Angels: Messengers of the Gods (Art and Imagination)

Rating:
Summary: Angels in the Western Religious Traditions
Review: In this book, Peter L. Wilson explores the meaning of angels in ancient Egyptian and Greek thought and in traditional Jewish, Christian, and Muslim spirituality. Interspersed with photos and color plates throughout, this book is a visually engaging introduction to the topic. Juxtaposing parallels from different traditions, he shows the several "jobs" angels can have (dispenser of grace, warrior against evil, guardian of souls, etc.). Wilson writes with the perspective of three millennia, and so the discussion has an intelligence, a depth, and a complexity often conspicuously absent in current writings on angels. This is a fascinating and stimulating introduction to the history and philosophical speculation behind the idea of angels.

Rating:
Summary: Angels in the Western Religious Traditions
Review: In this book, Peter L. Wilson explores the meaning of angels in ancient Egyptian and Greek thought and in traditional Jewish, Christian, and Muslim spirituality. Interspersed with photos and color plates throughout, this book is a visually engaging introduction to the topic. Juxtaposing parallels from different traditions, he shows the several "jobs" angels can have (dispenser of grace, warrior against evil, guardian of souls, etc.). Wilson writes with the perspective of three millennia, and so the discussion has an intelligence, a depth, and a complexity often conspicuously absent in current writings on angels. This is a fascinating and stimulating introduction to the history and philosophical speculation behind the idea of angels.