Technicalities of praying to saints

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Elmawa

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I know that saints are each give certain “patronages”, and that we can pray to certain saints about those certain things. But, can we pray to any saint we want about anything we want?

For instance, I personally feel a draw towards St. Terese the Little Flower. I’ve read her bio and feel that we share some similar personality traits, and I am, like so many others, inspired by her “little way”, additionally I am in the process of becoming a nun. The main thing I want to talk to her about is becoming a nun and how to discern where I will belong. However, she is not the patron saint of those of us who are trying to discern our path in life. She’s mainly the patron of missions among a few others things. I’d sort of like to take her as a personal saint because of the way I feel drawn to her, but, (and maybe I’m over thinking all this) I’m not sure if I can pray to her about things outside of her patronage?

Thank you!
 
Sure, why not? There aren’t Prayer Police patroling about looking for those folks who just arbitrarily pray to whom ever they want. 😃

Perhaps St. Anthony has a bit more “pull” when it comes to finding lost items than say, St John Paul II. But it NEVER hurts to ask assistance from a saint.
 
=Elmawa;12865735]I know that saints are each give certain “patronages”, and that we can pray to certain saints about those certain things. But, can we pray to any saint we want about anything we want?
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For instance, I personally feel a draw towards St. Terese the Little Flower. I’ve read her bio and feel that we share some similar personality traits, and I am, like so many others, inspired by her “little way”, additionally I am in the process of becoming a nun. The main thing I want to talk to her about is becoming a nun and how to discern where I will belong. However, she is not the patron saint of those of us who are trying to discern our path in life. She’s mainly the patron of missions among a few others things. I’d sort of like to take her as a personal saint because of the way I feel drawn to her, but, (and maybe I’m over thinking all this) I’m not sure if I can pray to her about things outside of her patronage?
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Thank you!
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SURE:)

But understand that our praying “to Saints” is REALLY praying THROUGH them to Christ! ALL prayers END with God.

And all Saints because of their close and constant access to God can intercede for us.

BUT:

Like God the Saints {and Mary} can too say:

Yes!

No!

or Not NOW!

So don’t stop praying if you don’t get immediate response.

Also, God approves ONLY those things [request] that can in some manner aid our Spiritual growth.👍

We exist to say YES to God:

Isaiah 43: verses 7 & 21 “[7] And every one that calleth upon my name, I have created him for my glory, I have formed him, and made him.” & [21] This people have I formed for myself, they shall shew forth my praise"

So allow God to be in charge of your live’s:thumbsup:

God Bless you,

Patrick.
 
Prayers to saints should be conversations with friends. We talk to our friends in life about anything, even if it is not necessarily an area of their expertise. But in regards to discernment of God’s will for us in this life, that is an area of expertise for any and all saints. Personally I feel that whatever saint I am closer to in friendship, that is the one I pray with the most, regardless of what I am praying for.
 
All the saints prayers, including yours, ultimately go to God, and I don’t see God saying, "Hey, Saint _____ you’re stepping on Saint _____ toes there, that’s his/her bailiwick. God hears their prayers, and answers. Saints are given a “specialty” because it was something key to their lives, they can relate, but they are people who, like you or I, can pray about anything and God will hear them.
 
Elmawa said:
I know that saints are each give certain “patronages”, and that we can pray to certain saints about those certain things. But, can we pray to any saint we want about anything we want?

For instance, I personally feel a draw towards St. Terese the Little Flower. I’ve read her bio and feel that we share some similar personality traits, and I am, like so many others, inspired by her “little way”, additionally I am in the process of becoming a nun. The main thing I want to talk to her about is becoming a nun and how to discern where I will belong. However, she is not the patron saint of those of us who are trying to discern our path in life. She’s mainly the patron of missions among a few others things. I’d sort of like to take her as a personal saint because of the way I feel drawn to her, but, (and maybe I’m over thinking all this) I’m not sure if I can pray to her about things outside of her patronage?

Thank you!
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La Petite Therese will most certainly help you! As you know her desire to enter Carmel at an early age was very much an uphill battle, so she will be sure to help you.

The only problem is that she is my saint, and so you will have to find another. 🙂
 
Elmawa said:
I know that saints are each give certain “patronages”, and that we can pray to certain saints about those certain things. But, can we pray to any saint we want about anything we want?
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Patronages are there to help us but if you feel close to a particular Saint there is no reason why you cannot pray through that Saint instead of another, the other Saints don’t feel upset by this, they feel the joy that you are praying.
corsair said:
Sure, why not? There aren’t Prayer Police patroling about looking for those folks who just arbitrarily pray to whom ever they want. 😃
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Imagine that! I wouldn’t want to bump into them. 😃
 
lol thanks everyone! I liked the bit about the Prayer Police, and saints stepping on each others toes. It is a bit silly perhaps, but I get wrapped up in the technicalities sometimes and start to worry that I’m not doing it right, or whatever, like I might be offending someone somehow through ignorance. So, thanks for the reassurance. Makes sense that any of them would be good to talk to about discerning God’s will, since they all dedicated their lives to that, and that of course that all the prayers end up with God who is of course the one who doles out the answers.
 
How exactly does one pray through a Saint? How is that different than praying to God? Forgive my ignorance, but I am used to praying directly to only God.
 
Graceful_Lamb said:
How exactly does one pray through a Saint? How is that different than praying to God? Forgive my ignorance, but I am used to praying directly to only God.
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That’s a good question, Graceful_Lamb. I’ve asked it before myself.

I’ve been told that the Catholic position is the following:
Asking a saint to pray for you is no different than asking a Christian friend on earth to pray for you – except that the saints are your friends in heaven, and due to their high standing with God, their prayers may carry more weight than our own.

This is at least my understanding on the Catholic position. Catholics, feel free to correct me if I am wrong on that.

Of course, all of this presumes that the saints have the ability to hear your prayers, which some Protestant theologians do not believe is a ‘given’ because the saints are not omniscient or omnipresent like God. However, Catholics cite Revelation 8:4 in support of the ability of the saints to carry our prayers to God:

Rev 8:4
“*And the smoke of the incense of the prayers of the saints ascended up before God from the hand of the angel” . *

I hope this helps.
 
Tommy999 said:
That’s a good question, Graceful_Lamb. I’ve asked it before myself.

I’ve been told that the Catholic position is the following:
Asking a saint to pray for you is no different than asking a Christian friend on earth to pray for you – except that the saints are your friends in heaven, and due to their high standing with God, their prayers may carry more weight than our own.

This is at least my understanding on the Catholic position. Catholics, feel free to correct me if I am wrong on that.

Of course, all of this presumes that the saints have the ability to hear your prayers, which some Protestant theologians do not believe is a ‘given’ because the saints are not omniscient or omnipresent like God. However, Catholics cite Revelation 8:4 in support of the ability of the saints to carry our prayers to God:

“*And the smoke of the incense of the prayers of the saints ascended up before God from the hand of the angel” . *

I hope this helps.
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Thank you. That helped a lot.
 
Considering that when the Saints lived in this world they were at liberty to roam the earth, do you really think that in Heaven God would have them tied to a post?

St. Thomas More.
 
Elmawa said:
lol thanks everyone! I liked the bit about the Prayer Police, and saints stepping on each others toes. It is a bit silly perhaps, but I get wrapped up in the technicalities sometimes and start to worry that I’m not doing it right, or whatever, like I might be offending someone somehow through ignorance. So, thanks for the reassurance. Makes sense that any of them would be good to talk to about discerning God’s will, since they all dedicated their lives to that, and that of course that all the prayers end up with God who is of course the one who doles out the answers.
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Since you have a particular fondness for St. Therese, you might want to imitate her spiritual childhood in this. Ask yourself how would a young child, confident in her father’s love, would do it. Certainly she wouldn’t worry about the technicalities, or the possibility of offending someone through ignorance. She would simply ask whoever she wanted for whatever she wanted.
 
Tommy999 said:
Of course, all of this presumes that the saints have the ability to hear your prayers, which some Protestant theologians do not believe is a ‘given’ because the saints are not omniscient or omnipresent like God.
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However, God, being omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent, can know our prayers and make the saint we’re praying to/through aware of them.

As an aside, in our Dante discussion club one of the participants commented on why, in the Divine Comedy, God was working through Mary who was working through Beatrice, who was working through Virgil–did I include everyone?–to take Dante on his journey. Why all that indirect action?

His simple answer was that God wants to share his glory by giving all these people a share in the redemption.

And that’s why he gives us, too, a part to play in the redemption of others.
 
Matt_Collins said:
However, God, being omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent, can know our prayers and make the saint we’re praying to/through aware of them.

As an aside, in our Dante discussion club one of the participants commented on why, in the Divine Comedy, God was working through Mary who was working through Beatrice, who was working through Virgil–did I include everyone?–to take Dante on his journey. Why all that indirect action?

His simple answer was that God wants to share his glory by giving all these people a share in the redemption.

And that’s why he gives us, too, a part to play in the redemption of others.
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“if everyone is special, than no one is special” 😉

It take a lot of mental gymnastics (mental masturbation?) to get to God is the author… the rest are characters of his novel… the saints (including the holy family, people, angels… all of creation.
 
I have wondered this topic myself. As someone who has had various life experiences (health issues, professions of sorts, etc.) I’ve looked for patron saints that pertained to those things (like St. Dymphna for epilepsy and St. John the Apostle for writers). I have had interest in others who’ve inspired me though and not been sure if it was okay to use them as a patron saint.
 
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