Gabriel the Archangel

Patron ofMessengers, Communications Workers, Postal Workers, Broadcasters

SituationsAnnouncements, Communication, Pregnancy

ProfessionsDiplomats, Postal Workers, Telecommunication Workers

Why this patronage

Saint Gabriel the Archangel is the patron of messengers, postal workers, and all who work in communications and broadcasting for the most direct of reasons: in Scripture he is God’s own herald, the angel sent to announce the births of John the Baptist to Zechariah and, above all, of the Savior to the Virgin Mary at the Annunciation (Luke 1:26-38). Because he carried the most important message ever delivered, the Church saw in him the heavenly patron of every messenger — and in the modern age extended this naturally to the telegraph, the telephone, radio, and television. Pope Pius XII formally named him patron of telecommunications in 1951. For the same scriptural reason he is invoked in matters of pregnancy and the bearing of good news.

Life

Saint Gabriel the Archangel is one of the three archangels named in Scripture. He announced the birth of John the Baptist to Zechariah, and most importantly, brought the message of the Incarnation to the Virgin Mary at the Annunciation. His name means “God is my strength.”