The Bible says don't worship idols, why do Catholics pray to saints,& ask the reverend for forgiveness not God

Question

I only ask this to understand them, not being Catholic myself. They call their Reverend "Father" asking "Forgive me Father, for I have sinned". Isn't that praying to a preacher instead of God? And they pray to saints. Isn't this a form of worship? And worshipping something/someone other than God himself?

Answer 1

You have a point there. for whatever reason they dont pray to God and ask for forgiveness but ask someone else for forgiveness that is on the scale of hyprocrisy. If I've sinned only I can understand the magnitude of my sin, and only I can develop the sorrow for it and noone else- even if you've committed the same sin- it doesnt matter. What is ones compassion on being forgiven for a sin he or shes committed a thousand times compared to one who has committed the same sin once or twice? Would it be more sincere if I a sinner were to ask my maker whom I've sinned against for forgiveness, or if I asked someone else to stand in my place and ask for me? And if I did ask someone else to ask forgiveness for me how much more effective in my repentance process would it be that I faced the challenge myself rather than hide behind someone so that I may try to commit the sin no more. The Atonement of Jesus christ allows us to repent "individually" and ask God for forgiveness. There is no need to ask someone else to stand in our place. However, there maybe a need to ask someone to counsel us on how to go about repenting so that we commit the same sin no more.

Answer 2

Every Catholic practice and belief is based on the authentic teachings of Jesus and the apostles, the kingship of Christ, and the divine guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Catholics have Jesus firmly at the center of all their worship, along with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, too.

Catholics learned to practice their faith directly from Jesus and the apostles ... long before a bible even existed.

Expecting somebody to understand authentic Christianity merely by reading about it in a book ... even a holy book ... is what should really be considered a sin.

And that's why you, and many, many other non-Catholics may never really "get it" ... until it's too late.

Jesus founded a living church. He never founded a bible.

The church that Jesus founded wields real and authentic divine power, given to it directly from God.

On Pentecost, the church was provided with the complete and authentic revelation of God, by the Holy Spirit ... the truth of which has always been safeguarded by that same Holy Spirit ... the advocate and comforter of the authentic church ... just as Jesus promised.

The bible is a God inspired holy book, that was later compiled and produced by the Catholic church ... hence the true church could never be subject to it.

As such, the bible is not capable of "wielding" anything ... but when misused, it can be an instrument of divisiveness and confusion, as the 51,000 different protestant denominations so amply demonstrate today.

If you really want to understand God's authentic plan of salvation, as directed by his universal, holy, apostolic, and absolutely singular church, and get the correct answers to all the trivial matters you mentioned too, I suggest you undertake a complete and life-long study of the Catholic faith ... which has no equal, on earth or in heaven.

Then, you might know for sure.

You can begin here:

http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/ccc_toc2.htm

The soul you save may be your own.

Answer 3

From what I understand:

Catholics pray to saints so the Saint's can pray to God. I don't know why, though, but I think it is because some Saints stand for different things. They are prayed to not as a God, but so they will pray to God.

Also, Catholic's go to confession (whats the word I am looking for?) Supposidally so they can actually here the words "you are forgiven" since its our human nature to want to hear that... is what I've been told.

Answer 4

I've often wondered this myself.

They reason that they are not worshipping the image but that it acts as a mediator so that the prayer will ultimately reach God.

It's not convincing to me since 1 Timothy 2:5 clearly says, "For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, a man, Christ Jesus." We pray through Christ Jesus to God alone. No angel, apostle, saint, priest, pastor, or especially no inanimate objects are not mediators for or hearers/answerers of prayers.




Peace be with you

Answer 5

Catholics do pray to God directly. They also ask God's saints to pray for them. Its sort of like a referral.

Answer 6

+ The Saints +

Catholics share the belief in the Communion of Saints with many other Christians, including the Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Episcopal, and Methodist Churches.

The Communion of Saints is the belief 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, Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II.

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

Prayer to saints in heaven is simple communication, not worship.

Asking others to pray for you whether your loved ones on Earth or your loved ones in heaven is always optional.

For more information, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church, section 946 and following: http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9p5.htm#946

+ Reconciliation and Confession +

The Catholic Church believes that "Only God forgives sin."

When a penitent person asks God for forgiveness, his (or her) sins are immediately forgiven.

Catholics also believe that when someone sins they not only hurt their relationship with God, they also injure the entire church, the body of Christ.

Jesus said, "I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (Matthew 16:19)

And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,"Receive the holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained." (Luke 20:22-23)

Oral confessing of sins is recommended over and over in both the Old and New Testaments:
+ James 5:16
+ Acts 19:18
+ Matthew 3:5-6
+ Mark 1:5
+ 1 Timothy 6:12
+ 1 John 1:9
+ Numbers 5:6-7
+ Nehemiah 9:2
+ Sirach 4:26

The Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation with a priest ordained in the name of Jesus Christ not only reconciles the sinner to God but with the entire church, including you and me.

Remember all sacraments are encounters with God. This sacrament is a healing encounter between God and the penitent.

For more information, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church, section 1422 and following: http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt2sect2chpt2.htm

+ With love in Christ.

Answer 7

You might pray before a cross, but you're certainly not worshiping the cross itself are you? Catholics likewise may pray before statues but are certainly not praying to the statues. They are praying to the people whom those statues represent. People either pray to saints in order to ask them for their intercession (just like asking a friend to pray for you) or they pray to the saints requesting something (heal my uncle). In the former case, people know they can pray directly to God (and often do) but also ask the saints to pray for them because they know that the saints were good and upright people who are close to God; surely they're petitions could only add to our own. In the latter case, it is very much like people asking the apostles to heal them. The apostles healed many people, who could have simply prayed to God. Did this healing occur through their own power? Of course not, it was through God's; the apostles merely acted as God's instruments. Same with the saints.

I think one of the greatest sources of confusion on this issue stems from the meaning of 'worship.' Catholics worship God through the sacrifice of the Eucharist, reverent devotion, adoration. These are things we do not offer the saints, but only God. Protestants, on the other hand, often see all prayer as worship. Thus when they see Catholics praying to the saints, they quickly assume that it constitutes worship. It's a miscommunication issue.

As for forgiveness, if you ask your brother to forgive you, is that praying to him or worshiping him? Jesus himself told us the story of how we must forgive our brother not seven times but seventy times seven times. Humans have the authority to forgive offenses against us. Priests have the authority to forgive sins in general. See John 20:23, "Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained." So that is why we ask them to forgive us in God's name. Would Jesus have given this authority to the Apostles and to their successors if he had not intended for it to be used? We can ask for forgiveness directly from God, but it is also important to confess in front of our peers, as it says to do in the Bible. And besides, if you commit a sin, but are unwilling to confess it to anyone and unwilling to take penance, then how sorry can you be? Confession is hard because it makes us humble ourselves, tell all that we have done wrong, all the ways in which we have failed. Then it is still harder because we are given a penance to fulfill. But these are good things. We should be humble before each other and before God. We should force us to look at ourselves and see how well we are following Christ. We should make restitution when we hurt people. These things are important, and they're all intrinsic parts of Catholic confession that are frequently missed otherwise.

Answer 8

they ask the saints or whoever to interceed with god
as they feel too humble to ask him directly
some ask their friends to PRAY FOR ME
thats not worshipping their friends
basically this is a myth from uninformed sources

Answer 9

very true. catholics say they are christian but they don't go by the bible. They also treat the Pope like hes God. And Mary over Jesus with their "hail Mary" thing. Just look here
http://www.bibleonly.org/exp/rccfalse.html

Answer 10

They have their own set of ten commandments. Its true look it up.

They say their tradition supercedes the Bible.

Hmmm?

Mat 23:9 And call no [man] your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.