Section VI: The Power of Angels
SECTION VI: ON THE POWER OF ANGELS
Angels are finite but are not circumscribed by place.
§ 48. Angels are spirits who are “powerful in might” (Ps. 103:20; 2 Kings 19:35). Yet that power is finite, just as their essence is, for there is only one Being who is completely independent and infinite. Therefore, because angels are beings other than the first Being, they must be finite beings; and because they are finite, they must be in a certain “where.” Because they are noncorporeal, they also are not circumscribed by place; and because they are spirits, their approach cannot be impeded by a physical hindrance. As a result, they can be where they wish with the greatest speed; for this reason, they are also compared with “wind and flaming fire” (Ps. 104:4). Bernard (In festum annuntiat., homily 3, col. 24): “Walls do not impede the angelic spirits, but all visible things yield to them; also they can penetrate and pass through all bodies, however solid and dense.”