Novena of Saint Cyprian 2018 Day 7: Invocation of Archangel Michael

By Frater S.C.F.V.

On this Seventh Day of my 2018 Novena to Saint Cyprian of Antioch, September 23, 2018, I arose and performed a ritual bath and worship. I listened to a sermon and attended Church, where I encountered an amusing synchronicity — the same passage from Micah that I had prayed the night before turned up in the morning’s sermon! I was even more amused when a passage cited immediately after that in the Church sermon then turned up in the Orison work in Dr. Mal Strangefellow’s Cyprian Orisons for the day!

With my stomach aching with fasting, I went on with the day’s activities. As the Hour of the Sun on the Day of the Sun ruled by Michael approached, I took another ritual bath and fixed the offering candles for the ritual to come. For Cyprian, I fixed a candle with San Cipriano Oil, cinnamon, and all-spice:

For Michael, the candle was fixed with Holy Oil, clove, and cedar, the latter two of which are both included in Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa’s Book I, Chapter xxiii. How we shall know what Stars naturall things are under, and what things are under the Sun, which are called Solary.

In addition, I placed fresh cedar leaves, reverently picked from a local tree on my walk home from Church under the scrying Crystal in order to receive their sympathetic “occult vertue,” to quote Agrippa. Additional cedar was included in the brass cauldron of Offerings as well as in pieces in the fixing of Michael’s candle.

At last, I entered the Temple, where I began, as usual, with offerings to God and prayers. I picked up my Solomonic bell, sounded it three times before entering the Circle as per the Hygromanteia and then, from within it, sounded the Bell thrice to each of the Quarters, greeting the Spirits of the East, South, West, and North with great love, respect, and blessings of Adonai. I proceeded to give Offerings to God and to Saint Cyprian and began to pray and recite Psalms while holding my Solomonic Wand of Art.

I then used the prayer from the Heptameron to ask for God’s help in calling Spirits and proceeded to a formal Invocation of Archangel Michael, Angel of the Day of the Sun and of Sunday.

After prolonged additional conjurations and vibrating Michael’s name while gazing into the crystal with his candle burning behind it–pyrocrystallomancy, as shown to me by Archangel Raphael–I felt the Angel’s presence as his candle literally began to spark in explosive little pops. It was the first time I had ever seen this happen and it was definitely a highly solar mode of appearance, which reminded me of solar flares.

Michael’s presence felt strong, but gentle, fiery, but composed, secure and unwavering, and above all courageous and ready to act at a moment’s notice. Upon his arrival, I greeted him with great love and respect and Offerings of his fixed and dressed candle and Musk incense, sacred to the Sun as per Agrippa, as gifts of friendship.

At first, I greatly struggled to communicate with Michael. It felt like trying to tune into a radio frequency that kept going in and out of focus. I would ask him a question and get a hint of an answer, but then it would trail off… I would re-ask the question and again the same would happen.

Frustration began to arise because of all of the Invocations in this series for Saint Cyprian’s Novena, Michael’s was the one to which I was most looking forward. However, I remembered Saint Cyprian’s advice from a prior ritual session, “persevere!” And so I did. I tried scrying into Michael’s candle directly (pyromancy), but it was not of much more help. After an hour of trying, and completely at my wit’s end, I asked Saint Cyprian for guidance as I held my Solomonic wand in one hand and the miniature Crook from his statue in the other.

As I pressed Cyprian’s Crook to my forehead, out of the mists of the black space of my mind, Cyprian slowly began to walk into view. I asked him how better to communicate with Michael since I seemed to be so out of sync with him today.

His answer was exceedingly strange to me and was one which I had never before read anywhere. He told me to “take two sprigs of cedar and place them behind each of your ears. Place another under your tongue.” I didn’t understand why at first, but I trusted him and did it. After some time remaining like this, I took the piece of cedar from under my tongue and placed it on top of the scrying Crystal.

I then resumed scrying into the Crystal and lo an behold, I finally broke through into being able to speak with Michael. It was as if the cedar had harmonized me with his solar nature and ‘tuned’ the Crystal so that he could more easily communicate through it and through me. Ah, the power of Agrippan “occult vertue” and sympathetic resonance! And great thanks to Saint Cyprian!

I asked Michael about his station and office and as I gazed into the flickering Crystal, he spoke words into my mind in a bright and friendly voice without the formality of Cassiel:

“Mine is a role of illumination and protection, of might and defense, of aid and swift action.”

I asked him if he might share with me something about the key to the courage he so embodied and his reply was:

“True courage comes not from trusting oneself, but from trusting the Source of all courage. As He Wills, I act. And if I act as He Wills, what cause is there for anything but courage? What can be lost when the Source of all is behind us? What is there to fear when the Source of all Might lights our way?”

When asked if he could offer guidance on building inner strength, he said:

“Fortitude, too, comes through trust. Remember past victories and take encouragement in them now. Trust not your own strength, but God’s infinite Might. Cast your weakness on Him and let His strength guide your next steps.”

I asked him if he might show me a vision to better appreciate his nature, and closing my eyes, an ethereal scene emerged:

An Angel with a face that shines like the golden Sun, stands clad in red robes, streaming like flames. A sword that blazes as bright as the core of a Star, is licked by tongues of pinkish-red flame. The figure swiftly courses to action. No hesitation. Only acting as ordered, as Willed. No reluctance, only execution. Pure efficiency, fiery might.

I thanked the great Archangel for the gift of this vision and asked if I could share what he had shared with me with others for their edification and our mutual growth.  He said yes, but only if I added also this final exhortation, the last thing he shared with me:

“Be quick to act with strength, slow to believe you are weak.
Be quick to do the courageous, slow to cower and wait. 
Be quick to do the Good, slow to do the evil.
Be quick to trust in God, slow to distrust yourself.
Be quick to listen to counsel, slow to offer your own.
Be quick to learn from others, slow to begin to teach. 
Be quick to strengthen hope, slow to surrender to doubt.
Be quick to build up others, slow to knock them down.
Be quick to speak to empower, slow to weaken resolve.
And quick to reach for wisdom, slow to cling to old ways.
Act before cowardice can take hold–
Let courage quicken you, and be quick to act with courage.”

Having said these final words, his candle flame abruptly went out, much to my surprise, as that had never happened before with any other Spirit.

I sensed he was preparing to charge off out of the Circle, so I thanked him for his presence and asked him to come again in friendship to share his wisdom. I received a warm feeling of–how appropriate–encouragement, after which his incense burned out. Just like that, as swiftly as he had come, the great Archangel was gone.

I said a final set of prayers and closed the Temple. Hail to thee O Michael! May we act with courage like you! Hail to thee O Cyprian! May your mastery of mystery grow in us! Praise to thee O Source of Strength, Adonai, may we learn to trust in You!