Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are confusing worshiping someone with asking for someone's prayers. You are acting as though Mary and saints are considered on the same level as God and Jesus. They are not. They were just people. It's no different than asking a friend or relative to pray for you.

According to Catholic doctrine, Mary went bodily to heaven, like Jesus. That makes her more than "just people."

The other saints went through a long, grueling process before they were named saits, including preforming miracles for people who prayed to them. Nothing ordinary about that.

None of my friends or relatives have performed miracles or gone bodily to heaven.

Absolutely zero Biblical evidence for the assumption of Mary.

Or of the immaculate conception. The Catholic Church made that up @ 300 AD. "Though shalt not worship a graven image", yet Catholics do. I don't get it. The Bible is very clear on this point.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are all - dead and alive - part of the communion of saints:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communion_of_saints

When I ask e.g. Saint Anthony or Saint Mary to intercede for me ("pray for us"), I am not worshipping the Saint. I am asking him or her to pray for me, just as I would ask you or my sister to do so. I am praying that s/he do so. A prayer is a supplication. Not the same as worship.

http://catholicism.about.com/od/thesaints/f/Pray_to_Saints.htm

I was not referring to worship but rather the path to God is through Christ alone. Therefore doesn't that do away with priests as an intercessor and also asking anyone else to intercede, speak to God and/or Christ, on your behalf.

No one has to ask a priest or minister or friend to pray for them. You may ask people to pray for you if you choose to, but if you'd rather not, just don't. Of course, Catholics and anyone else can pray directly to God and Jesus if they choose to. I personally like to pray for my friends and relatives and I like that they pray for me, but we could all choose to pray only for ourselves if we wanted (although we likely won't do that).

How is this a serious question and not yet another invitation to Catholic-bait on DCUM?

Anonymous wrote:We are all - dead and alive - part of the communion of saints:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communion_of_saints

When I ask e.g. Saint Anthony or Saint Mary to intercede for me ("pray for us"), I am not worshipping the Saint. I am asking him or her to pray for me, just as I would ask you or my sister to do so. I am praying that s/he do so. A prayer is a supplication. Not the same as worship.

http://catholicism.about.com/od/thesaints/f/Pray_to_Saints.htm

I was not referring to worship but rather the path to God is through Christ alone. Therefore doesn't that do away with priests as an intercessor and also asking anyone else to intercede, speak to God and/or Christ, on your behalf.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are confusing worshiping someone with asking for someone's prayers. You are acting as though Mary and saints are considered on the same level as God and Jesus. They are not. They were just people. It's no different than asking a friend or relative to pray for you.

According to Catholic doctrine, Mary went bodily to heaven, like Jesus. That makes her more than "just people."

The other saints went through a long, grueling process before they were named saits, including preforming miracles for people who prayed to them. Nothing ordinary about that.

None of my friends or relatives have performed miracles or gone bodily to heaven.

Where is that in the Bible?

Anonymous wrote:Re asking saints to intercede - Why not just go right to the top?

Saints led holy lives and are examples for the church. They are human. They are more approachable.

Jesus is the mediator between God and man. He has authority to negotiate with God and to push God on man's behalf. Anyone can petition God, though, on their own behalf or on behalf of others. I pray for others all of the time. Praying to a saint for intercession is just asking them to pray for you.

Anonymous wrote:Re asking saints to intercede - Why not just go right to the top?

Why do you ask people to pray for you? Why not just do it all yourself?

Re asking saints to intercede - Why not just go right to the top?

Anonymous wrote:How does the Catholic church reconcile their use of saints, priests, etc, in light of 1 Timothy 2:5

For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

Catholic here. Totally agree with the sentiment; nothing to reconcile.

Also, Timothy, great name for an Irish Catholic boy.

Anonymous wrote:Catholic doctrine is a demonstrable Christian heresy. This is one of many reasons.

Catholic doctrine was in place 1500 years before protestant doctrine, with its lineage traceable back to St. Peter.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you ever ask your friends or relatives to pray for you? Catholics ask their friends and relatives here on earth to pray for them and they also ask those who have gone before them to heaven to pray for them.

Catholics believe in a concept called "the communion of the saints" which means that we are all, the living and the dead, in communion with each other. We are all God's children and we can all pray for each other and we will some day all be together with God.

does this apply to non-catholics too, or do only Catholics receive these benefits?

Definitely all people.

Anonymous wrote:You are confusing worshiping someone with asking for someone's prayers. You are acting as though Mary and saints are considered on the same level as God and Jesus. They are not. They were just people. It's no different than asking a friend or relative to pray for you.

+1

A prayer is a supplication, a request. Not the same as worship. We worship God only.

We are all - dead and alive - part of the communion of saints:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communion_of_saints

When I ask e.g. Saint Anthony or Saint Mary to intercede for me ("pray for us"), I am not worshipping the Saint. I am asking him or her to pray for me, just as I would ask you or my sister to do so. I am praying that s/he do so. A prayer is a supplication. Not the same as worship.

http://catholicism.about.com/od/thesaints/f/Pray_to_Saints.htm

"I believe in...the communion of saints"