To catholics-is Jesus God or are they 2 separate people? Why do we pray to Mary and the saints too?

Question

When we pray do we pray to God or Jesus? For example, the Our Father.

Answer 1

I directed these questions to my Catholic spouse, who is replying that Jesus is part of the Holy Trinity. He is one of the three aspects of God, a viewpoint shared by many (but not all) Christians. Mary, as a uniquely honored human being, is considered an intercessor, having been selected to be the earthly mother of Jesus Christ. She is therefore closer to Christ than anyone else who ever lived. The Our Father is directed to God the Father. The saints are also intercessors, who have lived sanctified lives, and are therefore in God's favor. The Bible mentions a "cloud of witnesses" who watch over us; these are the saints, and in fact, all the holy dead.

These aren't necessarily my personal opinions, but I'm telling you what at least one Catholic has to say about it.

Answer 2

O.k. I will give you a short answer compaired to most.

Catholics believe in the Trinity. The trinity means God the father, Jesus Christ the son, and the Holy spirit are one in the same being. So when they say the our father they are praying to the Trinity. Since they believe all three are the same.

As for why they pray to Mary and the Saints. They believe a Saint is kind of like an angel with a special power.

For example:

Saint Anthony, Saint Anthony;
where forth are though;
something has been lost;
and can not be found;

This example shows a person asking Saint Anthony to help them find something.

As for Mary; they see her above all women. They actually see her as a "special" mother. In other words whatever you think of a mother they think is her special power. (example: compassion).

I hope this helps

Answer 3

Think about what your family name is. Let's say it is Jones. Are you a mother? Mother Jones. Are you a sister? Sister Jones. Are you a wife? Mrs. Jones. God is just the family name, not a different entity. So when you pray to God, you are supposed to pray through Jesus, "anything you pray in My name, the Father will answer.", or in Jesus name. There is no place I have found in the bible that we are to pray to any saint or to Mary. I have found that the teachings that we go to Hell for eternity is not there either, nor is purgatory in the bible, or that Mary is in Heaven or that any others that have died gone to Heaven but a select few that were there when Jesus went back, Moses and Elijah. Everybody else is in the grave waiting for Jesus to return. ! Thess. 4:16-17. I have stopped going as I have been lied to so much by the priest and the church as a whole as I have found with studying the Catholic encyclopedia and the bible.

Answer 4

Catholics are to pray only to God. We believe in the Trinity, 3 in one, so praying to Jesus is the same as praying to God.

You are not to pray to mary, or the saints. That is a misconception about Catholics, that even some Catholics make. When talking about praying to Mary or a saint, what it is is like talking to an old friend, just as if you might as a good friend or your preacher to pray for you , you are hoping that Mary or a prticular saint might pray for you. I am sure that we all have loved ones who have passed on and occasionaly you think of them and hope that they are looking down and doing what they can from heaven to help you. This is how Catholics are to think of the Saints and Mary. It can be very helpful in certain times of your life, to look to the lives of the saints. Most of them were very ordinary people like you and I with daily struggles who manages to keep their faith. They can be an inspiration to many people. They are also people who have struggled and still lived a holy life.
Good luck on your faith journey and keep asking questions!

Answer 5

God is an omnipotent being that humans cannot experience except through the trinity, three different masks that God puts on: the father, the son and the holy spirit. We pray to Mary and the saints because it is accepted in the Catholic church that they are sufficiently endowed with divine power. They are extensions of God and his power, not separate gods.

Answer 6

Actually Catholics believe in the Holy Trinity, three persons in one God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. You can pray to any of the three persons in God.

Catholics and many other Christians believe in the Communion of Saints where all saints are intimately related in the Body of Christ, a family. When you die and go to heaven, you do not leave this family.

Everyone in heaven or on their way to heaven are saints. You, me, my deceased grandmother, Mary the mother of Jesus, and Mother Teresa.

As part of this family, you may ask your family and friends here on earth to pray for you. Or you may also ask the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Andrew, or your deceased grandmother in heaven to pray for you.

With love in Christ.

Answer 7

The Holy trinity (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit) is a concept that humans do not have any way of understanding. It does not matter which one you pray to. I am a Catholic and one of the biggest misunderstandings that non Catholics have about us is that we pray to the saints, angles, and to Mary; WE DON'T! We simply, when we are praying for soneone or sonething, ask them to pray to God for us, (for example, '' make my little sister get well'').

Answer 8

Jesus is the Son of God. Three persons in one, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We pray to Mary and the saints for their intercession for us. We do not pray to them as God, but ask them to pray for us.

Answer 9

That is because the Catholic Church won't amend their doctrine. Emanuel Swedenborg appealed to all Christians to restore monotheism to the Christian faith and amend official statements of faith.

The Father, Son and Holy Spirit is like the soul, the body and the works in a single person. Jesus Christ is Jehovah God in a visible body.

Also, the Canon that allows praying to people is still "on the books" and the Catholic Church won't take it back.

http://www.mechanicsburgnewchurch.org

Answer 10

We pray the holy trinity, God, the father, Son, and the holy spirit. As far, as my religion beliefs go, God the father, Son, and the holy spirit are all one person, God. Mary and the Saints are just intercessors for us, they pray on our behalf to God, the father. That is what I had learned and that is what I had believed.