Gender of angels

Although most theologians in the cultures mentioned above (Latter-day Saints excepted; see above) would agree that angels are technically genderless in the normal human sense, all references in the Jewish, Christian and other holy writings mentioned above give angels a masculine aspect; for example, angels are given tasks such as warrior, herald, guard (at the gates of Eden), wrestler (of Jacob), mover of large stones (at the tomb of Christ), which in traditional societies would all have been tasks typically performed by men. The few canonical names of angels (e.g., Michael, Gabriel and Lucifer) are recognized in most cultures as masculine names. In languages with gender markings for nouns, the word "angel" is uniformly a masculine noun, including in the original Hebrew, Greek and Latin texts referred to above. In cultures where the proper name "Angel" is given to children, the name "Angel" is typically given to boys (girl's versions of the name include "Angela" and "Angelina"). The word "angel" in English, French, German, Spanish, and many other European languages is derived from the Latin angelus, a masculine noun.

In art, however, angels are always beautiful, which tends to mean their features are often rather feminine - even for warrior archangels, their hair is usually long, and their figures somewhat slight. In European medieval and Renaissance paintings of the Annunciation the archangel is usually depicted as noticeably more attractive than Mary - she could not be painted in a way that might inspire lustful thoughts, whilst no such problem arose with a genderless angel. Angels in art become more sexually differentiated from the nineteenth century, after which breasts and masculine figures and haircuts appear. In modern Western culture, many angels are depicted as having female figures, facial features and names, and many New Age practitioners speak of masculine and feminine angels.

 

Angels in the Tanakh  Appearance of angels  Angels Purpose  Angels of the Old Testament   New Testament Angels 

Islamic Angels    Latter-Day Saint Angels  Gender of angels  Hierarchy of Angels  

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