The Third in order of the Choirs of Angels
are the Thrones. They are the representatives of
the majesty of Almighty God, as the throne of an
earthly monarch is supposed to have communicated
to it something of the dignity of him who sits thereon.
Men bow to the throne as worthy of honor
and respect. They pay it a relative honor
as the seat of their King. So to the Thrones in
Heaven is communicated something of the majesty
that belongs to the invisible God.
The Thrones are the intimate friends of God.
They talk to Him and He to them, as a man talks
to his friend. Like to them were many of the
Saints of the Old Testament; Abraham, the friend
of God; Henoch, who walked with God; David,
the man after God's own heart; the Apostles of
Our Lord and many holy women, like the Blessed
Margaret Mary. God gives this glorious privilege
to those, who are obedient to the faintest whisper
of His Divine Voice speaking to their souls.
How can we attain to this intimate friendship
with God? By a continual and exact obedience.
The Thrones are a created reflection of the
perfect will of God. His will is theirs and theirs
is His. Nothing wins God's heart like obedience.
This made Abraham the friend of God. God reposes
in the obedient with perfect confidence. No
wonder, for implicit, unquestioning obedience leads
without fail to every other virtue.