Is Asking Prayers from the Saints Biblical?: Is Asking Prayers from the Saints, Biblical?

Is Asking Prayers from the Saints Biblical?: Is Asking Prayers from the Saints, Biblical?: "Last Sunday while heading home, my friend asked me, 'hey Mark, is asking prayers from the saints biblical?' I paused and then he continued h..."

Controversy in 600 A.D.:Is Asking Prayers to the Saints and Praying to Mary, Biblical?

Last Sunday while heading home, my friend asked me, "hey Mark, is asking prayers from the saints biblical?" I paused and then he continued his questioning and said "How come we ask prayers from friends and sometimes from church mates and pastors, why not ask the saints who are in heaven right now? They are literally alive with Christ now.
Along the way we brainstormed and this is what we've come up to:

1. The Bible is clearly saying on Deuteronomy, that we don't pray for the dead, this apply also to the dead.
2. What is your motive of asking prayer from the Saints or even the Living Saints?
do you want them to mediate for you between God or do you want them to intercede for you?

Can we pray to Mary or other saints as we do to God? Can some person who is at the other end of the universe hear our prayers? Isn't this something that is exclusively reserved to God? How can a saint hear hundreds or thousands of prayers at one time? No matter how great a saint they were, they are not omniscient nor can they answer our prayers (it is a known fact there are more prayers offered to Mary than to God by Catholics). This is seen by the statement by Bishop Liqouri “We often more quickly obtain what we ask by calling on the name of Mary than by invoking that of Jesus. She...is our Salvation, our Life, our Hope, our Counsel, our Refuge, our Help” (The Glories of Mary by Bishop Alphonse de Ligouri (Brooklyn: Redemptorist Fathers, pp. 254, 257).

Is This Biblical?

Pope John Paul II dedicated his general audience to the Virgin Mary urging all Christians to accept Mary as their mother. Using the words spoken by Jesus on the cross to Mary and to John-- “Woman, behold thy son!” and “Behold thy mother!” (John 19:26,27), and he claimed that in this statement “IT IS POSSIBLE TO UNDERSTAND THE AUTHENTIC MEANING OF MARIAN WORSHIP in the ecclesial community” (Vatican Information Service, May 7, 1997).

Even the Pope prays to Mary  “Mary of the New Advent, we implore your protection on the preparations that will now begin for the next meeting [World Youth Day]. Mary, full of grace, we entrust the next World Youth Day to you. Mary, assumed into heaven, we entrust the young people of the world ... the whole world to YOU” (August 1993, Denver, Colorado, Pope John Paul II)

Gregory I, was given the title of universal "Pope" (Latin "papas" or father) by the wicked emperor Phocas in 604. He refused the title, however his successor, Boniface III, did accept it and became the first in a long line of successors to be recognized as Pope. Under the new papal authority in the seventh century, many more new beliefs were added to the church, such as the unbiblical doctrine of purgatory (593), the required use of Latin in prayer and worship (600), and prayers said to Mary, dead saints and angels (600).
The next four hundred years saw many more new beliefs added to the church: The ritual kissing of the Pope's foot (709), temporal (political) power granted to the Pope (750), worship of the crucifix, images and relics (786), holy water mixed with a pinch of salt and blessed by a priest (850), the worship of St. Joseph (890), the establishment of the college of Cardinals to elect the popes (927), the baptism of bells (965), the canonization of dead saints (995), and prescribed fastings on Fridays and during lent (998)

http://www.victorious.org/chur40.htm

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Many of the teachings in the Roman Catholics are not questioned by their followers and they assume that all basic doctrines and practices date back to the teachings of Jesus and the time of the apostles. (Not just the Roman Catholics, even other Religions. Have you ever questioned your beliefs and practices of how true are your teachings?)


Bruce Shelley's book,  "Church History in Plain Language", he said that Gregory is the one who made many practices in the Roman Catholics. Gregory said that after 30 days,  he began to feel strong compassion for the deceased (Justus).-{Bruce Shelley, Church History in Plain Language, p.170-172, 2008.} With his compassion to the deceased, even though without strong support form the bible, he declared that prayers should be addressed to the dead saints, angels and most especially to Mary (who was wrongfully addressed as Mediator to Jesus as the Mother of God).{Anthony Pezzotta, Truth Encounter: Catholicism and the Holy Scriptures, p.232-233, 1996}.