Praying to Jesus and Mary and other saints defeats the purpose of having a mono-theistic religion. Having Jesus and Mary on the prayer list along with God sort of defeats the purpose of christianity. NO? I think so, let me hear your thoughts.
2006-08-23 07:41:06 · 15 answers · asked by big red 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Fundamentalists challenge the Catholic practice of asking saints and angels to pray for us. But the Bible directs us to invoke those in heaven and ask them to pray with us.
Thus in Psalm 103, we pray, "Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, hearkening to the voice of his word! Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers that do his will!" (Ps. 103:20-21). And in Psalm 148 we pray, "Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his host!" (Ps. 148:1-2)
Not only do those in heaven pray with us, they also pray for us. In Revelation, John sees that "the twenty-four elders [the leaders of the people of God in heaven] fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and with golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints" (Rev. 5:8). Thus the saints in heaven offer to God the prayers of the saints on earth.
Angels do the same thing: "[An] angel came and stood at the altar [in heaven] with a golden censer; and he was given much incense to mingle with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne; and the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God" (Rev. 8:3-4).
Jesus himself warned us not to mess with small children because their guardian angels have guaranteed intercessory access to the Father: "See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven." (Matt. 18:10).
Because he is the only God-man, Jesus is the only Mediator between man and God (1 Tim. 2:5), but this in no way means we cannot or should not ask our fellow Christians to pray with us and for us (1 Tim. 2:1-4), including those Christians in heaven, who have already had their sanctification completed, for "[t]he prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects" (Jas. 5:16).
2006-08-23 07:43:31 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
I hear what you're saying, but Christians believe in a triune God which is comprised of God the Father and Creator, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit. I'm pretty sure most Protestants don't pray to Mary or saints-- that's a Catholic thing.
2006-08-23 07:46:16 · answer #2 · answered by momai 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well it's kind of like if you were sick and asked a friend to pray for you. You're basically asking Mary and the other Saints to put in a good word to God for you.
2006-08-23 07:59:50 · answer #3 · answered by Swordsman 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Jesus is God in the flesh sent to redeem the world. The new testament makes this real clear. Praying to God/Holy Spirit/Jesus is perfectly fine the way I read the bible. I pray in Jesus name because I am comming to God in the athority of Christ Jesus and his invitation to the kingdom of heaven.
Now as far as Mary and the Apostles , I would think this would be unfruitful and unbiblical at best and really bad at worst. I know people do it but I am clueless as to why.
2006-08-23 07:49:34 · answer #4 · answered by Bye Bye 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
*Sigh.* Catholic speaking here:
1) Catholics, and many other Christians, believe in a triune God (father son and spirit as one being in the same.) Therefore, praying to Jesus IS praying to God- no difference.
2) We do not "pray" to Mary and the saints, and most certainly do NOT "worship" them. Worship is reserved for God alone. However, we ask Mary and the saints to pray for us just as we would ask our friends or family to pray for us. As someone else once put it, "We pray to God, and ask Mary if she would be a sweetie and talk to her son for us, too."
2006-08-23 07:51:04 · answer #5 · answered by Robin J. Sky 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Jeus is equal to God, so there's no problem there, but praying to Mary and Saints is technically considered idol worship. Check out the 10 Commandments on that one..."Thou shall have no other gods before ME."
2006-08-23 07:44:36 · answer #6 · answered by GLSigma3 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I pray to God through Jesus Christ
2006-08-23 09:24:49 · answer #7 · answered by thomasnotdoubting 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You know when I prayed to Jesus , every thing went wrong. But when I prayed to God , it works out.
2006-08-23 07:44:28 · answer #8 · answered by cardog 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Praying to saints perhaps invokes a spirit into our souls to guide us along the way. I say St. Anthony St Anthony please come around, something is lost and cannot be found. And, believe it or not, I always find what I am looking for:)
2006-08-23 07:46:56 · answer #9 · answered by Michele J 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
jesus is not a saint but an aspect of god. saints are not prayed to but asked for guidance and support, for instance people might say "mary, mother of god, pray for me", but not "mary, mother of god, please fulfill my wish, amen."
2006-08-23 07:47:26 · answer #10 · answered by nerdyhermione 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋