How do you reconcile the blood shed by Jesus with the prayers of the saints?

[TheyCallMeDave]

Hello. Ive been told that Catholics are trusting only in the shed blood of Christ on Calvary for the remission of their sins which includes the guilt, shame, and punishment thereof. In reading CCC 1477 , it appears that other peoples deposited good works and merits from deceased Catholics can serve to help another on toward eventual salvation. Do I understand this correctly ? And if I do, how do you reconcile the two ? Thanks.

 

[Fr.Vincent_Serpa]

Hi,

The Catholic Church teaches that our salvation was wrought only by the passion and death of Jesus Christ. But we will not benefit from it if we choose not to. Jesus made heaven possible for us. But we can refuse to go there. Here is where the prayers of Christians for each other can benefit those whose faith is weak—as is the case with most of us. The holier a person is, the more valuable are his prayers. We value most, the prayers of all the holy ones in heaven. But we are grateful for the prayers of those around us as well.

So there is no conflict between the salvation wrought by Jesus and the prayers we offer that each of us be strengthened to daily choose to accept that salvation and not turn our backs on it.

Fr. Vincent Serpa, O.P.