i've read that angels say what they've been told to say, and the whole reason satan fell from grace was he chose his words and rebelled. so, do angels completely lack free thought? or they just obey.
i would prefer answers from believers as opposed to the generic statements of angels not exsisting
2007-11-29 04:30:07 · 20 answers · asked by kelsey.dgaf 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Are you living in the same universe or are you just visiting? no such thing as angels here.
2007-11-29 04:38:56 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
The view of Satan as a rebel, fallen angel is actually a Christian concept and not the original view of Satan held by the Jews. The original view of Satan is that he is an obedient angel that has been commanded by God to test humans.
However, in the Jewish scriptures, there ARE examples of angels that disobeyed God and rebelled against him. These angels are the "watchers" or Grigori. These angels are the ones mentioned early on in Genesis that mated with human women and spawned a race of evil giants known as the Nephilim.
So, in the Old Testament, the Grigori would be an example of angels having free thought. In the New Testament, Satan is portrayed as a rebel angel having free thought. So, according to the bible, angels do have free thought. However, obedient angels don't seem to do much of anything unless they are commanded to do it.
2007-11-29 12:45:13 · answer #2 · answered by Azure Z 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have heard from the Christians I know that Angels don't have free thought. But like you said if they don't then how could Satan have rebelled. I am actually a Muslim and according to Islam there are Jiins and Angels. Jiins have free thought and that is what Satan was. And Angels heed all of Gods commands but at the same time it may not be because of a lack of free will but because of the fact they are well aware of the existence of God and in knowing so and being in the prescence of God they would never choose to disobey him.
2007-11-29 12:34:21 · answer #3 · answered by neveroutnumbered 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Short and to the Point:
Angels have freedom of will or how you said, free thought.
It is true that sometimes they do say certain things that they were commanded to say, but thats only because they are functioning as messengers.
Freedom of deciding what to do, was what allowed Satan to rebel along with 1/3 of all the angels that existed.
2007-11-29 13:57:26 · answer #4 · answered by Vic the Poet 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Angels are individual spirits like you and I. They think, feel, laugh and cry. They are also elevated to a certain position of being God's messengers. They are faithful and obedient and carry out their assignments. When an angel is sent to deliver a message, they will go and deliver the message as directed. If one angel were sent instead of another, would the individual personalities be manifested in how the message is delivered? Perhaps yes, but the message would still be delivered as directed.
2007-11-29 12:40:02 · answer #5 · answered by rac 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have always heard that angles do not have free will, although I have no documentation to back that up with. Most of the information regarding angels does not come from the Bible proper, but from texts written later. Therefore, there really is no way to know for sure.
Personally, I'm okay with not knowing for now. I think I'll learn it when I die. I'm okay with that.
2007-11-29 12:33:59 · answer #6 · answered by SurrepTRIXus 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Angels exist and they do have free thought but unlike us they are perfect and full of love therefore don't have the desires for lust-greed-anger etc....
Fallen angels? No such thing, just lost souls so full of hate and anger that they roam the earth desperately trying to understand what is happening with their existence (Don't know they are dead) and of course the dark souls that roam the earth (By the way this has NOTHING to do with skin color) I mean the serial killers, murderer etc..Who need demonds with people like that!
2007-11-29 12:34:45 · answer #7 · answered by pura_rosa 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm not sure of the exact Latin root, but the word "angel" comes from a Latin word that means "messenger". (Latin or perhaps old Greek). Angels are the messengers of God. In all the passages in scripture that is exactly what they are doing, passing along Gods' message to mankind. They also have free will, they CHOOSE to serve God. That is where Lucifer came from, and angel that Chose NOT to serve God and his plan for mankind.
2007-11-29 12:38:45 · answer #8 · answered by keydoto 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
In shamanic practice, we just call them spirits. They do seem to have free thought. For example, when journeying to obtain a guide or guardian spirit, most practicioners ask spirits and see if they agree or not. In some healing or retrieval journeys, we may have to do a bit of bartering or tricking to get the spirits to let go of a body they are harming or soul fragment they are hoarding. This is both common anthropologically and agrees with my personal experiences.
(Of course this may all sound weird to anyone who hasn't tried the methodology, as I would have thought so too, before seeing for myself.)
2007-11-29 12:37:51 · answer #9 · answered by Tommy 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They have free thought. Just because you work as a messenger, it doesn't mean you lack your own thoughts. Satan freely chose to rebel. The other angels freely choose to serve God. God doesn't want slaves, only willing servants.
2007-11-29 12:33:32 · answer #10 · answered by An Independent 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Since everything is composed of a single substance (infinite God), then there's no room for human freewill. God's will is your will, just as it is the will of angels and demons.
2007-11-29 12:33:54 · answer #11 · answered by My Religion Is Bigger than Yours 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋