We don’t pray “to” saints. This is a mistaken way of saying we ask the saints to pray for us.
Do you pray “to” your sister? Or do you ask your sister to pray for you?
7 posted on 3/27/2015, 11:54:39 AM by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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A post denying Catholics pray to Mary here.
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I believe you're being misled by a certain ambiguity of the term "pray" in English.
(I realize from our past conversations that you think this is just quibbling about words, but really, a proper discernment of meaning is essential. Without it, all conversation becomes futile.)
Whether we call it "praying to" or "praying for" or "praying about," praying does not mean "adoration." All the ways we share our spiritual gifts in the Communion of Saints can be called "praying."
Prayer for each other always presupposes the supremacy of Jesus Christ, Who is the Head of the Body (a very important truth, that) as the primary cause Who frequently works through secondary causes.
Even when we pray for ourselves, we are "secondary causes," because God already knows what is in our hearts before we even think the words. This being so, why do we pray?
We pray because it is a need of the heart, and because God commanded it. HE does not need it. He knows all things before they come to pass. But He knows WE need it.
Upon reflection, I believe the same is true of every kind of intercessory prayer, whether it involves the faithful here on earth, the saints in heaven, the poor souls or the holy angels. We need to cultivate our personal contact with each other, our awareness that we are, all alike, members of the Body of Christ.
Look at how frequently we are told to pray for one another (1 Thessalonians 5:25; 2 Thes. 3:1; Colossians 4:3; Hebrews 13:18; Ephesians 6:18). We are urged to make “supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings for all men” (1 Timothy 2:1). Such prayer pleases God: “This is good, and it is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:3-4).
From he earliest centuries Christians have understood these Scriptural teachings to apply to the entire Body of Christ. Those who reject this in effect, cut off an entire portion of the Body of Christ. They fail to pray for the faithful departed, and neglect to ask the Saints in glory to pray for us. This is a mistake, because Scripture calls for us to "have the same care for one another," sharing our sufferings and our joys with the other parts of the Body.