Do the Saints know our thoughts?

[Neithan]

This might seem like a silly question, but I’m a new Catholic and very inquisitive!
In my catechism book***** on prayer, it mentions three kinds:

1. 
   *] Vocal Prayer—Our heart is expressed in spoken words, our own or those of others.
   *]Meditation–All of our human faculties are engaged in a search to understand the true meaning of the Christian life.
   *]Contemplation or mental prayer–An unspoken ‘conversation’ in which one comes into communion with the very mystery that is God.
   
   Often when I pray to the saints or to Mary, I use the third kind, Contemplation; I pray in my head, communicate to them through my thoughts. I do the same with Angels. But do the saints, Mary and the angels know our thoughts, can they understand us when we mentally communicate, or are we supposed to use Vocal Prayer when asking for their intercession?
   
   *** Life in Christ, Rev. Gerhard Weber and Rev. James Killgallon revised by Rev. Michael Place and Rev. Sammie Maletta, copyright 1994.
   **(with ***Nihil Obstat *and Imprimatur)
   **

 

[edward_george]

Mary and the saints cannot hear our prayers under their own power–it is through God that they are able to. I would think that contemplative prayer is an acceptable way to ask for saintly intercession–some people pray the rosary silently, and when asked, in an interfaith setting, to pray as “I see fit” I usually add in some intercessory prayers silently.

-ACEGC

 

[Neithan]

Thanks edward_george

Not that it makes any practical difference really, but is Mary not exceptional in the Communion of Saints in this regard? Since she was assumed body and soul into heaven, and is in a fully glorified state, can she not also physically hear our prayers, or read our minds, under her own power?

 

[Magicsilence]

Mary was sinless, but that doesnt give her some supernatural power, ALL OF IT comes from God alone, albeit through others at times, like the early saints.

In Christ.

Andre.

 

[aaronjmagnan]

On the same note, Mary is supposedly esteemed above all saints because of her place as the first Christian, her humility, and her sinlessness, as well as her devoting all attention to her son.

Even the Angels praise her (see when the Angel greets her, “Hail! Mary, you have found favor with the Lord!” Aquinas says that this “Hail” is a huge deal, because it shows her glory over even the angels.) in some accounts.

But we ask the saints to pray for us above all, we don’t really pray to them. This may sound trivial but the protestants jump on “praying to the saints” as worshipping other gods." And this is a true thing. We can ask them to pray for us because of the Communion of Saints in which we are all united as Catholics through divine bonds, the Holy Spirit.

I just jumped onto the Catholic boat too! God bless!

Aaron