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What Does the Bible Say About..Praying to Saints?

Is it a sin to pray to Saints in order to ask for them to help in the intercession of prayer favors from Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? I mean I know that we are to go to Christ for everything in prayer, but I just want to know if asking for the help from others a sin in His eyesight.

Answer

I am not sure that it is a sin to pray to saints. If you are referring to Saints in the Roman Catholic concept of a dead person who met certain special qualifications while he was alive, then there is no biblical evidence that the dead communicate with God, and some argue that they don’t even have consciousness until the resurrection and final judgement. Therefore, it would be worthless to pray to someone who has no ability to speak to God on our behalf. The Bible doesn’t say whether doing something that has no value is a sin.

If you mean saints in the biblical sense—that is, any Christian—then there is biblical precedent for asking a living person to pray with or for you. In Acts 8:24 Simon the Sorcerer asked a living person (Peter) to pray for him.

Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. (James 5:14-16)

It is not a sin to ask others for help. If those others are already dead, though, it is useless.