catholics pray to saints and to the virgin marry. wouldn't that be a sin against god?
2007-09-18 16:47:23 · 25 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
yep...tell me about it
2007-09-18 16:53:21 · answer #1 · answered by Cilantro 5 · 1⤊ 6⤋
This is on the top ten questions people ask Catholics. I'm not kidding. I am Catholic and have never worshiped Mary or any of the saints. We never worship anyone except God. We pray to the saints because they have more points with God than we do. And we know Mary has more leverage with God than anyone else because of the wedding at Canaan.
Here's a great come back for Catholics: If we worship saints, you worship guardian angels.
2007-09-19 14:38:12 · answer #2 · answered by Ten Commandments 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
No. We MUST "WORSHIP" GOD AND GOD ALONE , we can pray for people and that their lives will be happy and well , we can also pray the ROSARY which was given by the Virgin Mary .
Remember we can only WORSHIP GOD but we can pray for many people and to all the angels and saints.
2007-09-18 17:05:09 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Who gave you an ecumenical wedgy? Catholics were given special dispensation by God to pray to whomever they want to pray. That is why there are so many Catholics in the US, where, despite the best efforts of some religions to take over, they have the freedom to worship whomever and however they want. When it all comes down to the final, Divine judgement, I think those who ask such judgemental questions will be the first to go to that hot place in the underground. You know, the subway.
2007-09-18 16:56:53 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
First, understand there is a HUGE difference between prayer and worship.
Catholic worship ONLY the One Triune God. Anyone who doesn't can't callthemselves Catholic!
PRAYER by definition, is the action of asking. When we pray to God, we are ASKING for something. When we pray to the saints, we are ASKING their PRAYERS on our behalf.
The saints are by definition, in Heaven with God. They are His friends. And thanks to the COmmunion of Saints, can intercede on our behalf with their prayers.
Oh- aren't they DEAD?? isn't that Necromancy, forbidden by the Bible?
If you believe that, you are not a Christian! Christians believe that those in Heaven are more alive than we are! They are in the very presence of the Living God! To them, WE are the ones who are dead!
2007-09-19 06:49:10 · answer #5 · answered by Mommy_to_seven 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
a super type of the Psalms are easily songs of compliment to the LORD. interior the NIV, which Catholics use, you will see that the place you spot the be conscious LORD interior the old testomony, or Sovereign Lord, that is bearing on the tetragrammation YHWH. continually study the Preface on your bible as a fashion to renowned who the LORD is. p50 of the NIV (August 1983, New Jersey) discusses the interpretation of the tetragrammation YHWH. Jesus additionally teaches us to sanctify his father's call at Mt 6:9 and the thank you to desire to him. as nicely, we see Jesus himself tentatively praying for himself and his disciples at John 17 the full financial disaster. that's the main perfect prayer. It additionally exhibits that considering Jesus is praying to guard those that he has taken out of this international to be his followers from the evil one, that he's a separate being from His father Yahweh.
2016-10-19 01:43:39 · answer #6 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Once baptized you're a member of God's immediate family ... and once you're in the family ... you have the right to "pray" to anyone in that family ... alive on earth ... or in heaven ... so long as you realize that all the power comes from God ... and that God alone is God ... and only he is "all in all".
Anyone who believes otherwise simply doesn't understand how God works ... probably because someone misinterpreted the scriptures for them.
2007-09-18 20:35:41 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
The Bible teaches that there Is only ONE God,One Faith & One Baptisim. Yes that would be a sin to Include saints & Mary as part of the Godhead. We aren't to pray to anyone but God and In Jesus Name. No one comes unto the Father except through Jesus.If all these people could pray on our behalf,then God wasted His time sending Jesus to the earth to die for our sins.There Is only three that make-up the trinity. God the Father,Jesus & The Holy Spirit. To Include these saints & Mary as part of the Godhead Is blasphemous and considered Idolatry.
2007-09-18 16:59:45 · answer #8 · answered by Isabella 6 · 0⤊ 3⤋
We do only pray to one God because there is only one God.
We also pray to the Saints and Mary for intercession...we ask for their prayers for us.
Prayer is communication. It is conversation with God, with the Saints and with Mary. It is not worship.
There are many scriptures to support the use of intercession. http://www.scripturecatholic.com/saints.html
2007-09-20 08:41:52 · answer #9 · answered by Misty 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The Blessed Virgin Mary and the other saints are not gods. They are our family and friends in heaven. Talking to them and asking them to pray for us is not worship.
Before Jesus Christ died for our sins and opened the gates of heaven there were no saints in heaven. Therefore there are no Old Testament writings that would mention them.
Very few of the new Christians died before most of the New Testament was written. Therefore there is little in the Bible about asking saints to pray for us.
However the last book of the Bible does talk about the saints in heaven praying.
Revelation 5:8: Each of the elders held a harp and gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of the holy ones.
Revelation 8:3-4: He was given a great quantity of incense to offer, along with the prayers of all the holy ones, on the gold altar that was before the throne. The smoke of the incense along with the prayers of the holy ones went up before God from the hand of the angel.
The Holy Spirit guided the early Church in many things not explained in the Bible including how does the Body of Christ (believers) living on Earth relate to the Body of Christ (saints) living in heaven. We are still one Body.
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
With love in Christ.
2007-09-18 17:36:28 · answer #10 · answered by imacatholic2 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Prayer is NOT worship. It is COMMUNICATION. When you pray to the saints, it's like asking your pastor to pray for you. It is no different. And before you say that the saints are dead, remember what Jesus said: Our God is a God of the LIVING, NOT OF THE DEAD.
2007-09-18 16:56:18 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 1⤋