Devotion to St. Michael the Archangel

Devotions

Veneration of the archangel Scripture names as leader of the heavenly host and defender of the Church against the devil.

Devotion to St. Michael the Archangel honors him as prince of the heavenly host and defender of the Church, drawing on his appearances in the Books of Daniel and Revelation and the Letter of Jude. The devotion is firmly rooted in Scripture rather than private revelation, though a few related practices, like the Chaplet of St. Michael, trace to later reported origins.

Quick Facts

Category: Holy Angels — Angelic Devotions
Origin: biblical veneration of St. Michael as prince of the heavenly host, developed through liturgy and popular piety
Associated saint: Holy Angels / Archangels
Country: Universal Church
Feast: September 29 (Ss. Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, Archangels)
Church status: an established Catholic devotion, rooted in Scripture
Private revelation: not dependent on private revelation; some related chaplets have later reported origins

What Is This Devotion?

Devotion to St. Michael honors him, whose Hebrew name means “Who is like God?”, as God’s warrior-angel — defender of the Church and of the faithful against the devil, invoked for protection, courage in spiritual struggle, and a peaceful death. The devotion is expressed through his September 29 feast, a litany, a chaplet, and a medal, along with the widely known prayer composed by Pope Leo XIII, covered in more depth on our separate page about that prayer.

Origin and History

Michael appears by name in the Book of Daniel as “the great prince” who protects God’s people (Daniel 10:13, 10:21, 12:1), in the Letter of Jude disputing with the devil, and in Revelation 12, where “Michael and his angels fought against the dragon.” Veneration of Michael is ancient, including notable early shrine traditions such as Monte Gargano in southern Italy, one of the oldest sites of Christian pilgrimage connected to his name. For centuries Michael’s September 29 feast, sometimes called Michaelmas, was celebrated separately from those of Gabriel (March 24) and Raphael (October 24); the 1969 liturgical calendar reform combined all three into a single shared feast on September 29. Among later devotional developments is the Chaplet of St. Michael, traditionally traced to an eighteenth-century request reported by a Portuguese religious sister, Antónia d’Astonac, honoring the nine choirs of angels.

Catholic Theology

Angels are pure spirits created to serve God and assist in the work of salvation. Michael specifically is understood in Catholic theology as leading the good angels against Satan, a sign, drawn from Revelation 12, of God’s ultimate and already-assured victory over evil in Christ. His Hebrew name, rendered in Latin as “Quis ut Deus” (“Who is like God?”), is traditionally read as a defiant rebuke of Satan’s pride, and Catholic devotion sees a continuity between Daniel’s portrait of Michael as protector of God’s people and his role as defender of the Church, God’s people in the New Covenant. Devotion to Michael is always situated within trust in Christ’s victory — never as a separate power operating apart from it.

How to Practice It

Pray the Chaplet of St. Michael or his litany.
Recite the Prayer to St. Michael daily or after Mass, by local custom.
Wear a St. Michael medal as a sacramental reminder of his protection — a support for faith, not a shield that works automatically.
Keep the September 29 feast and ask his intercession especially in times of temptation or spiritual struggle.
Ask his intercession for the dying, drawing on the Church’s traditional association of Michael with leading souls toward the light of God at the hour of death.

Associated Prayers

When It’s Observed

September 29 is kept as a Feast — a higher liturgical rank appropriate to the archangels — honoring Michael together with Gabriel and Raphael on the General Roman Calendar, a universal observance throughout the Latin Church.

Church Status

Devotion to St. Michael is an established Catholic devotion with a firm scriptural foundation. As with all angelic devotion, the Church’s consistent guardrail applies: public veneration stays within the angels Scripture and Tradition actually recognize, and does not extend into naming or venerating angels beyond that recognition.

Private Revelation

Devotion to Michael and his September 29 feast rest on Scripture, not on private revelation. The popular Chaplet of St. Michael, however, traces to an eighteenth-century reported request from the archangel to a religious sister in Portugal. As with any such tradition, this is pious history rather than binding doctrine, and no Catholic is required to accept that reported origin in order to pray the chaplet with genuine devotion.

Common Misconceptions

“St. Michael is just a symbol, not a real being.”

Catholic teaching holds that angels, Michael included, are real created persons, not mere literary symbols or metaphors for good.

“Wearing a St. Michael medal makes me immune to harm.”

A medal is a sacramental sign supporting faith and prayer; it is never a guarantee of protection that operates automatically, apart from a life of grace.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Michael called an “archangel”?

Archangel designates a rank of angel with a particular mission of significance in salvation history; Scripture identifies Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael by name as archangels.

What does the name Michael mean?

It comes from Hebrew and is traditionally translated as “Who is like God?” — understood as a defiant question posed against the pride of Satan.

What is the Chaplet of St. Michael?

A devotional prayer honoring the nine choirs of angels, traditionally traced to an eighteenth-century request reported to a Portuguese religious sister.

Why do Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael share one feast day?

The 1969 reform of the liturgical calendar combined what had been three separate feasts into a single shared celebration of all three archangels on September 29.

Is Michael mentioned in the Old Testament?

Yes — the Book of Daniel names him as “the great prince” who protects God’s people, well before his appearance in the Letter of Jude and the Book of Revelation in the New Testament.