I’m all for intercessory prayer. I’m just not for praying to someone other than God. let’s look at it this way.
The Bible tells us to pray to God. Therefore, in obedience to the word of God, I will pray to _____________. For me, I will fill the blank in with “God”. But what I’m understanding from many here is that they would fill in the blank with “God, Mary, St. Joseph, etc., etc., etc.”
(this quote has been shortened by me)
I understand your position and I agree… "But from the catholic point of view and doctrine
there are scriptures which indicate to us, that it is proper and correct to pray to others
living and dead for interecesion of our prayers.
I will just quote one here as the other main one is of one of the old testement books which most if not all non-catholic christians have decided to not allow as within their canon of scriptures.
I don’t know if you accept what is sometimes called “by scripture through Implication” or not. It is sort of a truth indicated in an indirect way. So let me try to explain this.
(I am not good at teaching)
St. John who wrote the books of what you call Revelations wrote in the fifth chapter
that he was taken up in a vision of heaven… and he looked in…
He saw God sitting on the Throne, he was the lamb who was slained for our sins,
He saw a woman, who some say now, is or is not Mary… but the main thing
he saw… was the past dead christians, in front of the Alter where God, Jesus and this woman was, (he does not name the woman) and these dead past christians who St. John
names as the “elders” of the church… had in their hands, bowls which contained the
prayers of the living christians and were offering these prayers along with incense…
Revelation 5:8 (New International Version)
8And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
The Catholic Church takes that scene and feels it is with implication that our prayers can be offered to God through the christians who were here and are passed away are now able
to have our prayers and offer them to God…
This is one of the scriptures which give us this idea that we can pray to those who were in the same Body Of Christ as we are… and are not in their glorifed state… but that they do have knowledge of our prayers and present them to God.
Of course this might be a bit off topic… but I am certain that you are aware of those scriptures in the book of Roman where it teaches that we don’t even know what to pray
for and the Holy Ghost takes our prayers and changes the wording and He presents that to God…
Romans 8:26
26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmity. For we know not what we should pray for as we ought; but the Spirit himself asketh for us with unspeakable groanings.
From scriptures I find that we can place our prayers with past christians. Mary being
one of them… and maybe as the Holy Spirit takes our prayers and changes our words
maybe these saints do too… So that what we should be praying about is what God hears
in the end… It might be a good thing that past saints, including Mary does have the ability to hear and present our prayers… they might get a better responce from them.
I think it is because Mary is a woman that many female christians find it good to
be able to go to her in prayer and have a little talk with her from a woman’s perspective.
And we believe that Jesus gave us an adoption into His family… and when he said
to Johh, Here is your mother! He was telling us too, that she was our mother…
and since we are taught from Scriptures that we can pray to past christians of the church… it includes her too. So we see it as something we can do… and use.
I think many catholic christians need to focus on some better doctrine books of the Catholic chruch instead of what they “feel” or “believe” about Mary and have formed their own conclusions from those means.
She certainly is more to the faith than what most non-catholic christians believe and understand but far less than what “some” catholics believe and understand.
Your questions and comments are ideal to bring this subject out in the open… where
others can voice their views where as it starts a good foundation for the truth of Mary
to come out from both objectives. Which is to learn of Mary as she is to and for the
faith. in and through the Mystical Body of Christ… and from within the Kingdom of
God which we all are in… Those members who are here and those who were here
but are still alive on the other side of what we know as reality here and now.
In the end, this whole concept can be something really wonderful that God has given
to us to use… We catholics know that the prayers directed to certain past saints of
our faith, have been effective. As we have the knowledge of how these prayers have
been answered through some wonderful Miracles.
You might google: St. Solantis Casey… on the internet and read about him…
he was a Friar who lived here in the united states and died in the late 1950’s.
He has been credited with many wonderful healings from people who have’
requested his intercession for their needs through prayer to him.
I’ve only discussed intercessorary prayer, the axiom that if you pray an intercessorary prayer you are by definintion an intercessor, the fact that the bible most certainly does not contain the complete word of God, brushed on the fact that the Church is the ultimate authority in faith and morals… And maybe a couple other topics.