Saints
Q:
Why do Catholics pray to saints? Why not go directly to God?
-H.P.
A: All right, this
whole "we should go directly to God Himself"
business: Bogus theory. Here's why:
Let's say my wife is going in for surgery (All right, I'll probably
never get married but play along will ya? I can't just say "girlfriend"
in this situation or no one will take me seriously). So someone I love
is in danger and her chances of survival are slim.
I'm praying to God that she may survive, or that His will may be
done.
So I call up a good friend (he's a very strong Christian, just happens
not to be Catholic). I say "Hey, will you keep her in your prayers?"
And he tells me absolutely not - I should go directly to God with my
prayers. God must be so offended that I asked someone else for prayers
instead of going right to God! I'm such a horrible Christian! I'm
completely un-Biblical!
Get my point? All Christians pray directly to God and also ask their
fellow Christians to pray for them.
All Christians pray for one another. In fact, we're supposed to.
Intercessory prayer is seen in the Bible. Intercessory prayer "is good
and pleasing to God our savior" (1 Tim. 2:1-4). And God even answers
prayer "through the prayers of many" (2 Cor 1:10-11).
Now, we all realize this: "For there is one God, and there is one
mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (1 Tim 2:5).
But we're still able to pray for one another, through Jesus Christ. Me
asking you for prayers doesn't mean YOU'RE my mediator. It doesn't
replace Jesus. It's praying through Him. Any Christian that doesn't
pray for someone else, well...are they really Christian?
OK. So all Christians are the one, universal body of Christ (this is
plenty Biblical). And we do, in fact, pray for one another.
"For as in one body we have many parts, and all the parts do not have
the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ and
individually parts of another" (Rom. 12:4-5)
So if we're "all one" (John 17:22-23), are the saints in heaven exempt
from the Body of Christ? That'd be odd. Since in Heaven they're with
God! And Jesus has only one Body - not one on earth and another in
heaven.
Lets recap, then: Christians can, and should, pray for one another.
Christians on earth and those in heaven are still the one, universal
body of Christ. So can those in heaven pray for us? Since death does
not separate us from the love of Christ (Rom. 8:35-39)...it makes sense
that they could pray for us.
So if I can ask my buddy Jimmy for his prayers, should I not also ask
Mary, the Mother of Jesus (!), for her prayers? I mean, Jimmy's a holy
guy, but come on...
And just for the record: We call it "praying" to the Saints...but the
word "prayer" here really means mental communication. This is not the
Prayer & Worship to God, that is reserved for God alone. Mary, and
all the Saints, are merely creatures like us. We don't worship them,
but we do love them.
