The saints are a beautiful part of Christianity. They are living Scripture. In Latin, the word for "saint" is sanctus – which means holy. The term saint refers to a holy and equitable person (man or woman). If someone is given this title, it shows that the person has left a reputation for holiness. Everyone who enters Heaven is a saint; however, the Catholic Church refers to particular people who were faithful servants and worked miracles through the power of Jesus as saints on Earth. Saints bring to life the love of Christ in the world and through their abundant testimonies. They show that it is possible to do God's work and follow Christ, even unto death.

 

What amazes me about several saints declared by the Catholic Church is how young they are. Many saints are 25 years old and younger, offering and giving up their lives for Christ. I recall today's teens and young adults and how many don't consider faith in God as a "young person's thing". Reading the lives of young saints gives me the courage and hope that young people can and will be faithful witnesses to Christ. 

 

Mary and the saints should not be considered as someone who stands in the way of following and loving Christ. Instead, they should be seen as the opposite. The saints should be seen as faithful witnesses of Christ and role models to the faith. We see God working through the saints to spread the Good News, many even to their deaths. Through learning about saints, we realise that we can be holy human beings. Many false accusations by Protestants are that Catholics worship Mary. This is a highly inaccurate perspective of the role of Mary in our Christian lives. Loving Mary or the saints shouldn't in any way cause you to love Christ any less. Rather, it should do the contrary. 

 

For example, If you have a best friend who you love and respect dearly, met their family and loved their family too, it wouldn't take away the joy and deep friendship you have with your friend. Instead, it should make that bond stronger. We become close to certain people throughout our lives. It would be wrong to say to someone who has high respect for someone else: "You cannot worship anyone except God!" if this isn't their intention. 

 

The saints are an essential aspect of the life of Christianity. Seeing how Christ has worked through people and impacted people's lives points us to the Creator. Even though the faithful depart, it shouldn't mean that we should forget them. We should continue to honour their service and their love for Christ. 

 

"As for us, we have this large crowd of witnesses around us. So then, let us rid ourselves of everything that gets in the way, and of the sin which holds on to us so tightly, and let us run with determination the race that lies before us." (see Hebrews 12:1)

 

“You victorious martyrs who endured torments gladly for the sake of the God and Savior, you who have boldness of speech toward the Lord himself, you saints, intercede for us who are timid and sinful men, full of sloth, that the grace of Christ may come upon us, and enlighten the hearts of all of us so that we may love him” – Ephraim the Syrian A.D. 370

 

“At the Lord’s table we do not commemorate martyrs in the same way that we do others who rest in peace so as to pray for them, but rather that they may pray for us that we may follow in their footsteps” – Augustine A.D. 416

 

But what about communicating with the saints? Many Protestants would disagree that saints in Heaven can hear our prayers on earth despite the various languages, and that they can pray for us. When Catholics say “pray to saints”? is it implying that Catholics are praying to the saints like they are gods instead of praying to Jesus? No. No saint can do anything without the power of God. Usually, when Catholics say “praying to saints” they actually mean asking the saints to pray to Christ on their behalf.

 

There are a few ideas on why Catholics ask saints for help and prayers. 

 

The first thing is all Christians, past and present, are in the family of God. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ. As Christians, we are encouraged to ask our friends and family for prayers and pray for them (see Romans 15:30-32, and 1 Timothy 2:1). We see people interceding on our behalf more than we could notice. There are radio stations where people can call up to be asked to be prayed for, we share prayer intentions in prayer/bible study groups, and so on. We cannot deny that prayer is an essential aspect of bringing people home to Christ. However, not all Christians have this support. Some people are alone and don’t have any fellow believers around to pray for them or with them. This is where the beauty of the prayers of the saints come in. Knowing we have a heavenly army around us, gives us hope and comfort that those faithful men and women went through as many sufferings and hardships as we do today, however now they dwell with God in Heaven, where we hope to be one day. 

 

Faithful Christians who ask the saints to pray for them aren’t putting their trust in the saints to give them their needs, rather asking them just like any Christian would ask another Christian to pray for them.

 

Yes, Mary and the Saints are physically dead although they are not spiritually dead. Like faithful Christians will be, they are alive in Christ. They are closer to God than anyone is on earth, and the Bible even says that they can hear our prayers and offer them up to God, (see Revelation 8:3-4 and Revelation 5:7-8). In the Scriptures there aren’t many examples of people asking the saints for prayers, mostly because when the Bible was written it was only around the first generation after Christ ascended into Heaven. However, a few Church Fathers do mention that they acknowledge that the saints can hear our prayers and offer our petitions to God. 

 

Asking the saints to pray for us can be as simple as saying, “Mary the Mother of God, pray for us to the Lord our God.”

 

So with this in mind, let’s take a minute to reflect, what is the big difference between Christians on earth and Christians in Heaven who are alive in Christ praying for us? 

Heaven lives outside our time, language and understanding. With this understanding, do we believe that different languages can be a barrier? 

 

Let’s take another look at Revelation 8:3-4. “Another angel, who had a gold incense container, came and stood at the altar. He was given a lot of incense to add to the prayers of all God's people and to offer it on the gold altar that stands before the throne. The smoke of the burning incense went up with the prayers of God's people from the hands of the angel standing before God.”

We obviously know that this is taking place in Heaven, through John’s visions. Notice how the passage says offer it before the throne. This can reveal that the angels and saints in Heaven are able to offer prayers from God’s people. 

 

 

“But not the high priest [Christ] alone prays for those who pray sincerely, but also the angels . . . as also the souls of the saints who have already fallen asleep” – Origen A.D. 233 

 

[During the Eucharistic Prayer] we commemorate those who have already fallen asleep: first the patriarchs, prophets, apostles and martyrs, that in their prayers and supplications God would receive our petition.” St Cyril of Jerusalem [Catechetical Lectures 23:9 (c. A.D. 350)].