Why do we Catholics pray to the Saints? We Catholics do not believe that the saints have ‘special powers’ that compete with God. We simply believe that when they die they are with Christ, and that they continue to be part of the Church: they go on praying to Christ for us, because they go on being alive.
Christ: The Sole Mediator between Men and God the Father.
Very well, let us analyze an argument commonly used against the intercession of the Saints: “Jesus Christ is the only mediator.” Let us examine more deeply the logic of our evangelical brethren:
1. Jesus is the only mediator between God and men.
2. Catholics say that Mary is an intercessor before Jesus.
3. But Jesus is God!
4. Therefore Mary is another mediator between God and men.
5. So “according to Catholics,” Jesus is NOT the only mediator between God and men. (In fact, this is according to the Protestant misunderstanding of Catholicism.)
6. Therefore, what Catholics say about intercession is heretical and unbiblical.
Well… let us examine this more closely:
1. Jesus is God.
2. Jesus is the only mediator between God and men.
3. But why would Jesus mediate before Himself? That is not mediation!
4. Therefore, the mediation between God and men that belongs to Jesus has to be between God the Father and men.
If Christ is the only mediator between God and men, it is because He is God and man. In any case, the intercession of the saints does not interfere with the sole mediation, because the saints do not cease to be men (human beings).
Now let us return to the context. Jesus is the only mediator between God the Father and men. When Paul speaks of Jesus as mediator, very few knew that Jesus is God. Before showing that Jesus is God (and that was done by St. John, not St. Paul), one had to prove that Jesus is the Messiah awaited by the Hebrew people. The Christ. In other words, when St. Paul speaks of God, he is referring to the Father. Even Jesus had said that His Father was the one whom the Jews called “their God.”
Is this a heresy? I doubt it. Can the intercession of the saints be applied here? One less argument against “praying” to the saints.
Now, what kind of exclusivity does this mediation have?
Obviously it is not a mediation of obtaining miracles from God, or God’s help, because the angels also help us, as they helped Lot in Sodom, or when an angel rescued St. Peter from prison, or, if we include other accounts, when the archangel Raphael helps Tobias. If we are speaking of an exclusive mediation, this cannot apply. That is to say: an exclusive mediation with respect to asking for miracles goes against the Bible itself (as when the prophet Elijah raises the son of the foreign woman). Therefore we have to distinguish the true meaning of the sole mediation of Christ (which we shall see later on). The only way to associate miracles with the mediation of Christ that does not contradict the Bible is that this mediation be diffusive, with Christ being the last link.
The Bible never says that Christ is the only mediator between someone and God, but rather the only mediator between MEN (as a whole) and God. That is to say: it is Jesus who sends the angels (or the Saints). Even if Jesus wanted Mary to reign over the angels, this would not affect His mediation, because she would act in the name of Jesus.
Now let us see what happens with intercession. Suppose I want to give God a gift (a prayer). First I have to give it to Jesus, then Jesus gives it to God. Now, suppose I want to give it first to Mary (a human being). She gives it to Jesus (man and God), and Jesus gives it to the Father (God). Jesus does not cease to be the only mediator between God and men. So the sole Mediation is diffusive (there is no other way). Let us look at the following diagram:
What Catholics Do Believe, and What We Do NOT Believe
Let us first analyze figure B of intercession. Perhaps this is your idea of Catholic intercession: other persons replacing Jesus in the intercession. Well, you understood it wrongly.
Now let us look at figure A. Here, although Mary and the saints take part in the intercession, Jesus is a link. Without this link, there would be no Mediation between God and men. You can pray directly to Jesus if you wish. But would it not be better if Mary, the angels, and the saints did so, so that the prayer would be more effective? (The Bible says that the prayer of the righteous is powerful. And who is more righteous than the saints to pray to Jesus?)
Here you can see how we Catholics understand intercession. All the prayers are directed to Mary, the angels, and the saints, and are redirected to God. Let us imagine that you want to deliver a message. The person is 10 meters away from you. You can give him the message directly, or you can use a microphone and an amplifier. Now suppose that your voice is not very… good. You adjust the amplifier so that your voice is heard as well as possible… even if it is not EXACTLY your voice. You remove the noise, etc. For us, the intercessors are like a “prayer filter.” They remove what is bad and keep what is good (1 Thess 5:21). They erase the things that Jesus would not like to hear. Suppose you are a Catholic and you say: “Mary, help me to get my girlfriend back because I feel very lonely without her.” But Mary knows that the relationship with your girlfriend is destructive. And she removes the “get my girlfriend back.” What reaches Jesus is “Help me, because I feel very lonely without my girlfriend.” Of course Jesus hears everything, but the point is that a much more effective prayer reaches Jesus than the one we can make. So Jesus consoles you and throws your loneliness into the trash. This is what the saints do for us: since they are free from sin (for they are in heaven), they purify our prayers (since we are still sinners).
“In the Name of Jesus, I ask it, amen.”
Now let us ask ourselves: why “pray directly” to the Father, and not to Jesus? (as in the Our Father). Because we are asking the Father, in the Name of Jesus. This is another form of intercession.
Suppose that our BEST friend has something that another friend (let us call him John) needs. Suppose that John is not on very good terms with our friend. So we tell him to mention us when he gets there. What happens? Our BEST friend, because he is on good terms with us, helps little John. Is that not good? This is how Jesus intercedes for us when we pray to the Father. But who says that the same thing cannot happen between Jesus and the saints? Well, let us return to the subject: asking for something in the name of Jesus.
Let us see how “asking for something in the name of” also had another meaning in biblical times. The Encyclopedia of the Bible, Vol. 5 (2nd edition; Ediciones Garriga, S.A., Barcelona, Spain), tells us:
“To name someone gives us authority over him, or makes us a sharer in the command: God lets Adam name the animals, in order to subject them. To speak or act in someone’s name is to work as his representative, because we share in his authority (1 Sam 17:45; 25:5.9; Is 4:1, etc.). It is for this reason that we bless in the name of Yahweh, which serves as protection and strength.”
So, if we ask for something in the name of Jesus, we do it as His representative. Let us notice how this is VERY important (and many forget it) for the average Christian. If we ask for something sinful, even if we say “in the name of Jesus,” God will not give it to us. Because we will not be representing Jesus when we desire something sinful.
Now let us take a look at this:
“I am come in the name of my Father, and you receive me not; but if another shall come in his own name, him you will receive.” (John 5:43)
Do you see the importance that the word “name” takes on here? Now let us look at this other passage:
“If you shall ask me any thing in my name, that I will do.” (John 14:14)
“In your name, I ask it of you, Jesus.” Why would we ask something of Jesus in His own name (literally)? But if we ask Him for something as His own representative (that is, if we ask for something Holy), then this makes much more sense, does it not? Let us remember! Jesus was speaking to people in the Middle East. There the name has a far greater meaning than it has for us Westerners.
In the same way, if we ask for something Holy, and we ask for it with the knowledge that it is something Jesus wants (and we forget to say “in the name of Jesus, etc.”), God will give it to us anyway, because it is something Jesus wants. That is: simply because we are representing Jesus in desiring something good, we are asking for it in the name of Jesus.
And how can I prove this? In the book of Acts we see St. Peter work miracles without mentioning Jesus when he did them (Acts 5:1-16); but authority had already been given to him by Jesus (see Matthew 16:19). That is to say: every time St. Peter worked a miracle, he did it as the representative of Jesus. In His Name. So the intercession of Jesus could act both TOWARD Him and FROM Him (someone praying to God, knowing that it is the will of Jesus, and also knowing that the Father knows it. This is faith).
Now let us analyze the counterexample: mentioning the name of Jesus, but NOT acting as His representative:
13. Now some of the Jews, wandering exorcists, attempted to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying: I conjure you by Jesus, whom Paul preacheth. 14. And there were seven sons of a certain Sceva, a Jew, a chief of the priests, that did this. 15. And the evil spirit, answering, said: Jesus I know, and I know who Paul is; but who are you? 16. And the man in whom the evil spirit was, leaping upon them and mastering them, prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. (Acts 19:13-16) (Reina Valera — forgive the very varied use of the versions, I am not at home and have to use the ones on the internet.)
They were not acting in the name of Jesus. If they had done so, they would have preached Jesus instead of going about casting out a demon, because they could then come back for the poor man later. (Matthew 12:43-44).
The Mediation of Jesus: A New Covenant
Up to now I have refuted the argument that quotes out of context, that “Jesus is the only mediator between God and men.” Now, to finish this, let us see what kind of mediation St. Paul was referring to. No, sir, it was not asking for miracles.
I desire therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men: for kings, and for all that are in high station: that we may lead a quiet and a peaceable life in all piety and chastity. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who will have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus: who gave himself a redemption for all, a testimony in due times. (1 Tim 2:1-6)
For the others indeed were made priests without an oath; but this with an oath, by him that said unto him: The Lord hath sworn, and he will not repent: Thou art a priest for ever. By so much is Jesus made a surety of a better testament. And the others indeed were made many priests, because by reason of death they were not suffered to continue: but this, for that he continueth for ever, hath an everlasting priesthood, whereby he is able also to save for ever them that come to God by him; always living to make intercession for them. Heb 7:21-25
Once again, Paul speaks of Jesus as mediator of the salvation of men. He also speaks of the New Covenant. That is why at the Last Supper he speaks of the blood of the New Covenant, which is shed for us (on the cross).
8:6. But now he hath obtained a better ministry, by how much also he is a mediator of a better testament, which is established on better promises.
9:15. And therefore he is the mediator of the new testament: that by means of his death, for the redemption of those transgressions which were under the former testament, they that are called may receive the promise of eternal inheritance.
A New Covenant. Jesus is the New and Eternal Priest, who sacrificed Himself for our salvation. This is the mediation of which Paul speaks. Through Jesus, we come to the Father: “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man cometh to the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6)
This is the mediation of Jesus. The mediation of salvation. Neither the angels nor men could reconcile us with the Father. That is why Paul says that Jesus was the only one who could sacrifice Himself for our sins. It makes sense, does it not?
Let us return the concept of intercession (even praying for someone’s salvation) to the earlier diagram. In fact, the Catechism of the Catholic Church says:
‘Being more closely united to Christ, those who dwell in heaven fix the whole Church more firmly in holiness… They do not cease to intercede with the Father for us, as they proffer the merits which they acquired on earth through the one mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus… So by their fraternal concern is our weakness greatly helped’ (LG 49) (CCC 956).
Let us notice that although the saints intercede for us, they do not take on the role of Jesus as mediator… just as God governs the world through the angels, Jesus helps us through the saints. It is not hard to understand.
If people go to Jesus (e.g. they are ‘saved,’ as the evangelicals say) through someone’s prayers, it is because Jesus heard those prayers. People also come to Jesus through the Church. Who says that this mediation did not begin from the love of the Father, in the Holy Spirit?
“But the Holy Spirit intercedes for us!”
When you ask someone to pray for you (according to this logic), you are violating this rule, by “replacing the Holy Spirit” in the prayer (idolatry!). We all know that this is ridiculous. When you pray for someone, you know that it is the Holy Spirit who prays for him, using you as an instrument. Who says that the Holy Spirit ceases to act in those who are already in heaven?
It is illogical to think that those who died in holiness (who already had the Holy Spirit) ceased to have Him at the moment of death. Their bodies were separated from their souls, granted, but this in no way affects the Holy Spirit.
For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor might, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(Rom 8:38-39)
In this passage of the letter to the Romans, St. Paul tells us that death will NOT separate us from the love of Jesus (let us notice that it does not include sin, but that is another matter). Those who had the Holy Spirit (and did not lose Him) still have Him after death. So, when the Saints pray for us, it is also the Holy Spirit who prays for them (and consequently, also for us).
Let us finish with the clearest passage of intercession: the healing of the centurion’s servant.
And the servant of a certain centurion, who was dear to him, being sick, was ready to die. And when he had heard of Jesus, he sent unto him the ancients of the Jews, desiring him to come and heal his servant. And when they came to Jesus, they besought him earnestly, saying to him: He is worthy that thou shouldest do this for him; for he loveth our nation, and he hath built us a synagogue. And Jesus went with them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent his friends to him, saying: Lord, trouble not thyself; for I am not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my roof. For which cause neither did I think myself worthy to come to thee; but say the word, and my servant shall be healed. For I also am a man subject to authority, having under me soldiers: and I say to one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doth it.
Which Jesus hearing, marvelled: and turning to the multitude that followed him, he said: Amen I say to you, I have not found so great faith, not even in Israel. And they who were sent, being returned to the house, found the servant whole who had been sick. (Luke 7:2-10)
Well, let us see what happened:
1. The centurion sent some elders to ask Jesus to heal the servant.
2. The elders spoke on behalf of the centurion (I doubt a servant built a synagogue).
3. Some friends of the centurion told Jesus what the centurion had told them. They repeated the message.
4. Then Jesus said: “I say to you, I have not found so great faith, not even in Israel.”
5. And then He healed the centurion’s servant.
Did the centurion, AT ANY MOMENT, speak directly to Jesus? No, and oh, what a surprise! Jesus said that He had not found such great faith in Israel! Intercession works! The centurion must have thanked his friends who delivered the message. But who did the hard work? Jesus! Everyone knew it. It was not the friends who healed the servant. But they cooperated in his healing.
In the same way, our elder brothers in heaven intercede for us before Jesus, so that Jesus saves us from dangers to our bodies and even our souls. Let us remember that Jesus saved the servant’s life. Is not the spiritual life more important than the material one?
“I say to you, I have not found so great faith, not even in Israel.”
If the saints are ALIVE, praying and caring for us, why not ask them for help? Is the cooperation among Christians really idolatry? Do the saints really steal the credit from Jesus, merely because they ask that same Jesus to help us?
Author: Ricardo García
