OK, if we accept the premise that the “saints” are alive but not of this world anymore. Why should we pray to another person, whether they be on earth or in heaven?
I guess the great Joan of Arc (Jehanne T’arc) should not have spoken to Archangel Michael & St. Catherine to lift the siege of Orleans. But it certainly works for me!
Where does the Catholic church teach that we pray “to” the Saints in heaven?
I dislike the term pray when requesting their intercession. I think of it as requesting or petitioning them. If I become ill and ask a person to pray for me, I don’t pray to them. Likewise for the saints in heaven. I also believe that the saints in heaven, who were people of great prayer for others, did not cease to pray then they reached the pearly gate.