Theology of prayers

[Saint of Light]

I belong to a mainline Protestant church. Unlike Catholicism, my denomination teaches that praying to saints, angels, and other residents of heaven constitutes a sin. They teach that we’re only supposed to pray to God, but why is praying to anyone else wrong?

My personal experiences have taught me that it is perfectly acceptable to pray to others in heaven. One time I prayed to a saint whose biography I read. He lived a very pious life and has exemplary religious character. The saint then came to visit me, and we said a prayer together.

It is okay to pray to saints. We Christians can pray to whoever we want to in heaven, and they will always intercede for us. Other Protestants should realize that Martin Luther’s teaching on this subject isn’t accurate.

 

[Gottservant]

It isn't wrong to pray to whoever, as long as you don't place on them a burden they can't answer better than God.

That's what the relationship to God in prayer is, primarily: a relationship of humility, for which there is no better in God.

You may say "I like lesser answers to prayer", but in all honesty have you got that much strength, to waste prayer on just anyone?

I'm not saying your prayer is weak, just that as far as Creation is concerned, God is the master of it - not anyone else.

 

[Saint of Light]

It isn't wrong to pray to whoever, as long as you don't place on them a burden they can't answer better than God.

That's what the relationship to God in prayer is, primarily: a relationship of humility, for which there is no better in God.

You may say "I like lesser answers to prayer", but in all honesty have you got that much strength, to waste prayer on just anyone?

I'm not saying your prayer is weak, just that as far as Creation is concerned, God is the master of it - not anyone else.

Let’s say there is a Christian widow whose husband recently died, and he was also a believer. Maybe she wants to contact him through prayer and have it returned with the warmth and comfort in knowing that he is okay. Why are you describing an example like this as a “lesser answer”?

I get that God is all-knowing and therefore well-suited to answering any and all prayers. But in the above case, the widow was married to her husband and not God. Thus, her husband is probably the one who can answer her better in this particular circumstance.

 

[Gottservant]

Let’s say there is a Christian widow whose husband recently died, and he was also a believer. Maybe she wants to contact him through prayer and have it returned with the warmth and comfort in knowing that he is okay. Why are you describing an example like this as a “lesser answer”?

I get that God is all-knowing and therefore well-suited to answering any and all prayers. But in the above case, the widow was married to her husband and not God. Thus, her husband is probably the one who can answer her better in this particular circumstance.

What you said sounds reasonable, until you realise there is a more faithful context in which the widows prayers could be working.

The widow could pray for joy between both her husband and herself in Heaven, to the Glory of God. Yet because you have suggested she pray to her husband, this did not occur to you - that is what is meant by "it is a lesser answer".

Now are there things which only the husband knows? No, God knows everything, the husband does not. But could the widow pray especially for her husband to God? No, that is placing on the widow a burden she does not have. The point is, that the widow needs faith to look ahead and gain sustenance - she does not need her husband to pray for her from Heaven, in all honesty I imagine she would rather hear it from God anyway.

The Devil on the other hand, is quite happy for you to waste your prayer life. I'm not saying "watch out", I'm saying "be warned".

 

[Saint of Light]

What you said sounds reasonable, until you realise there is a more faithful context in which the widows prayers could be working.

The widow could pray for joy between both her husband and herself in Heaven, to the Glory of God. Yet because you have suggested she pray to her husband, this did not occur to you - that is what is meant by "it is a lesser answer".

Now are there things which only the husband knows? No, God knows everything, the husband does not. But could the widow pray especially for her husband to God? No, that is placing on the widow a burden she does not have. The point is, that the widow needs faith to look ahead and gain sustenance - she does not need her husband to pray for her from Heaven, in all honesty I imagine she would rather hear it from God anyway.

The Devil on the other hand, is quite happy for you to waste your prayer life. I'm not saying "watch out", I'm saying "be warned".

Thanks for the advice, but to be fair: I did have a very impactful spiritual experience when I prayed to a saint one time. It was different than prayer to God, but it’s hard to determine which experience is either lesser or higher, to use your terms. It was a very unique thing, sort of like a separate category.

Have you tried praying to a saint in heaven? Have you tried praying to a guardian angel? Or have you reached out to virtually anyone else in heaven who isn’t God? What was it like?

 

[Rita]

I believe Prayer is asking the Lord to intervene, help , to give strength ect. I personally don’t believe that anyone else in heaven has the power to bring about the change ot help required. The Lord uses angels , but they are governed by the lords commands.
Communicating is a desire to talk to others, and I totally understand that this can be a desire if someone has died ect, but it’s a need in us and real communication simply cannot happen - but when we ‘ feel ‘ as if we are talking to a loved one it can help on a subconscious level with grief.
So Prayer , I believe , is unique and only between us and the Lord x

 

[Papa Smurf]

Here's something that may be worth considering concerning this topic (praying to the dead).

QUESTION​

What does the Bible say about praying to the dead?​

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ANSWER​

Praying to the dead is strictly forbidden in the Bible. Deuteronomy 18:11 tells us that anyone who “consults with the dead” is “detestable to the Lord.” ​

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The story of Saul consulting a medium to bring up the spirit of the dead Samuel resulted in his death “because he was unfaithful to the LORD; he did not keep the word of the LORD and even consulted a medium for guidance” (1 Samuel 28:1-25; 1 Chronicles 10:13-14). Clearly, God has declared that such things are not to be done.​

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Consider the characteristics of God. God is omnipresent—everywhere at once—and is capable of hearing every prayer in the world (Psalm 139:7-12). A human being, on the other hand, does not possess this attribute. Also, God is the only one with the power to answer prayer. God is omnipotent—all powerful (Revelation 19:6). Certainly this is an attribute a human being—dead or alive—does not possess. Finally, God is omniscient—He knows everything (Psalm 147:4-5). Even before we pray, God knows our genuine needs and knows them better than we do. Not only does He know our needs, but He answers our prayers according to His perfect will.​

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So, in order for a dead person to receive prayers, the dead individual has to hear the prayer, possess the power to answer it, and know how to answer it in a way that is best for the individual praying. Only God hears and answers prayer because of His perfect essence and because of what some theologians call His “immanence.” Immanence is the quality of God that causes Him to be directly involved with the affairs of mankind (1 Timothy 6:14-15); this includes answering prayer.​

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Even after a person dies, God is still involved with that person and his destination. Hebrews 9:27 says so: “…Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” If a person dies in Christ, he goes to heaven to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:1-9, especially verse 8); if a person dies in his sin, he goes to hell, and eventually everyone in hell will be thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14-15).​

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God has provided His Son, Jesus Christ, to be the mediator between man and God (1 Timothy 2:5). With Jesus Christ as our mediator, we can go through Jesus to God. Why would we want to go through a sinful dead individual, especially when doing so risks the wrath of God?​

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~What does the Bible say about praying to / speaking to / talking to the dead? | GotQuestions.org​

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--Papa Smurf
p.s. - to Whom did the Lord Jesus teach us to pray (Matthew 6:9-13)? Likewise, who did He pray to when He lived among us as a man? Abraham? Melchizedek? Moses? Daniel? David? Someone Else perhaps? (John 17). Should we not always follow His lead in this, praying as He instructed us to (and to Whom He instructed us to pray)?

 

[GISMYS_7]

Believe God and His Word and ignore the ideas and opinions of little men.

 

[Gottservant]

Thanks for the advice, but to be fair: I did have a very impactful spiritual experience when I prayed to a saint one time. It was different than prayer to God, but it’s hard to determine which experience is either lesser or higher, to use your terms. It was a very unique thing, sort of like a separate category.

Have you tried praying to a saint in heaven? Have you tried praying to a guardian angel? Or have you reached out to virtually anyone else in heaven who isn’t God? What was it like?

I heed the warning that is in Revelation, when a person says to John "see that you do not do that!" (referring to his bowing down to him).

At times I entertain worshipping other gods, but only to establish that I get nothing out of it - that's where I stand regarding appealing to others what is God's authority.

I mean I have thought about it (praying to others), but I get almost nothing out of it - sorry.

 

[Bob Estey]

I belong to a mainline Protestant church. Unlike Catholicism, my denomination teaches that praying to saints, angels, and other residents of heaven constitutes a sin. They teach that we’re only supposed to pray to God, but why is praying to anyone else wrong?

My personal experiences have taught me that it is perfectly acceptable to pray to others in heaven. One time I prayed to a saint whose biography I read. He lived a very pious life and has exemplary religious character. The saint then came to visit me, and we said a prayer together.

It is okay to pray to saints. We Christians can pray to whoever we want to in heaven, and they will always intercede for us. Other Protestants should realize that Martin Luther’s teaching on this subject isn’t accurate.

I don't think that praying to saints, angels, and other residents of heaven is a sin, but I don't think they can hear you. You can ask God to talk to them for you.