Did you know?... Why do Orthodox Christians “pray to” Saints?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.พ. 2025
- Did you know?... Why do Orthodox Christians “pray to” Saints?
Those unfamiliar with the Eastern Orthodox Church may falsely assume that we pray to Saints in the same way one prays to God. They also tend to assume that our veneration of the Saints is idolatry. These assumptions usually stem from a misunderstanding about the difference between prayer to God and intercessory prayer, along with a misunderstanding about the Church here on earth and the Church in heaven.
We will correct these misconceptions. We will also explain why the Orthodox pray to Saints and what role it plays in our spiritual lives.
~What is a Saint?
The Eastern Orthodox Church gives the title of “saint” to anyone who has lived and died in Christ throughout history.
While certain Saints are officially canonized and commemorated by the Church, every baptized faithful Orthodox Christian is considered a saint, as a member of the royal priesthood that Christ established with the creation of His Church.
Those Saints who received canonization stand out as excellent models for those of us who strive to live the life of Christ. A few well-known examples of canonized Saints are the Virgin Mary, John the Baptist, the writers of the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), and St. Basil the Great.
Saints are “those who will inherit salvation” (Hebrews 1:14) through whom God is “bearing witness, both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will” (Hebrews 2:4).
They died as martyrs, making a fearless confession of faith (often with the threat of death) and demonstrating self-sacrificing service to God. Our God is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living (Mark 12:27). This means we all remain fully alive in Christ even after we have fallen asleep. Thus, the Saints continue to live with Him in Paradise beside His Throne and pursue communion with Him.
Because Saints are friends of God, our brothers and sisters in the Faith, we ask them to pray to God for us and for forgiveness of our sins (John 15:14-15).
~Prayer to God vs. Intercessory prayer to Saints
It’s important to remember that while prayer can be a part of worship - when we pray to God, for example - prayer and worship themselves are not the same. To most Christians, prayer tends to mean speaking to God and/or asking Him for something. This is why many in the West (Papist) often insist that praying literally is worshiping, because this definition implies that we reserve personal prayer for God alone. However, that does not make it worship.
Often forgotten is the fact that the word pray can also be used as an adverb, a preface before a polite request or instruction (i.e. - pray pour me a glass of wine).
This definition does not imply a specific recipient of the request. Therefore, a Christian could pray to - or ask a request of - anyone, for anything, so long as they do not worship (i.e. devote their entire being to) anyone other than God.
When an Orthodox Christian “prays to” a Saint, what we are really doing is asking that Saint to pray for us, to intercede before God for forgiveness of our sins and for our salvation.
This is what the Church calls intercessory prayer. We are not devoting our lives to their service, for such worship and devotion belongs to God alone. Instead, we merely ask the Saint to pray for us, just as we would any other human being. The Scriptures themselves actively exhort us to do this for one another.
~The power of intercessory prayer
The Lord Jesus Christ, in His resurrected glory, always prays to His Father on behalf of all mankind. As Scripture tells us, “But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.” (Hebrews 7:24-25)
In and through Christ, we can intercede before God for one another. He empowers us (and commands us) to pray for each other and for all creation (1 Timothy 2:1-4; James 5:16-18). When we intercede for someone, we can ask God for any and every kind of blessing. Inspiration. Instruction. Visitation. Healing. Release from temptation. Forgiveness of sins. Salvation. Whatever we usually ask for ourselves, we can - and should - ask for all men, even our enemies.
~Mediator vs. Intercessor
A common objection to the Orthodox practice of asking intercession of the Saints is the assertion that Christ is the only Mediator. Yes, this is true. Christ is the One who affected salvation for us. That is what “Mediator” means. Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ established a pathway to communion with God that before did not exist. That is why He is the Mediator.
Saints are not Mediators; they are merely intercessors, praying for us just as we on earth all pray for one another. It is not, as many might put it, “going around God,” given that interceding for one another is something He specifically asks us to do.
Reached capacity:
Catholics do that , too !
Can the Dead hear you?
@@Justaprix They may be dead, but they are alive in Christ, for He is “the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living.” (Mark 12:26-27) So yes they can hear us. ☦️
@HolyOrthodoxy You are also alive, I just called you , did you hear me?
Why didn't you reply?
It is because being alive does not equate to being all hearing.
@ It is your choice if you believe or not. The Holy Mother, the Saints and Angels are here for us and they do hear us.
@@Justaprix Just jumping in, God didn't give him the ability to hear you. Since the Saints are in heaven, God can give them the ability to hear people from all across the world.
@gp-banjo And where do you get THAT information from?
Don't judge what you don't know. Also
Why do Muslims go to Mecca?
Why do Buddhists
Pray to Buddha ?
Why Hinduism has
many gods ?
Why are you a SINNER or why we are SINNERS ?
There can be only one Truth and one God. “You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image-any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them.” (Exodus 20:3-5)
We do not judge or condemn others, we try and state the Truth. St. Athanasios the Great said, “If the world is against the Truth; then I’m against the world.”
It comes from Pagan tendencies. Yawegh needs to be number one, like zeus was to the Greeks. You could have other gods just have them behind yawegh.
There is only One True God, the Triune God, the Holy Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). One God, 3 Persons. These 3 are separate persons (hypostasis) with individual (hypostatic) attributes, yet all one in essence. This is how God revealed Himself to us. All other so called gods are idols and false deception from fallen angels (demons) and/or of man’s devising and imagination.
@@HolyOrthodoxy amen ! Thanks for the video!
In the book of Enoch when the angels heard the cry of the humans. The angels requested that God intervene. They were supplicating for humanity.
@ Yes they can intercede on our behalf as well.