book of the biblical Canon, the seer of Patmos is tempted to fall down and worship the angel of the Apocalypse, until that angel gently raises him, explaining that he (the angel) is his fellow-servant (19:10)—an incident that perhaps suggested to Newman the beautiful line in The Dream of Gerontius where the soul of the dead Gerontius is greeted by its angel guardian, ‘All hail, my child! My child and brother, hail!’3 But if John the Beloved Disciple was tempted to adore an angel, there was little