Are Angels Real?

Angels surround us all the time — figuratively if not literally — especially during the holidays. They appear in paintings, etchings, figurines, T-shirts, posters and just about everything else. Angels appear in several religions; for example, in Islam, angels are said to be made of light, while Christian angels were willed into being by God.

Early versions of angels had no gender, though later Christian angels were tall, slender males with soft features, often dressed in flowing robes specially tailored around their large white wings. Angels are said to be either immortal or greatly long-lived.

Though originally they were specifically religious figures, angels have become more secular over the years, and today they are widely associated with the New Age movement populated by pagans, atheists and those who consider themselves "spiritual." Books about angels and angelic contact are enormously popular, with titles like "Where Angels Tread" and "Angels: Who They Are and How They Help." They typically contain discussions of angels in scripture along with heartwarming true stories of modern-day miracles attributed to the heavenly visitors. Popular television shows such as "Highway to Heaven" (1984-1989) and "Touched by an Angel" (1994-2003) helped cement the prominence of angels in American popular culture.

Angels occasionally feature in reports of near-death experiences, though mostly in those who have a pre-existing belief in them. Among UFO believers, some claim that alien abductors are actually angels instead of extraterrestrials. Erich von Daniken, for example, author of several popular (if scientifically dubious) books in the 1970s, claimed that Biblical stories of Abraham and Joseph describe them meeting aliens, not angels.