discuss the meaning of "communion of saints"?

Answer 1

The Church's teaching on the invocation of the saints is thus defined by the Council of Trent. "The saints, who reign together with Christ, offer up their own prayers to God for men. It is good and useful suppliantly to invoke them, and to have recourse to their prayers, aid and help for obtaining benefits from God, through His Son Jesus Christ, who alone is our Redeemer and Savior. Those persons think impiously who deny that the saints, who enjoy eternal happiness in heaven, are to be invoked; who assert that they do not pray for men; who declare that asking them to pray for each of us in particular is idolatry, repugnant to the word of God, and opposed to the honor of the One Mediator of God and men, Christ Jesus'' (Sess. xxv.).

The Old and New Testament plainly teach the principle and the practice of asking the prayers of our brethren, especially of the just (James v. 16-18). God commanded Abimelech to ask Abraham's prayers: "He shall pray for thee and thou shalt live" (Gen. xx. 7, 17). God had mercy on the sinful children of Israel in the desert because Moses interceded for them (Ps. xv. 23). God said to the friends of Job: "My servant Job shall pray for you; his face I will accept" (Job xliii. 8). St. Paul in his letters continually asked the brethren to pray for him (Rom. xv. 30; Eph. vi. 18, 19; 1 Thess. v. 25).

Is it reasonable to suppose that the Christian, who prayed for his brethren while upon earth, will lose all interest in them, once he reaches the kingdom of heaven? The Christian tradition from the beginning declares that the interest of the Saints in heaven will be increased a hundredfold, because they will realize then more fully our needs and necessities, and God's willingness to hearken to their intercession. St. Jerome (340-420) is a striking witness to this fact. He writes: "If Apostles and martyrs, whilst still in the flesh and still needing to care for themselves, can pray for others, how much more will they pray for others after they have won their crowns, their victories, their triumphs. Moses, one man, obtains God's pardon for six hundred thousand armed men, and Stephen prays for his persecutors. When they are with Christ will they be less powerful? St. Paul says that two hundred and seventy-six souls were granted to his prayers, whilst they were in the ship with him. Shall he close his lips after death, and not mutter a syllable for those who throughout the world have believed in his gospel? (Adv. Vigil)

That the angels pray for men we learn from the vision of Zacharias (i. 12, 13), and from the words of the angel Raphael tc Tobias: "When thou didst pray with tears ... I offered thy prayer to the Lord" (Tob. xii. 12). Christ Himself tells us that they have an interest in us, for He says: "There shall be joy before the angels of God upon one sinner doing penance" (Luke xv. 10). In another place He warns men not to scandalize little children, for they have angels to intercede for them in heaven (Matt, xviii. 10). If the angels make intercession for us, certainly the saints, who are united to us by the bond of a common human nature, and by the supernatural bond of the Communion of Saints, have the same power and the same privilege.

The early Fathers unanimously teach the doctrine of the intercession of the saints.

St. Hilary (366) writes: "To those who would fain stand, neither the guardianship of the saints, nor the protection of the angels is wanting" {In Ps., cxxiv.).

St. Cyril of Jerusalem (315-386) writes: "We then commemorate those who have fallen asleep before us, patriarchs, prophets, Apostles, and martyrs, in order that God, by their prayers and intercessions, may receive our petitions" (Myst., v., 9).

St. John Chrysostom (344-407) writes: "When thou per-ceivest that God is chastening thee, fly not to His enemies . . . but to His friends, the martyrs, the saints, and those who were pleasing to Him, and who have great power" (Orat., viii., Adv. Jus., 6).

Catholics firmly believe in the unique mediatorship of Jesus Christ (1 Tim. ii. 5), and the Council of Trent emphasizes this very doctrine when declaring her teaching on the invocation of saints. Catholics believe that Jesus Christ alone redeemed us by His Death upon the Cross, thus reconciling us to God, and making us partakers of His grace here and His glory hereafter. No divine gift can reach us except through Christ and the merits of His Sacred Passion. Therefore, every prayer we pray, and every prayer in heaven of the Blessed Virgin, the angels and the saints, have their efficacy only through Jesus Christ our Lord. The saints simply add their prayers to ours, and, although specially pleasing to God because of their greater holiness, they aid us only through the merits of the One Mediator.

Answer 2

Question #55 in the Heidelberg Catechism, "What do you understand by 'the communion of saints?'"

A. First, that believers one and all, as members of this community, share in Christ and in all his treasures and gifts.

Second, that each member should consider it his duty to use his gifts readily and cheerfully for the service and enrichment of the other members.

Answer 3

Paul's letters clarify how the Apostolic Church under the influence of the Holy Spirit spoke of believers as "saints," whether living or dead.

Paul asked the saints to pray for him and to imitate him.

Faithful people in the Post-Apostolic Church in the Apostles Creed defined the confessional response to faith in their creed: "We believe in the communion of saints."

Through Baptism we pass "from death to life; death no longer has dominion over us." Christians must believe that there is no real distinction between the believer in human life and after human life. Saints, living or dead, are indistinguishable before God.

If we can pray for and with saints in this life, we can pray for and with those saints after human life.

And as Paul asked saints to imitate him as he imitates Christ, the Church encourages Catholic Christians to imitate the holiness of the saints as they imitated the holiness of Christ and the Father.

As a hem of a garment, the shadows of saints, and clothes of the saints were used devotionally in the Apostolic Church, so relics and images of the saints are devotionally encouraged by the Church today.

First among saints by the fullness of grace which was hers is the Mother of Jesus, Mary

God Bless You

Answer 4

All those Christians who are: 1) Presently alive on earth 2) Presently alive in heaven 3) Presently alive in purgatory.

Answer 5

The saints, gathered together...think "commune" or "community".

Answer 6

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