Hierarchy of angels

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The Assumption of the Virgin by Francesco Botticini (1475-76) at the National Gallery London, shows three hierarchies and nine orders of angels, each with different characteristics.

A hierarchy (Greek ἱεραρχία hierarchia, from ἱερός, hieros, "holy" and ἀρχή, archē, "leadership, rule", from the 17th century onwards the Latin hierarchia, "order of consecration") generally refers to a system of elements or beings that are superior or subordinate to one another according to a certain hierarchy.

Spiritual hierarchies

According to the Christian view, nine choirs of angels, arranged in three hierarchies, form the community of cosmic intelligences. The Kabbalists also refer to them as Separate Intellects (Hebrew שכלים נפרדים Sechalim nifradim), since they keep themselves completely separate from matter. In anthroposophy, the hierarchies refer to the spiritual beings involved in the development of the world, arranged according to their degree of development. Above them stands the Trinity as the highest source of divine creative power. The hierarchies have advanced in their spiritual development to the human being and have an essential share in his development as well as in the development of the earth. According to their degree of spiritual maturity they can be classified into different groups. In anthroposophical language, the hierarchies are often referred to collectively when the entities mentioned are meant as a whole.