Should you pray to angels? Does the Bible have anything to say about this practice? And if so, does it permit it or condemn it?
I should clarify at the outset that by “praying,” I don’t mean “worshiping” them. All Christians are in agreement that worshiping angels is contrary to Scripture, and Revelation 19:9-10 and 22:8-9 are particularly clear that we are not to do so. That question is easy. Instead, I mean speaking to angels, asking them to pray for us, asking them to protect us, thanking them for their protection and prayers, and the like.
With that in mind, consider these six Biblical reasons to pray to angels. I’m going to present each point with minimal commentary, summarizing the resulting picture at the end:
(1) Your Guardian Angel is Praying For You.
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| Pietro Perugino, God the Father and Angels, Sistine Chapel (16th c.) |
In Matthew 18:10, Jesus says, “See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that in heaven their angels always behold the face of my Father who is in heaven.” It’s easy to overlook the importance of that line for this question, but Christ is confirming that we each have guardian angels interceding for us before the Heavenly Throne. That’s why He refers to these as “their angels.”
Nor is it just individuals who have guardian angels. Revelation 1:20 tells us that each church also has its own angel. And God uses these angels as intermediaries between God and man: He sends an angel to speak to John and inspire him to write Revelation (Rev. 1:1), and then has this angel transmit a message to John to proclaim to the angels of each of the churches (Rev. 2:1, 8, 12, 18; 3:1, 7, 14). Nations are also entrusted to particular guardian angels, as was done with the nation of Israel (Daniel 10:21; 12:1).
So there are angels who have a direct responsibility for us, and who are involved in our lives, praying for us.
(2) Angels Bring the Prayers of the Saints to God.
Not only are angels praying for us, they’re also bringing our prayers to God. In Tobit 12:15, the Archangel Raphael says, “I am Raph′ael, one of the seven holy angels who present the prayers of the saints and enter into the presence of the glory of the Holy One.” Now, Protestants might be hesitant to accept that testimony: after all, it’s from the Book of Tobit, which they believe is non-inspired. But it turns out, the Book of Revelation confirms what Raphael said. Revelation 8:2-4 says:
Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer; and he was given much incense to mingle with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne; and the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God.
Now, Revelation doesn’t specify whether these are the prayers of the Saints in heaven, on earth, or both. But it’s clear that these seven angels (along with an eighth, who serves as a heavenly thurifer) are offering the prayers of the Saints.
So angels aren’t just involved in praying for us, but are intimately involved in our prayers to God. This turns out to be an important point for Protestants, who fear that intercession somehow gets in the way of their ability to pray directly to God. Their prayers directly to God are already going through angelic mediation!
(3) Angels Protect Us in Other Ways, Too.
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| Pietro Perugino, Annunciation, Santa Maria Nuova, Fano (1490) |
Angels help us in countless other ways, as well. Hebrews 1:14 says of angels: “Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to serve, for the sake of those who are to obtain salvation?” This ministry takes different forms, as they provide for our physical and spiritual needs on the road to salvation.
For example, Psalm 34:7 says that, “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.” Sometimes this takes the form of physical protection: for example, in battle (2 Chronicles 32:21). Additionally, it was an angel who gave Elijah food and drink to strengthen him when he had given up on living (1 Kings 19:5-8). But beyond physical protection, angels help us spiritually. When Balaam went to curse Israel, it was an angel who stopped him – invisibly at first, and visibly only thereafter (Numbers 22:32-33).
Other times, this angelic ministry takes the form of telling us what to do. An angel instructed the Apostle Philip to “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza” (Acts 8:26) so that Philip would encounter the Ethiopian eunuch reading Isaiah, and lead him to salvation (Acts 8:27-39).
Finally, and perhaps most obviously, they announce the will of God to us. Several times throughout Scripture, angels answer our prayers on God’s behalf, or are His instrument for announcing His will or His plans. For example, the prayers of Hagar and Ishmael are answered by an angel (Genesis 16:1-10; 21:17), an angel who calls Gideon the judge (Judges 6:11-21), and so on. It was the Archangel Gabriel who told Zechariah that his wife would bear John the Baptist (Luke 1:11-13). Or, to take the most angelic appearance in history, it was Gabriel who announced to the Virgin Mary that she would bear Jesus Christ (Luke 1:26-38).
So angels play a huge, unseen role in our daily lives, aiding us on the way to salvation. While this includes prayer, we now see that it includes countless other ministrations, as well.
(4) It’s Okay to Speak to Angels.
As we’ve just seen, Scripture presents several times in which angels speak to men and women. And you know what? The people that they’re talking to often respond. For example, when Gabriel announces the Incarnation to Mary, she asks him how it could happen, given her Virginity (Luke 1:34). Both Abraham and Jacob are depicted as speaking with angels (Genesis 22:11; 31:11), as did Balaam (Numbers 22:34), Samson’s father (Judges 13), and many others. Both the prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 1) and the Apostle John (the Book of Revelation) are presented as having extended conversations with angels.
In a few of these examples, it’s unclear if the “angel” is actually Christ, but there’s no question that Scripture presents men speaking with angels, and presents it in a positive manner (unless, like the high priest Zechariah, they’re disrespectful: cf Luke 1:18-20).
Typically, these people speak to angels after the angels begin the conversations. But Scripture doesn’t require this, and King David freely calls upon the angels, along with the rest of Creation, to praise God: “Praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his host!” (Psalm 148:2) and “Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, hearkening to the voice of his word!” (Psalm 103:20).
(5) The Disciples Even Speak to Demons.
One point that’s often overlooked is that the Disciples are sent out to exorcise demons (Luke 9:1), and this mission entails speaking to them at times. After all, they are driving out demons in the name of Jesus (Luke 10:17). And when non-Disciples start imitating this, driving out demons in the name of Jesus, He doesn’t discourage them (Mark 9:38). For that matter, Christ Himself spoke with demons (Matthew 8:28-32; Luke 8:30).
Obviously, it’s not as if Jesus and His followers were making small talk with demons. Rather, they were speaking to them in the course of casting them out. But nevertheless, this point is significant, because it would bizarre to say that it’s okay to speak to demons, fallen angels, in order to cast them out, but not okay to speak to holy angels.
(6) This Doesn’t Violate Scripture’s Prohibition Against “Consulting the Dead.”
Finally, let’s go ahead and anticipate a common Protestant objection:
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.” 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).
And that’s all true: Scripture does condemn consulting the dead. Isaiah 8:19 says, “And when they say to you, “Consult the mediums and the wizards who chirp and mutter,” should not a people consult their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living?”
The Scriptural condemnation of consulting the dead is closely tied to the idea of trying to go around God. Both 1 Chronicles 10:13 and Isaiah 8:19 point this out clearly. But in the case of praying to the angels or the Saints in heaven, you’re not trying to go around God. You’re trying to go to those close to Him: those who are praying for you, offering up your prayers, and looking out for you in innumerable ways.
More importantly, praying to angels isn’t consulting the dead. After all, angels aren’t dead. After all, these are the angels that didn’t fall, the angels who stand in the presence of the Living God at all times (Matthew 18:10; Luke 1:19; Tobit 12:15; Revelation 8:2). They’re alive in a way that we’re not, alive in a way that we still strive to be.
To act as if angels are dead just because they’re immaterial, spiritual beings is an incredibly anti-Christian attitude. After all, “God is Spirit” (John 4:24), yet we don’t declare “the living God” dead (cf. Hebrews 3:12). This idea that those without bodies are “dead” might make sense for an atheist materialist, but not for a Christian.
While we’re on the subject, this is why the prohibition against consulting the dead doesn’t prohibit praying to the Saints. The Sadducees made the same mistake that these Protestant objectors made, and Christ corrected them for it (Mark 12:26-27):
And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not God of the dead, but of the living; you are quite wrong.”
To say that we can’t pray to the Saints because they’re dead is to say that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is a God of the dead. If you believe that, you are quite wrong.
Conclusion
To summarize the case for praying to angels, Scripture has revealed to us that there are spiritual beings who are standing in the presence of God, and who are both offering up our prayers to God, and their own prayers for us. More than this, they are tasked with ministering to us to lead us to salvation. Of course we should talk to them: requesting that they pray for specific things, entreat them to protect us in areas in which we realize that we are weak, and the like. In doing this, we are helping them to do what God has tasked them to do.
And so it’s the most natural thing in the world that Scripture presents holy men and women speaking with angels. How could they not? Consider Genesis 22:11,
But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here am I.”
Imagine the absurdity of a Protestant Abraham, afraid to speak to the angel for fear that this might somehow be “worship.” Or a Protestant Mary, too “pious” to ask Gabriel about the Virgin Birth.
Of course, I don’t say these things to be rude to Protestants, who act out of a well-meaning piety in avoiding acknowledging or thanking the angels who assist them daily. But I do mean to show that this aversion to praying to angels is unbiblical, and born out of a terribly flawed and anti-Christian notion that the immaterial angels and disembodied Saints in glory are “dead,” when they are in fact in the presence of the living God.
By the way, I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of my readers. I love blogging, and I love your feedback. In a particular way, I’d like to take a moment to thank:
1) My international readers. It’s a good reminder of the catholicity of the Church. For example, one of the seminarians here at the North American College, Peter Vale, was in Gothenburg, Sweden recently, and had dinner with a family who mentioned the blog. Stories like that are a great joy to me.
2) Lecturer Darin Tuck’s students. I was a history major in undergrad, so I was thrilled to hear from Tuck that he assigned Shameless Popery as his “website for the week” for his “History of Religion in American History” class at Stephens University. To those of you reading for the first time, I welcome you to dig through the site, and provide whatever feedback you’d like (positive or negative). Feel free to jump in on any of the discussions, and be assured of my prayers for you during this time of transition. Oh yeah, and mention this comment to him for extra credit.*
I.X.,
Joe
*It’s worth a shot?
Thank you for the information. Wonderful. I am writing a children’s book about angels. Primarily to explain angels to my grandchildren.
Your article is right the angels first initialed the conversation. Yes angels are there to help us, warn us, carry our prayers and Minister to us. However Praying to angels for help is done thru the Father, Matthew 26:53 (KJV) Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?
Remember Satan himself masquerades as an Angel of light, thus any prayer to Angels should start with a Petition to Our Father who are in Heaven.
Amen ,The only way to the Father is thru the son.I am the Way Thr Truth and The Light.
You are on point
I prefer to keep it short and sweet, without extra man made traditions. I see it this way, if I’m not sure I’d better not do it. Angels are very important, yes. But I can ask God directly to send me angelic protection in Jesus Christ name. I don’t pray to Saints because they will be raised back to life when “first the dead rise then we who are alive and remain will be changed”. Even if I have misunderstood the Bible verse in Revelation, I still prefer to play it safe, and call directly to God in Jesus Christ name. The Bible says Jesus Christ is our advocate to Father God, who is speaking in our favour. Then why shall I ask Saints? I’ve got Jesus. He is enough. I leave the Saints for now, until they get raised back to life. And that includes Jesus Christ mum too. Jesus Christ said “Who is my mother and brother and sister, the one doing my Father’s will is my mother, my brother and sister.” So, although I see her as an incredible woman, I don’t feel like praying to her. Again, I prefer to speak only to God. Not to Angels, not to Marry, not to Saints. “On this rock”, the Bible says Jesus Christ is the rock. Whoever builds house on the rock (Jesus Christ) is stable not like the one building on the sand. “The keys”, who is the door? Jesus Christ! Who was Peter? Vessel through whom the Gospel was shared. So, then the key therefore is the true Gospel. The Catholic church vs The Roman Catholic Church – during the centuries there were so many changes, so many decisions, things out of the Bible (Vicar of Christ?), that I’d better stick to my Bible. Thanks God we’ve got Bibles today. Icons, images – make yourself no graven image, not in the form of human, or bird, or fish, or what is in the sky etc. Again, I prefer to not use any pictures, any objects, but just worship “in Spirit and truth”. Am I completely right? Don’t know. I’m an ordinary person, no scholar, no priest, but I prefer to stick to the basics. Because the more traditions and human understanding out of the Bible we put, the more the basics are getting out of the way. Saying that, I don’t think there is any person who is perfect in understanding. We know that only God is perfect.
I love your comment, Tanya!
Praying to angels and to saints is wrong. Actually, we (believers in Christ) are considered saints too. You don’t have to be dead or win a spiritual ‘grammy’ to be a saint. Look at Jesus’s response when the disciples asked him how they should pray… Our Father who art in Heaven…
I don’t mean to offend, but there are many contradictions in Joe’s passage above. It’s almost as if he’s trying to support his case for praying to angels without any biblical evidence or any convincing arguments. Personally I don’t even know why we would not want or prefer to pray directly to our Lord and God or the Holy Spirit. It’s a great honor.
Food for thought…
yes yes yes. In Jesus Name we come to the Father.. If anyone comes among you preaching teaching talking any other Gospel mark him as false. For we are never to pray or bow to no one are nothing. For Yahweh is a jealous God. Angles are sent to us from God to help to warn to protect never to pray to. However we certainly can talk to Angels when they appear as the Word shows us..Trust in Jesus he knows best .Anyone trying to teach you to pray to Angels or anything rebuke them and hold fast to your faith.
Amen and Amen! you are on course ,
Somebody told me but idk if its wrong does The Lord still forgive me I asked for forgiveness but I asked god who my guardian angle was and I don’t know if it’s a sin
You can go to God on your own directly, but how can you identify what’s truly God and not just what you want to believe, when you’re simply living by faith through your own personal interpretation of the Bible.
This makes a lot of sense to be honest ,lm a Christian who is struggling and trying to get right with God.When l found out about praying to Angels it made me so confused coz l thought we only pray to Jesus.
We only pray to Jesus. Jesus gave us examples. Never does Jesus teach to pray to any other. To do so you be saying Jesus is not your God. What ever you do in word or deed do in Jesus name. My email is [email protected] Anyway I can point you to Jesus contact me. Give Jesus the glory he died and risen to save us that believe and holds there faith to the end. Accept Jesus be filled with the holy spirit when you understand this God well use you for his glory Mark 16 tells us by Jesus we can lay hands on the sick and the well recover…IN this God can and does send his Angels to do great works for his glory..
I like ur Comment Tanya, Very well said and completely in agree with you.
Im a Catholic, and disagree with some oif the doctrines. Better to stick to Basics in the Bible
I am a unworthy sinner in repentance as a servant of The Lord Jesus .In Jesus name. If it is not scriptural it’s not of The True God The WORD OF GOD IS THE LIVING GOD AND LIVING SPIRIT OF LIFE AMEN
Jn 6:63 Jesus said ,”THE SPIRIT GIVES LIFE THE FLESH COUNTS FOR NOTHING ! THE WORDS I HAVE SPOKEN UNTO YOU ,THEY ARE FULL OF THE SPIRIT AND LIFE !
(BUT SOME OF YOU WONT BELIEVE ME ) Amen
The world churches are just stone buildings that have refused the corner stone which turns out to be Our Lord God Jesus the LIVING WORD OF GOD Amen . Without a Shadow of a doubt as it is written and scripture says they rejected the corner stone which turns out to BE THE LIVING WORD OF GOD JESUS,
JESUS iS TELLING US HE IS NOT IN ANY OF THESE REBELLIOUS WORLDLY RELIGIONS THAT CLAIM TO BE THE CHURCH OF CHRIST
Our Lord God Jesus is not a religion of this world who’s god is the devil who rules over it ,in this age of evil .
If anyone disagrees please correct me with the HOLY BIBLICAL SCRIPTURAL SACRED LIVING WORD OF THE LIVING GOD! Amen
And it’s no use anymore to use a passage verse or chapter and twist it to suit your purposes just like the devil did in the GDN of EDEN !
1 CORINTHIANS 6:17 BUT HE WHO IS JOINED TO LORD BECOMES ONE SPIRIT WITH HIM Amen
1 JOHN THE APOSTLE JOHN TELLS US DO NOT BELIEVE EVERY SPIRIT,BUT TEST THE SPIRIT TO SEE WHETHER THEY ARE FROM GOD .BECAUSE MANY FALSE PROPHETS HAVE GONE OUT INTO THE WORLD 🌎🐍💔☠️
MATTHEW 12:50 .jESUS SAID ,” WHOEVER DOES THE WILL OF MY FATHER IN HEAVEN IS MY BROTHER AND SISTER AND MOTHER!
HOW CAN YOU DO THE WILL OF THE LIVING GOD FATHER IN HEAVEN IF YOU DONT FOLLOW BY KEEPING TO THE LIVING HOLY SACRED WORD OF SCRIPTURAL BIBLICAL TRUTH THAT AS THE LIVING JESUS THE LIVING WORD IN THE FLESH SAID , IS FULL OF SPIRIT AND LIFE Amen
All these different worldly religions with all their different denomination and churches adding confusion even chaos for the people who WANT sincerely TO ONBEY and worship the true God Father Son JESUS and the Holy Ghost Life giving Spirit)Amen What’s the best way to test the spirit of these worldly denominations religious sects if they obey The Lord Jesus by following God’s Living Word filled with Spirit and Life ‘
If it’s not SCRIPTURAL WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF PROPHECY THEN YOU CAN BE DEFINITELY SURE ITS NOT FROM THE TRUE GOD AND THE SCRIPTURAL BIBLICAL JESUS! Amen
And if it’s not from the Living God then it belongs to the MASTER OF LIES AND DECEPTION THE DEVIL WHO EVEN APPEARS AS A ANGEL OF LIGHT TO DECEIVE DESTROY AMD KILL AS MANY SOULS AS POSSIBLE 🌎🐍🖤☠️
THE LIVING TRUE GOD IS NOT A GOD OF CONFUSION ,DOUBT OR CHAOS !
Jesus said , IF YOU ARE ASHAMED OF ME …..,,,? WHY DON’T YOU LOOK IT UP FOR YOURSELVES I MEAN ITS YOUR ETERNAL SOUL,,,,,
ITS TIME TO STAND UP AND BE COUNTED AS JESUS FOLLOWERS
THIS SATANIC CHURCH AND ALL ITS TRADITIONS WHAT TRADITIONS THEIR PAGAN TRADITION THE SATANIC DEMONIC RITUALS THEY STILL PERFORM AND TAKE PART IN WITH ALL THEIR PEDOFIEL CLERGY EMPLOYEES AND THE SEXUAL ABUSING RAPIST WHO CONSTANTLY PREY ON SISTERS OF THE ORDER OF NUNS SATAN EVEN APPEARS AS A ANGEL OF LIGHT BE WISE FEAR ONLY THE TRUE GOD NOT MAN NOT DEVILS FOR THE FEAR OF GOD IS THE BEGINNING OF WISDOM WISDOM AMEN ALL GLORY BELONGS TO GOD MOST HIGH PRAISE HIM AMEN
I am truly sad to read that you believe this and speak as if it is truth coming from a Church of Idolatry. People are believing this crap and you pridefully lather in it, bringing them down the wide path that leads to destruction and not the narrow way that leads to eternal life.
Please go to John 3 and then ask yourself the question……am I born again. Really Born Again. No baby baptism go to the Father as an adult decision maker to live the real word of God…..Not what you call the Catholic Bible God was sad to see the free masonry and sick phalic symbol in the middle of the courtyard in Rome, Your vagina with the “Mother holding a baby is not Mary and Jesus but the Fertility God!! And I know there is more to speak of here but i will stop Your leader you worship, he is Not God and never will be. We are to call No One else Father but God in Heaven? What do you not get in this. Please! Sve yourself and others And your pope is one who wants ONE WORLD RELIGION AND GOVT CONTROL. Great then I will be seeing the rapture soon and I pray you find the truth in HIM before He comes for His Bride, of which I am a part.
The word is truth not man
Thank you
Sally Shepard I tend to agree that we should only pray to God. I also do believe that the world is headed towards a One World Government and One World Religion. That being said, I find your comment convoluted and bizarre. We are all Christians! Let’s not judge each other over differences or act self-righteous towards one another. One of my pet-peeves is when Christians from different denominations tell others they are damned for a slight alteration in belief. We are not to judge! Jesus Christ is our Savior and will deliver us to be judged. God Bless.
Stop misleading the scriptures bc the Bible dies say angel are messengers not god & they’re there to protect us bc we all have an angel assigned to us . But never ever pray to an angel bc they only act upon gods word & the prophets & even Jesus Christ when he prayed was to the father not an angel Jesus even tought his disciples to pray the our father not our angel . Angels are there to protect us and to delivery messages from god and we are to also pray for them bc they fight for us in the spiritual realm but don’t mistake them for replace them for gid bc they are also assigned by God ! Stop misleading!
Thanks so much for this article. I was raised Catholic but was baptized in a Protestant church as an adult. I later left that church but have found that praying to angels, especially archangels, with due respect can lead to miraculous outcomes. I do question the distinction between the “saints” and the “dead.” Different people are recognized as saints in different churches (e.g., Lutheran vs. Catholic) & the Bible actually appears to define all followers of Jesus as saints. I do talk to my deceased loved ones but I don’t consult with them. I reserve my petitions for the holy angels & God. I’m interested to hear other’s thoughts & practices in this area.
I’d be remiss to not mention Gen 48:16, Ps 103:20-21, and perhaps even Ps 148:2.
Joe, good post. Coming to you from South Africa. I want to add Job 5:1 to this post. God bless you and your ministry.
Sean Job 5:1 is a statement said by Eliphaz, according to Job 42 all of Jobs friends were talking incorrectly so we cannot use their comments as valid scripture as they are wrong opinions.
” I am angry with you and your two friends because you have not spoken right about me” Job 42:7
Eliphaz is indeed incorrect in saying,”Call if you will but who will answer you?” As if God would not answer him if he called on Him. However, his next statement merely indicates that there are Holy One’s to whom we can turn to convey our requests.
I prefer to pray psalm 91
I love your posts, Joe. They always challenge me intellectually and spiritually.
I think you make great points about praying to (or with? through?) angels. As a Protestant, I’m definitely hesitant about this but I think a lot of your arguments are compelling. I think your point about consulting the dead makes sense in the case of angels, but I’m not sure it does with regard to praying to the saints. To me that still seems awfully close to the type of thing that you noted being forbidden in the Mosaic law. Sure, in a very important sense, the saints aren’t “dead” at all. They are with the Lord. But to me, when Saul consulted the medium and asked to speak to Samuel, it was much the same situation.
Now, granted… asking a witch to call up a ghost is not exactly the same as praying to a saint and asking them (in a sense) to pass on the message to the Lord. As you say, the goal isn’t to avoid God in the latter example. But still, I think this is where many of us Protestants get nervous about the idea.
Thanks again for sharing these thoughts!
Thanks, Matt! I always enjoy your feedback. I could hardly ask for a better audience.
A) On the matter of praying to your angels, my suggestion to get past the queasy factor would be to simply do it. If it helps, there’s a simple prayer many Catholics pray at the beginning of the day and/or before going to bed: “Angel of God, my guardian dear, to whom God’s love commits me here, ever this day (night), be at my side to light and guard, to rule and guide. Amen.”
The prayer seems clearly orthodox, given how Scripture describes the role of angels. And it avoids the extremes of either acting as if angels are themselves deities, or (what I would suggest is much more common in our culture) treating angels like they’re subhumans that exist for our use. These are spiritual beings more powerful than us who serve us because that’s what Christian strength and leadership looks like (Luke 22:26).
B) As for praying to the Saints, I think you’re making the right distinction. 1 Chr. 10:13 criticizes the fact that Saul “consulted a medium” while Isaiah 8:19 rebukes those who “consult the mediums and the wizards.” The focus is on the attempt to get around God, and that doesn’t apply here.
In your comment, you mentioned both praying for the dead, and praying to them, and were uneasy about its compatibility with Jewish Law. As Daniel says below, both are permitted within Judaism (both Old Testament and modern Judaism).
Praying for the dead: Judas Maccabeus prays for the dead, and offers sacrifice for them in 2 Maccabees 12:43-45:
“43 He also took up a collection, man by man, to the amount of two thousand drachmas of silver, and sent it to Jerusalem to provide for a sin offering. In doing this he acted very well and honorably, taking account of the resurrection. 44 For if he were not expecting that those who had fallen would rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead. 45 But if he was looking to the splendid reward that is laid up for those who fall asleep in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought. Therefore he made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin.“
And the Jewish practice of praying for the dead continues to this day with the Kaddish prayers.
Praying to the Saints: In addition to the resources Daniel provides below, I’d again point to 2 Maccabees. Before a final battle against the oppressor Nicanor, Judas Maccabeus armed his men “not so much with confidence in shields and spears as with the inspiration of brave words, and he cheered them all by relating a dream, a sort of vision, which was worthy of belief” (2 Macc. 15:7). 2 Macc. 15:8-16 then describes Maccabeus’ prophetic dream:
“What he saw was this: Onias, who had been high priest, a noble and good man, of modest bearing and gentle manner, one who spoke fittingly and had been trained from childhood in all that belongs to excellence, was praying with outstretched hands for the whole body of the Jews. Then likewise a man appeared, distinguished by his gray hair and dignity, and of marvelous majesty and authority. And Onias spoke, saying, “This is a man who loves the brethren and prays much for the people and the holy city, Jeremiah, the prophet of God.” Jeremiah stretched out his right hand and gave to Judas a golden sword, and as he gave it he addressed him thus: “Take this holy sword, a gift from God, with which you will strike down your adversaries.”
I know that Protestants and modern Jews don’t accept 2 Maccabees as inspired Scripture. But I’m not using them for their inspired status. Rather, I’m saying that 2 Maccabees was popularly accepted (either as canonical or inspiration) by many Jews and most early Christians, which at least shows us that Old Covenant Judaism didn’t view these prayers to the Saints as contrary to the Mosaic Law.
I.X.,
Joe
Like you said angels are there to intercede for us but never did any prophet or even Jesus Christ prayed to an angel bc they’re just messengers . & your wrong we shouldn’t ask them to pray for us bc that’s not what Jesus tought us ir the prophets but what we can do is pray for them bc they sure fight for us in the spiritual realm that we don’t see . & the book of revelation was given to John by Jesus Christ & it was certified by an angel . Stop misleading what the Bible says
Jesus gives us an example of how to pray and who to pray to in the Lord’s Prayer reading. He also tells his disciples to go directly to God through Himself, in His name. Out of Jesus mouth. Seals it for me. We pray to God through Jesus.
Blarg! I spent a really long time working on a reply and then it didn’t submit properly. I’ll try again and if it turns out to be a repeat, I apologize.
Thanks a lot, Joe. I really do love this blog. Catholicism seems tough to understand from the outside. That’s why I don’t waste time asking outsiders about it. It’s great to have a true friend who can clue me in.
Personally, I’ve never seen a problem with praying FOR the dead. Maybe some Protestants would disagree with me but I think many would be on the same page. And you’re right, we don’t accept 2 Maccabees as canonical, but I think we can at least agree that it sheds historical light on Jewish beliefs. I’d go a lot farther than that, actually, but canon discussions are a separate thing.
As far as praying TO the saints (or through, maybe), I won’t go so far as to say that I definitely think it’s wrong. Intercessory prayer is obviously a real thing. Among the living, it is clearly shown in scripture (Abraham praying for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, for example). And you cited that scripture from Revelation about the saints above. But as a daily practice, I still think that there’s a risk of “going around God,” as you mentioned. By God’s grace, I have access to the Lord. I can approach him with my praise and my requests (Heb. 4:16). To me, it would be creating a false barrier between myself and the Lord to pray through someone else.
This may seem like splitting hairs. Either way, the goal is to send our praise and our requests to God. But the reason it’s important to me is that I really feel that Christ’s work brought us into better communion with God and I want to stick close to my Lord. I want to be reminded that I rely on Him and that all good things come from Him.
I don’t mean any disrespect by any of this. I really do appreciate hearing your thoughts.
Thank you, Matt, for this. By God’s grace I have access to the Lord. This helps me because I have recently felt a. Communion with my angel but have felt uncomfortable and confused about praying to her. I think I will continue praying to God and welcoming any help my angel wants to give. I understand that the heavens are big enough for all of us but my brain and my conditioning has trouble processing it all.
If you were to ask a fellow believer to pray for you, would you feel that you are going around God? Or that you are creating a false barrier between you and God by praying through someone else? I am Protestant as well and I am very unfamiliar with Catholic doctrine. However, a Catholic friend of mine once explained to me that praying to the saints is not the same as praying to God…he speaks to the saints about what he’d like them to pray about in his life and those saints in heaven can add their intercessory prayers to those saints still on this earth who are also praying for him. And when he explained it like that, it made a lot more sense!!
Matt, according to Catholic church own teaching the New Testament supersedes the old, that means after Jesus came it is useless to pray for the dead because for a person who believes in Christ death is gain. ” For me to live is Christ and to die is gain” Philippians 1:21.
read 2 Maccabees c12v38
I am very Catholic and very much against any other Christ believing denominations sorry. So your against praying to Saints who were people suffered some evwn more than Jesus but you favor divorce and abortion? Don’t get it l pray ti certain saints and to God of ABraham. ..l don’t bother Jesus with my problems out of love and respect for him. And when l pray it’s in the Ancient language that he spoke which was not Hebrew.
The Saints suffered more than Jesus? Is that what you said? Do you even know what Jesus did and went through? He was sinless yet before he was arrested he was given every sin of mankind from the very first sin to the very last. He saw, heard and felt every single one of them. Could you imagine what went through his mind and how horrible most of those sins were? His heart melted like wax. But he still loved us enough to be betrayed and arrested. Even Pilate couldn’t find any crime against him, but he gave the people what they wanted. Jesus was mocked, spat on, kicked and laughed at. He was whipped with pieces of metal and bones tide near the end of the whip that ripped the flesh off his back. They forced a crown of thorns down on his head that made his head bleed. Dressed him up and called him ” King of the Jews ” while beating him so badly that he didn’t have the strength to carry a part of the cross all the way. The soldiers made another man carry it for him. They nailed him to the cross and mockingly yelled insults at him and told him to save himself if he was God’s son. A soldier pierced his side with his spear. As the day turned to night for 3 hours Jesus was alone. The presence of the Father wasn’t even there and was why Jesus yelled out ” why has thou forsaken me? He had to do it on his own and before he took his last breath he said ” It Is done.” And if he would of saved himself that dreadful day. None of us would be here today. That’s why you pray to the Almighty God, not Angels. You don’t pray to Lucifer do you? He’s an Angel and so are all the ones that fell with him. Angels who worship God are messengers for him. You pray to God and ask him to help you with Angels for protection or problems you need help with. And don’t forget the Holy Spirit will guide and help you. And don’t forget the name Jesus at the end of the prayer.
AMEN !AMEN !AMEN!
Repent before its too late elle. Christ Jesus suffered more than anybody has ever suffered. All of the sins of the world were laid upon Him and the wrath of God was poured out upon Him.
No-one comes to the Father but through Jesus. Learn the prayer Jesus said when asked how we pray. To not bother Jesus? Did not he say come to me? The question was asked to Jesus.. Who is the Father he replied If you see me you see the father. John 1 says..The word Jesus was made flesh..The Word was God..
Seems you don’t no God..Because Jesus claims to be God. So to leave Jesus out you missed out on the kingdom of heaven. Because tbe kingdom is Jesus he was the Son in Flesh He said I well come back to you as the comforter (Holy Spirit). So if Jesus claimed to be God the Father and the Son of God and the Holy Spirit then who do you pray to leaving Jesus out..
I think where people get hung up is not knowing the difference between a saint and a dead person. As believer’s in Christ we have eternal life so praying for or to a believer who has passed on to Glory and is present in the throne room of God is not the same as praying to an unsaved soul who wanders the earth as a dead soul or ghost or who has been cast into hell. The image just came to me of someone passing a note to a lawyer in a courtroom in order for it to be passed on to the judge. IMHO
That Lawyer, so to speak, our advocate, is Jesus!
“… this is where many of us Protestants get nervous…”
Matt, Don’t worry about getting nervous…. shoot… I get nervous when I talk to other Catholics and I’m catholic!
🙂
“To me that still seems awfully close to the type of thing that you noted being forbidden in the Mosaic law.”
Please consider:
The practise of praying for the intercession of the dead is of early origin. Caleb on reaching Hebron visited the cave of Machpelah, and prayed to the patriarch to be saved from cooperating in the conspiracy of the scouts sent by Moses to make a report of the conditions existing in the Holy Land (Soṭah 34b). The Talmud mentions the custom of visiting the cemetery to request the dead to pray for the living (Ta’an. 16a; compare ib. 23b).
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/5019-death-views-and-customs-concerning#anchor7
Also:
http://m.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/562222/jewish/Is-it-okay-to-ask-a-deceased-tzaddik-to-pray-on-my-behalf.htm
What would St Paul say about interpreting the law in a way that out-Pharisees the Pharisees?
0.o
Sorry for the VERY late response. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I don’t see the Talmud as scripture and I’d rather base my belief on this from scripture. I don’t think I’m being Pharisaic to limit my arguments to the Torah. Actually, that seems more… er… Sadducaic? I’m making up words at this point. Sorry.
Daniel even the conservative Jews know that chabad has a twisted teaching on reincarnation which goes against prophet Isaiah who clearly states that the spirit remains in the corpse and will rise together. So I would be cautious with their teaching.
” But your dead will live, their bodies will rise. Awake and sing ye that dwell in the dust..”Isaiah 26:19
I think the Jesus Himself taught us something about the subject of communication with the Saints by his very example at the Mount of the Transfiguration:
“And it came to pass about eight days after these words, that he took Peter, and James, and John, and went up into a mountain to pray. [29] And whilst he prayed, the shape of his countenance was altered, and his raiment became white and glittering. [30] And behold two men were talking with him. And they were Moses and Elias, [31] Appearing in majesty. And they spoke of his decease that he should accomplish in Jerusalem. [32] But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep. And waking, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him. ( Luke 9:28-32)
Here we note that both Moses and Elijah are discussing future events with the Lord, and in a similar way that the angels are portrayed communicating to men throughout the Bible. But I don’t think this really should surprised us. Didn’t Jesus already give us some indication of the after-life when He said in the Gospel: “…For in the resurrection they shall neither marry nor be married; but shall be as the angels of God in heaven.” (Matthew 22:30)?
If the very definition of ‘Angel’ signifies ‘messenger of God’, and as taught by Jesus the Saints will be like the Angels, then doesn’t it logically conclude that the Saints should also perform such messenger type functions even as the Angels do?
Wow, That makes a lot of sense. Thank you!
Typo in the above post: I think that Jesus….not…I think the Jesus. 🙂
Are you *currently* being sent into Hell forever … automatically excommunicated (outside) of God’s Catholic Church ?
Answer: Yes you are … you can reverse it … please continue.
Council of Florence, Session 8, 22 Nov 1439 — infallible Source of Dogma >
“Whoever wills to be saved, before all things it is necessary that he holds the Catholic faith. Unless a person keeps this faith whole and undefiled, without doubt he shall perish eternally.”
You must believe the Catholic Dogma to be in the Church … Dogma you have *never* seen.
Site > Immaculata-one.com … infallible Dogma throughout.
The Catholic Faith *is not* Bible interpretation … it is the Catholic infallible Sources of Dogma. The Catholic Church didn’t even define the Bible’s New Testament Canon until 397 A.D. at the Council of Carthage.
– – – –
Can a group which enforces the opposite, the opposite, and the opposite of the Catholic unchangeable Dogma be the Catholic Church?
No, it cannot possibly be the Catholic Church … and promotion of the opposite of the Catholic Dogma is exactly what the vatican-2 heretic cult does … and has been doing since it’s founding on 8 December 1965 at the Vatican.
The vatican-2 heresy does not have the Office of the Papacy … only the Catholic Church has the Papacy.
The Dogma cannot “change” or be “reversed” … God does not “change”.
The founding documents of the vatican-2 heretic cult … the “vatican-2 council” documents … have well over 200 heresies *against* prior defined unchangeable Dogma. Every (apparent) bishop at the “council” approved the mountain of heresy, which caused their automatic excommunication, see Section 13.2 of the below site.
– – – –
Section 12 > Anti-Christ vatican-2 heresies (50 listed) … followed by many Catholic corrections.
Sections 13 and 13.1 > Photographic *proof* of heresy at the Vatican.
Because of … the Catholic Dogma on automatic excommunication for heresy or for physical participation in a heretic cult (such as the v-2 cult) …
… we were all placed, body and soul, *outside* of Christianity (the Catholic Church) on 8 December 1965 … the close date of the “council”.
Section 13.2 > Catholic Dogma on automatic excommunication for heresy or participating in a heretic cult such as … vatican-2, lutheran, methodist, evangelical, etc.
Section 107 > St. Athanasius (died 373 A.D.) … “Even if the Church were reduced to a handful …” – – during the “arian” heresy … we are there again, but worse.
Section 13.3 > Matt 16:18, Gates of Hell scripture … is *not* about the Office of the Papacy … four Dogmatic Councils defined it … that heresy will not cause the Dogma to disappear.
Section 13.4 > The vatican-2 heretic cult does not have the Office of the Papacy only the Catholic Church has the Papacy.
Section 13.6 > The Catholic Dogma on Jurisdiction and Automatic Excommunication for heresy define that … God has allowed Catholic Jurisdiction … for Mass and Confession to disappear from the world. There is no such thing as Catholic Mass outside of the Catholic Church.
Non-Catholic heresies such as “vatican-2”, “sspx”, “sspv”, “cmri”, etc. … do not have Catholic Mass.
Section 19.1 > Dogma on Abjuration for *re-entering* Christianity (the Catholic Church) … after being automatically excommunicated. A Formal Abjuration is provided here also.
Section 10.2 > Returning to a state of grace, in places and times when Confession is not available, like now.
– – – –
Second Council of Constantinople, 553 A.D. — infallible Source of Dogma >
“The heretic, even though he has not been condemned formally by any individual, in reality brings anathema on himself, having cut himself off from the way of truth by his heresy.”
Blessed John Eudes, died 1680 >
“The greatest evil existing today is heresy, an infernal rage which hurls countless souls into eternal damnation.”
Everything you must know, believe, and do to get to Heaven is on > > Immaculata-one.com.
Victoria
Our Lady of Conquest
Pray for us
Victoria,
Sedevacantism is impossible, for reasons that I explain here. It’s ironic that you should cite to the Council of Florence, which only underscores the need to hold to the Successor of Peter in Rome. There can be no serious question that the Roman Pontiff is Pope Francis.
If you’re going to claim to be the “real” Catholic Church, who is your pope? Where are your Cardinals? Show me your Apostolic Succession and where Christ promised the Keys to the Kingdom to whatever offshoot of Christianity you belong to.
I.X.,
Joe
If you proclaim with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved. Your Catholicism is so law based, it is like the pharisees. “You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit!” Why pray to saints when you can already pray to Christ Jesus Himself? Why add layers of complexity that could lead to destruction?
I’ll have the buffoon burrito^ with a side of extra hot sedevacante sauce.
The sedevacantist mind is grotesque and ugly from decades of intellectual incest. Their ideas only germinate among fellow travelers who try to out-Catholic the pope. Their spiritual eyes become diseased and they can’t see the Divine Light. Their ears are broken, and they are deaf to the Word. Their six toes leave them awkwardly unbalanced and wobbly at the foundation and ground of Truth.
Let’s review the historical record from their point of view:
In 424 a bunch of bishops had a Council and said that they were the Church and those Nestorius-haters were out of it. In 431 some other bishops had a Council and said they were the Church and those Nestorians were out of it. In 449 some other bishops had a Council and said they were the Church and the diphysites were out of it. In 451 some other bishops had a Council and said they were the Church and the monophysites were out of it.
They all claimed to be the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church and they all had a Council.
But how do we know which Council was a true Council and which was a robber council? How do we know which claimant is the real Church and which is an impostor?
If you say a true Council is one in communion with Pope, then it begs the question of who is the Pope? If there is a debate about a theological issue, how does one decide if the Pope is a heretic (and therefore NOT the pope and therefore cannot ratify a Council)? Do we use the Council to judge the Pope? Do we use the Pope to judge the Council? Does a previous Pope set the precedent for the future Pope? Let’s assume for a second that the ultramontanist interpretation of Unam Sanctam is correct and their interpretation of Vatican 2 is correct–even assuming the two principles therein contradict (as dubious as that theory is to those of us with half a brain), on what basis can they have certainty that Boniface VIII wasn’t the REAL heretic instead of Paul VI?
On what consistent basis can they list the methodology of thought that tells them with certainty that Francis is an antipope but the coptic Pope Theodoros II isn’t?
A Council supports Theodoros. He has apostolic succession. And so on and on.
They take every burp and fart from the popes they like and treat them as Divine Decrees, and disregard actual *dogmatic* statements of faith intended to bind the whole Church as utterances from a heretical usurper.
It’s madness!
There has always been extreme controversy in the Church, which is the reason for the many synods and ecumenical councils in the first place. I’m sure there were many of disciples at the first Council of Jerusalem saying similar things as Victoria, only with a Jewish slant. Things like: “Of course the Corinthians need to be circumcised! The Lord WAS circumcised! And if they don’t stop eating pork they’re definitely NOT going to receive baptism! The Lord never ate pork! And the Athenians… they must solemnly renounce both Plato and the olympics before thinking of following us! What on earth is the world coming too…thinking you don’t need to be circumcised!?”
Hence the need for an authoritative Shepherd, like the first Pope Peter, to be the ultimate word on all such dilemma’s which are bound to arise until the end of the world.
Interesting dialogue on Angels to follow on the eve of my twin publication in commemoration of the fifth anniversary of my sacerdotal ordination:
– Peeping into the World of Angels
– Praying with the World of Angels
I’m certainly going to snatch a few ideas from here. Permission presumed O!
Hmmmmm mr joe. this is coming to you in nigeria. it fells good to be catholic, and even more good to know your doctrine as such. thanks for making the day brigther.
I was actually learning alot untill i got kinda lost on all the Catholic “dogma” stuff…the thoughts about praying to angels was very well thought out and eye opening…thanks for ansering some questions i had! But after reading all the catholic stuff…hmm…i dont think im a heretic…but im not catholic either…lol..why cant we all just go by the bible? By the time they had all of their council s…were there even any true men of God present? Or were they more like the sanhedrine…spelled right?…who had christ crucified in the first place because they thought they knew everything? Im sure they all thought they were very important men!
Troy,
Christ promises in Matthew 16:18 that the Church will never be overcome by the Gates of Hell. So we don’t need to worry about the whole Church ever going into apostasy.
As for the early Christians, it’s through them that we even have the Bible, or know which books belong in it. So trying to take the Book without the Church is like having the branch without the tree.
Actually if you look closer it does say where the Saints are at, “all the saints up on the golden altar before The Throne”
All of your arguments are fallacious. In all of your examples of men speaking to angels, the angels began the discourse and men answered as you would expect. Not on one occasion did a man invoke an angel. Like so many Catholics, and I was one, you distort the truth. Where in Scripture, for example, does it mention that the mother of Jesus was assumed into heaven? If she had been assumed, wouldn’t it have been terribly remiss of John, in whose care she was left, not to mention something so remarkable in his gospel account? Go away and invent more fallacious stories, as you will do.
I am sorry but l am very proud to be a Catholuc would never be any one of tbese so called Christian cults……..This is wgy we call ourselves Catholics not Christians and we believe ib the Virgin Mary and Saints abd Angels.
Wow! Jude 8-10 readily comes to mind:
8 In the very same way, on the strength of their dreams these ungodly people pollute their own bodies, reject authority and heap abuse on celestial beings. 9 But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”[a] 10 Yet these people slander whatever they do not understand, and the very things they do understand by instinct—as irrational animals do—will destroy them.
for the peoples on earth, who is so close to hear our prayer..? are saints or angels? what about God!
If God is always close to me, and able to hear my prayer what is the purpose of praying to saints?
do you believe that asking for help saints or angels is fruit full than asking by myself?
I believe God is always with me because I love him and fear him?
God Vs angels who loves you more? can you answer this?
It is really true that ever since God took the risk to create human beings in his image and likeness human beings have had the courage to want to return the favour!
I liked this article, thank you. I’m not a catholic nor would I call myself a Protestant. I didn’t grow up in a Christian home, sure I was baptized in the danish folkekirke (volk-church) as an infant but I declined the Confirmation because I wasn’t a believer compared to the hypocrites in my class that only did it for money and being celebrated at a grandeous party with relatives and friends. That’s long ago and now I can call myself a follower of Christ yet I belong to no denomination simply because I haven’t made a choice yet. So far I must say.. the Catholic argument is the most logical and reasonable to my ears. Yet I hesitate when reading about how close the subject of deifying Mary is, the hole ‘Queen of Heaven’ etc. and also the infiltration of cultural-marxist (like the Pope) and the New Mass (ordained ’61) which is a complete mockery towards God and the congregation as I see it. But they (the marxist) are everywhere now.
Interesting article, thanks, but you still have yet to point out where in the Bible, specifically, it says it’s okay to pray to angels and where it says they pray for us. Some things I’d like to point out:
1. God alone commands his angels. They obey Him according to His Will. They don’t take orders/requests from us. Your scriptural excerpts only prove that Gods angels do, in fact, deliver prayers. They don’t, however, prove that angels offer their own prayers. This is only your interpretation. God can appoint any number of angels to collect prayers to deliver them to Him. Nowhere does it say that they (angels) answer them. Maybe they only deliver the prayers said directly to God ???? (This is clearly an assumption, but no more or less than the ones you are proposing.)
2. Prayer IS, in ALL aspects, a form of worship. When a prayer is answered, no matter how small, it is a miracle. Miracles are preformed in and thru God’s glory alone. It is impossible to glorify God if the credit already went elsewhere.
3. Christ Himself never prayed to anyone but the Father. When asked by His disciples to teach them to pray, He instructed them, “This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven…’” (Matthew 6:9; Luke 11:2).
4. In John 14:13, Christ Himself tells believers that whatever we ask in His name, He will accomplish because He pleads directly with the Father. Also, in John 16:26, this verse again conveys that after Christ’s ascension to heaven, He acts as an intercessor to the Father for all believers. Only the Son and the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:26) can intercede before the Father’s throne.
5. We build a relationship with the one true God thru prayer and reading His Word. If we are not praying to God, how can we be sure we know who/what we are praying to? 2 Thessalonians 2:9 The coming of the lawless one will be accompanied by the power of Satan. He will use every kind of power, including miraculous signs, lying wonders, Revelation 16:14 for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty.
6. God’s truth is His Word. Taking it out of context or adding to it makes it all to easy for Satan to fool us when he poses as a “good guy” and answers our prayers. Once he has us hooked on his “help”, we feel safely justified to continue to bypass God for our needs.
Thanks again, but I prefer to know who I’m asking for help. God alone knows what I need and will send appropriately any angels he commands on my behalf. God Bless!
Sorry! Parentheses under #1 should read: (This is clearly an assumption, but far less a leap than the ones you are proposing). I highly doubt that God would accept any prayers not directed to Him. While I’m at it, I want to add that a true angel of God would not glorify themselves by accepting a thank you for something God told them to do (Revelation 22:8-9).
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark+12%3A24-27&version=ESV
The context of Mark 12:26-27 is the resurrection of the dead, not the immediate afterlife.
Can someone explain to me why/how Catholics think this passage works for this argument?
papa please I need your help, my x- husband Left me and my two kids over 13 years now he is married to another woman his name is frank Emaka Oweazim please man of help me my children are not going to school any more and they are missing their dad please I want he to come and take care of them, thanks
It is not biblical to pray to angels and saints Jesus is the only mediator we need. Isn’t it false teaching to say and believe otherwise?
Timothy 2:5 There is one God. There is also one mediator between God and human beings—a human, the Messiah Jesus.
Melanie, as a baptized protestant I was taught that, however needing a Mediator is a different issue then intercession. The Bible mentions the need for a Mediator in the Book of Job as Job is distraught with the wrong accusations his friends have as to why he is hit by sickness and death. Only Jesus is our High Priest and rids us of Satan’s accusations.
Intercession or prayer is different in that the saints are living infact they are the great cloud of witness who is watching our sin and weight (Hebrews 12:1) that hinders our walk with God. Just like we ask our family and friends to pray for us because we may be too emotional or biased on how to pray, praying to the Saints is similar to that.
Are we not taught that praying to anything other than God and our Lord Jesus Christ is not right? I have done multiple readings on this and everything I have read has said that Jesus is to be an intermediary between us and God… And even read an article that said it is wrong to pray to Angels! Angels are created beings just like us… Jesus is the go-between between us and God. Even the Reverend Billy Graham has an audible on this
*** even the Reverend Billy Graham has an article about this not Audible
Tom, I agree with Rev. Billy Graham that we are not to pray directly to Angels as they are fellow servants Revelation 19:10 & 22:9, however I also agree with Catholics that we can ask them to guide, warn, and illuminate our way as they did to Saint Joseph, Saint Peter and many others. Of course the best prayer would be to direct it to the Father as Jesus Himself said in Matthew 26:53 ” I could ask my Father for thousands of Angels to protect us.”
In Tobit 12:15, the Archangel Raphael says Well folks the guy loves false book .Anyone who follows book other then the Bible will always go into false doctrine . Let me guess folks are Catholics .Well you expect the false from them Why 50 priest left the catholic church and myself included https://bereanbeacon.org/bob-bush/
To say it is right to pray to angles and saints means it is wrong to pray exclusive to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I’d rather be wrong on this one.
I believe in the three saints: the ones who are living with our God in Heaven, the saints being perfected in purgatory, and the ones on earth in training. I believe we are all the body of Christ, the family of Christ in one body, the church. How rude would I be to refuse to talk to a member of my own body, my own family, simply due to their residence, address, or “geographical” location. I believe the Bible teaches in general that God the Father, Holy Spirit, and Christ Jesus all find rudeness less than grace filled.
The Bible says that Jesus lives to intercede for us.
That is enough. He Himself is God. We need no other intercessors. The angels serve him as servants to us. There is no reason we would need them to intercede on our behalf, they act at the command of the Lord.
Hebrews 7:25 Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through Him, because He always lives to intercede for them.
Thanx Joe…. This is Boaz from Uganda. You have really confirmed by query. I have often witnessed people who pray to the angels actually do more good of Godly way of behaving than others because they are guided by the angels through their prayers. However, us the protestants trust man (the priest) and tell him all the prayer requests when actually himself needs prayers. I think Angels are more nearer to God than human beings thus worthy to pray through them but in Jesus’s mighty name. How do you feel if an angel appears to you at night to answer your prayer live because you have been asking him most often? To me if such is done, then my faith in God increases because he will have talked to me thru angels. In our country Uganda, a mere citizen cannot directly speak to President unless if he wants to be arrested or his request won’t be answered. But through a medium (people close to him) one will be an immediate beneficiary from the top boss. Even in organizations, a mere messenger, secretary, security guard or receptionist can restrict you from accessing the boss if you do not plead. This example works with angels. So defiers check up.
LORD JESUS YOU ARE GREATER THAN YOUR ANGELS IN HEAVEN AS WE ARE SERVANT TO YOU ON EARTH SO ARE THE ANGELS IN HEAVEN ARE SERVING ON ASSIGNMENT TO YOUR PEOPLE EVERY WERE. LORD JESUS PLEASE SEND YOU ANGELS FOR THE EXECUTION OF BLESSINGS TO REACH FORTH BLESSINGS OF JOB FINANCIES AND WEALTH UNTO ME HINGA ALOYSIOUS LAMIN AND MY HOUSEHOLD FAMILY MEMBERS IN JESUS MIGHTY NAME AMEN. LORD ALSO SEND YOUR ARCHANGEL ANGEL GABRIEL YOUR OF PROTECTION TO PROTECT ME WERE EVER I GOD IN JESUS MIGHTY NAME I PRAY AMEN. THANK YOU LORD JESUS CHRIST FOR DIEING ON THE CROSS OF CALVARY FOR MY SINS THROUGH WHICH I AM FULLY BLESS ME AND MY HOUSEHOLDFAMILY MEMBERS INJESUS MIGHTYNAME AMENWEPRAY AMEN.
While there is no verse which explicitly states, “You shall not pray to angels,” it is abundantly clear that we are not to pray to angels. Ultimately, prayer is an act of worship. And, just as angels reject our worship (Revelation 22:8-9), so they would also reject our prayers. Offering our worship or prayer to anyone but God is idolatry.
There are also several practical and theological reasons why praying to angels is wrong. Christ Himself never prayed to anyone but the Father. When asked by His disciples to teach them to pray, He instructed them, “This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven…’” (Matthew 6:9; Luke 11:2). If praying to angels were something we, as His disciples, are to do, this would have been the place for Him to tell us. Clearly, we are to pray only to God. This is also evident in passages such as Matthew 11:25-26, where Christ’s prayer introduction begins with “I praise thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth….” Jesus not only begins His prayers by addressing the Father, but the content of His prayers usually requests assistance that could only be granted by someone with omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent powers. Praying to angels would be ineffective because they are created beings and do not possess these powers.
The case against praying to angels can also be made by reviewing John 17:1-26 where Jesus prays on behalf of His followers, requesting multiple blessings on them from God the Father, including sanctification, glorification, and preservation of the saints. These three blessings can only come from the source that presently holds them, and again, angels simply do not have this power. Angels cannot sanctify us, they cannot glorify us, and they cannot guarantee our inheritance in Christ (Ephesians 1:13-14).
Second, there is an occasion in John 14:13 when Christ Himself tells believers that whatever we ask in His name, He will accomplish because He pleads directly with the Father. Offering a prayer up to angels would fall short of an effective and biblically guided prayer. A second occasion in which Christ mentions that prayers must be offered up in His name alone occurs in John 16:26. This verse conveys the message that, after Christ’s ascension to heaven, He acts as an intercessor to the Father for all believers. Neither angels nor any other created being is ever depicted as an intercessor with the Father. Only the Son and the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:26) can intercede before the Father’s throne.
Last, 1 Thessalonians 5:17 tells the believer to pray without ceasing. This would only be possible if a believer has access to a God who is always present and available to listen to the pleas of every person at one time. Angels do not have this ability—they are not omnipresent or omnipotent—and as such are not qualified to receive our prayers. Prayer to the Father through Christ is the only necessary and effective means by which we can communicate with the Father. No, praying to angels is absolutely not a biblical concept.
Thank you for thus post. Sick and tired of the Pope and moreso of Protestants, I am a Christian Gnostic and believe in prayer to angels (after all you pray to saints who were people and some of them not very good people). Protestant Christianity is the deadest religion on earth. This is why they have turned to mega churches, programs, social gatherings, movie nights,and youth groups for fun events as the mainstay of their religion. I refuse to listen to anything they have to say anymore. I will pray to angels and thank you for these scriptural references. There are more,but the more you can gather to argue with sola scriptura fundamentaliss, the better.
I think that we, Christians (Catholic, protestants, baptists etc) should stop arguing about certain things of the faith. I believe we have the same goal here and there’s only one enemy. We should direct our focus to the lost; people who don’t acknowledge or confess Jesus as the Son of God, true Lord and Savior (Islam, atheists and the like). They’re the ones who need to know the truth of the gospel. We should fix our eyes to the more important things and help those in need.
If you read the gospels you shouldn’t be confuse about this.
We ONLY pray to God, even Jesus ONLY prayed to the Father. And he even tought us how to pray.
Yes, the bible and Jesus tell us that we have guardian angels.
BUT, we are not to pray to them, they are God’s messengers, they CARRY our prayers TO GOD, to the holy presence of God.
Read Tobit 12: 12:17, there Raphael the angel makes this clear by saying he brought their prayers TO GOD, and that God SENT him. Read it and everything will be clear.
We only pray to the Father, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, our angels carry our prayers to God and they will do only what God commands them to do according to His will.
If an angel appears to you and initiates a conversation you listen to him and you communicate with him because we know angels are messengers of God and if an angel of God reveals himself to you is only because God commanded him to do so and he has a message FROM God for you.
Do not be confuse.
If you read the complete Tobit chapter 12, you will see that this article interpretation of Raphael’s word are wrong.
Raphael himself says he carried their prayers TO GOD to the holy presence of God , and specifically tells them he didn’t act on his own.
Jesus did mention the guardian angels but never tells us to pray TO them, Jesus tells us to only pray to the Father, Jesus himself only prays to the Father.
In Revelations 8:4, again, it states that the angel CARRIES the prayers of people praying to God (God’s people).
Therefore the Scripture does not tell us to pray to angels, and taking from Raphael’s own words, it seems that they (angels) only reveal themselves to whomever the Father commands them to.
We can pray TO GOD asking Him to send His angels to help us in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
We can thank TO GOD for giving us an guardian angel.
But we don’t pray to an angel to ask God to help us.
Long live the Bible,Long live the Pope,Long live the Holy See, Long live the Rosary,Long live Priesthood,Long live the Catholic Church.
One thing though is that those who spoke with angels didn’t speak them out or do any ritual the angels initiated contact not the human. I don’t see anywhere in scripture where a prophet or servant of God called on angels directly.
And we aren’t supposed to pray to saints either
Even in your conclusion you stated “are both offering up our prayers to God, and their own prayers for us”
Offering up our prayers to GOD not Angles.
Through Jesus Christ is the only way to God. Jesus says “No man comes to the Father, but by Me.” Man was created by God. Angels were created by God. God is the Creator. Man and angels are His creatures. Why would we pray to angels then? They are heavenly beings but they are not divine. Their abilities and powers are given to them by God. Angels tell people in the Bible not to worship them. They acknowledge that they are nan’s fellow servants. Angels are God’s servants. We do not worship them or pray to them. We can be grateful for them, but we pray to the Father in Jesus’s Name.
I recently had someone tell me that I need to pray to the angels for help and they presented me with certain prayers to specific angels. Now because I have a sound mind and spiritual discernment, thank you Heavenly Father and the power of the Holy Spirit for those beautiful gifts, I automatically was not sure about this and questioned it. Now if we are in agreement that the Heavenly Father is three in one, Father, Son and Holy Spirit and we know, believe and have faith in that Christ died for us and was resurrected, upon doing so, He sent the power of the Holy Spirit for His people to be filled with the Holy Spirit and possibly being able to overflow in us if and when sort after, then this is very clear. The power of the Heavenly Father and Christ Himself, dwell within us through the power an d glory of the Holy Spirit.
Why then, after knowing and believing in these truths, would we not pray and go directly to the source and pray to our Heavenly Father, for even Christ Himself, when asked by the disciples, how do we pray, He starts of the prayer by saying, Our Heavenly Father, for even Christ taught to go straight to the source and why because it is the most clear and direct course for spiritual connection to God and with a clear and direct course, this gives no way to possible interference, deception and any confusion by any other forces.
1 Corinthians 2:10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
EXACTLY! Why on earth would anyone want to pray to anyone else when you can go straight to God through our Saviour! HE was sent by God to live in a sinful world and to be tortured and murdered to save us. We KNOW that our prayers will be answered when we go through Jesus. Choosing to pray to saints, angels etc is an insult to our God and Saviour! People should remember that Satan will deceive us given the chance to believe lies, lead us away from the truth and condemn us.
EXACTLY! Why on earth would anyone want to pray to anyone else when you can go straight to God through our Saviour! HE was sent by God to live in a sinful world and to be tortured and murdered to save us. We KNOW that our prayers will be answered when we go through Jesus. Choosing to pray to saints, angels etc is an insult to our God and Saviour! People should remember that Satan will deceive us given the chance to believe lies, lead us away from the truth and condemn us.
Why pray to angels when I can pray to Jesus.