Saint Michael the Archangel

By: Bob Lord, Penny Lord

Narrated by: Bob Lord, Penny Lord

The Shrine of Saint Michael the Archangel in the Gargano was the first monument of the archangel that we ever visited. We pray that Michael and his shrine touch you in the same way they have touched us, as we have been called back, again and again. Come with us now, and experience the kingdom, the glory, and the power of God as shown to us through his angels, especially the prince of the angels, our Michael.

Around the year 490, a lord of the Gargano was searching for one of his prize bulls. He almost gave up, judging the bull was helplessly lost, when he spotted him in a cave, kneeling. The cave was high above the lord and hopelessly inaccessible. The bull would never be able to get out. So, as a gesture of mercy, the lord shot an arrow toward the bull to put the animal out of its misery. The arrow changed its course in mid-flight, like a boomerang, and struck the lord.

The lord went to the local bishop, declaring what had happened. The bishop immediately instituted three days of fasting and prayer to be done outside of the cave, as he was not sure if it was a heavenly inspired occurrence or from the other place.

While the bishop, his priests, and the lord were on the Gargano, praying at the mouth of the cave, Saint Michael the Archangel appeared to the bishop and declared: "I am the Archangel Michael, and am always in the presence of the Lord. This cave is sacred to me; it is of my choosing. There will be no more shedding of bull’s blood. Where the rocks open widely, the sins of man may be pardoned. That which is asked here in prayer will be granted. Therefore, go up the mountain and dedicate the grotto to Christian worship."

The bishop apparently was not convinced that the apparition was truly the Prince of the Heavenly Hosts, or he could not have hesitated in obeying the command. The bishop hesitated with "Should I? Shouldn’t I?" for two years!

©1992 Journeys of Faith (P)2020 Journeys of Faith