This coming Sunday is the feast of St Michael & All Angels, or Michaelmas as it’s more commonly known. We’re used to hearing ‘Would you be an angel and . . . ‘ prefacing a request for a favour, but ‘Be an angel’ can also be seen as the vocation of cathedrals, particularly when it refers to three of the angels who make appearances in the Bible: Gabriel, Raphael and Michael.
Gabriel is best known from the annunciation scene, telling Mary that the Lord is with her and that she will give birth to God’s Son. According to the Cathedral’s constitution and statutes, part of its purpose is to be a ‘centre of mission’…