Asking the Holy Innocents for Prayers

[Neil_Anthony]

Can we pray to the Holy Innocents? They are considered martyrs, but are they officially saints?

The reason I’m asking the question is that I’m reading a book by a Catholic scripture scholar who says that the story of the slaughter of the innocents isn’t historical. Since it is in doubt, would it be unwise to possibly misdirect prayers to them when they might not even be in heaven?

 

[Leopard]

Prayer is never wasted.

 

[Neil_Anthony]

Prayer is never wasted.

Thanks. I’ve read somewhere that even if we were to pray to someone who wasn’t in heaven, that God would redirect our prayers to someone who could help.

If the Holy Innocents are formally saints, then would that be infallible church teaching that they are in heaven, and that therefore, this Gospel story really happened?

 

[teachccd]

Thanks. I’ve read somewhere that even if we were to pray to someone who wasn’t in heaven, that God would redirect our prayers to someone who could help.

If the Holy Innocents are formally saints, then would that be infallible church teaching that they are in heaven, and that therefore, this Gospel story really happened?

Trust me on this. For as many “scholars” there are opinions. Some even dissent to the teachings of the Church and teach “their” theology as authoritative and binding.

How does this scholar know that his research exceeds inspired text? There are “scholars” who deny most of the Gospel accounts. That is why Jesus left us a Church that teaches authortatively. Always check with Church teachings as opposed to theological opinions. If the Church remains silent then we are free to choose, such as whether or not Mary died prior to her Assumption but not whether or not she was assumed into heaven.

So what some Scholar writes in a book must always unite with Church teachings and Scripture, as interpreted by the Church. So yesterday we honored the Holy Innocents and therefore the Church recognizes them as martyrs and we can pray to the martyrs. They are not specifically named so we ask for the intercession of all who died innocently for our beloved Lord…

 

[Neil_Anthony]

So what some Scholar writes in a book must always unite with Church teachings and Scripture, as interpreted by the Church. So yesterday we honored the Holy Innocents and therefore the Church recognizes them as martyrs and we can pray to the martyrs. They are not specifically named so we ask for the intercession of all who died innocently for our beloved Lord…

Thank you.
I wonder if, since we don’t call upon these holy innocents by name, if perhaps there is still room within the catholic faith for the scholarly position that the slaughter of the innocents didn’t really happen? Or would it definitely be heretical?

 

[Truarchs]

You might find this article helpful: newadvent.org/cathen/07419a.htm

 

[teachccd]

Thank you.
I wonder if, since we don’t call upon these holy innocents by name, if perhaps there is still room within the catholic faith for the scholarly position that the slaughter of the innocents didn’t really happen? Or would it definitely be heretical?

Once we start to discount this event we open up the possibility that any gospel account could have never occured and this could be dangerous. The Church recognizes and celebrates this event as historical and so we should have no doubt that it did indeed take place. King Herod was a pretty nasty individual and something like this is definitely historically feasible.

It would be impossible to identify these individual martyrs due to the large number of those massacred. Anyway, my faith lies with the Gospel account and the Church’s rendering of this event…God Bless…teachccd

 

[Neil_Anthony]

You might find this article helpful: newadvent.org/cathen/07419a.htm

Thank you. I found this paragraph very interesting:

The Roman Station of 28 December is at St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, because that church is believed to possess the bodies of several of the Holy Innocents. A portion of these relics was transferred by Sixtus V to Santa Maria Maggiore (feast on 5 May; it is a semi-double). The church of St. Justina at Padua, the cathedrals of Lisbon and Milan, and other churches also preserve bodies which they claim to be those of some of the Holy Innocents.

If the infancy narratives were just a known non-historical literary form, it seems unlikely that anyone would have brought the bodies of the dead babies to Rome…

 

[teachccd]

Thank you. I found this paragraph very interesting:

If the infancy narratives were just a known non-historical literary form, it seems unlikely that anyone would have brought the bodies of the dead babies to Rome…

If the infancy narratives were just a known non-historical literary form, we’d have no baby Jesus.:tsktsk: