In heaven, archangels have the honor of enjoying time in God’s presence. Many people believe that archangels spend their time in heaven praising God and checking in with him often to get new assignments for their work on Earth. Archangels also spend time elsewhere in the spiritual realm fighting evil, say many believers. One archangel in particular -- Michael -- appears to be the head archangel who often takes the lead to battle evil with good, according to accounts in the Torah, Bible, and Qur’an.
Believers say that God has assigned guardian angels to protect each individual person on Earth, but he often sends archangels to accomplish earthly tasks of a larger scale. For example, the archangelGabriel is known for his appearances delivering major messages to people throughout history. Christians believe that God sent Gabriel to inform the Virgin Mary that she would become the mother of Jesus Christ on Earth, while Muslims believe that Gabriel communicated the entire Qur’an to the prophet Muhammad.
People have given names to the archangels who have interacted with humans throughout history. Most of the archangels' names end with the suffix "el" ("in God"). Beyond that, each archangel's name has a meaning that signifies the unique type of work that he or she does in the world. For example, archangel Raphael’s name means “God heals,” because God often uses Raphael to deliver healing to people who are suffering spiritually, physically, emotionally, or mentally. Another example is the archangel Uriel’s name, which means “God is my light.” God charges Uriel with shining the light of divine truth on the darkness of people’s confusion, helping them seek wisdom.