Really? Where do you find that in the following scripture? For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
We pray to God the Father through the Body of the "one mediator" between the Father and man, Christ.
I suppose since we're all "one body" in that sense we could say we all died on the cross too?
(1 Corinthians 12:26-28) Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. We should pray for each other. And the prayer of a righteous person is especially effective: (James 5:15-17)Therefore confess your sins. to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much (1 Corinthians 12:26-28) Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. We should pray for each other. And the prayer of a righteous person is especially effective: (James 5:15-17)Therefore confess your sins. to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
No disagreement here. Don't see where the writers Paul and James were including prayer to the physically dead saints and Mary.
You just have to correlate a few scriptures:
1) Death cannot separate us from the love of Christ.
2) God is love
3) Christ is God.
4) Christ is love.
5) Death cannot separate us from Christ.
6) The baptized belong to the Body of Christ.
7) Death cannot separate us from the Body of Christ.
8) We are not separated from our brothers and sisters in heaven.
9) Scripture tells us to pray for and with each other.
10) We can ask our brothers and sisters in heaven to pray for us.