited after every low Mass throughout the world.
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