Saint Raphael the Archangel
Feast day: 29 September
The archangel Raphael only appears in one book of the Old Testament, namely the Book of Tobit, written about the second century BC. The story has connections with folk tales about “The Dead Helper”, some of which are older than the book of Tobit - the theme is that someone gives an honourable burial to a body and the grateful spirit becomes their protector. In this case the spirit is the angel Raphael. The good old man Tobit is living as an exile in the city of Nineveh where, unlike his fellow exiles, he observes all the Jewish law and performs deeds of charity, particularly burying the dead; in doing do he incurs the wrath of the despotic king. It is on one of these occasions that Tobit, having buried somebody who had been murdered, went to sleep in the courtyard of his house and sparrow droppings fell into his eyes, so that he lost his sight. At a similar time Sarah, daughter of a kinsman of Tobit, was bewailing the fact that she had been married seven times and each time the bridegroom had been killed on the wedding night by the jealous demon Asomodeus. Both Tobit and Sarah prayed to God.
Not only did God hear their prayers but he brought happiness out of their misery by uniting the two families. He sent the angel Raphael (whose name means “God heals”) to Tobias, son of Tobit, who had been instructed by his father to go to Media to collect a sum of money which he had left with a man there. Raphael, appearing as the youth Azariah, agreed to accompany him on his journey as he claimed he knew the way there. On the journey Tobias was attacked by a big fish but Raphael instructed Tobias to catch the fish and take out its gall, liver and heart. They then went off to Media where they stayed the night with Raguel, father of Sarah. Since Tobias was the nearest relative he was entitled to Sarah’s hand in marriage. Raphael instructed Tobias to smoke the heart and liver of the fish and this drove the demon away. Tobias and Sarah then prayed together before spending the night in safety as man and wife. Raphael, having collected the sum of money owed to Tobit, returned home with the couple. Tobias cured his father’s blindness by smearing the gall of the fish on his eyes.
At the wedding feast the angel revealed his true identity as “one of the seven who stand ready and enter before the glory of the Lord.” He then vanished as he was no longer needed by the couple; they for their part lived happily with their children to a ripe old age.
You will see Raphael and Tobias in Galway Cathedral - stand in the nave facing the altar, and they are portrayed in the second clerestory window on the right (over the bookshop).
St Raphael’s feast day is September 29, when the archangels Michael and Gabriel are also remembered.
St Raphael, healer and travelling companion, pray for us.