Praying question

[JOYfulbeliever]

Let me just start by saying, I was raised southern baptist and I know absolutely nothing about the Catholic faith, so I apologize if this is a completely ignorant question. I guess I'm trying to understand more of the Catholic faith as a new colleague of mine is Catholic. I'm not really comfortable asking her questions, so I thought I would ask all of the wonderful Catholics at Christian Forums. Please know...I'm not here to start a debate!!! I'm just looking for information!!!

Can someone please explain the way that Catholics pray? The reason I ask...my colleague has often referred to different "saints" that she prays to for different things. I know she has referred to Saint Jude (and I must admit, the first time she said that, me and my baptist brain thought she was talking about St. Jude's hospital when she said that she had ask St. Jude for help! - told you I was clueless!!!)...there have been others that she has referred to as well. It seems she has a different saint for different things. For instance, she lost a document, and said that she said a prayer to saint so-and-so to help her. I guess my question is...do you always pray to a saint? And is there a different saint for every situation? And if so...how do you remember who is who?   I think I would get them all confused and be praying the wrong thing to the wrong saint!  again, I apologize if that sounds really stupid, but in the baptist faith, we only pray to God or Jesus, so this "saint" stuff is very new to me!

 

[Chris†opher Paul]

Welcome to our little part of the forums!

May your stay here be educational and pleasant!

 

[Lynn]

Welcome

 

[Lynn]

Welcome

Let me share a little of my own understanding. We Catholics pray to God. But there are times when we ask those who have gone before us to add their prayers to ours.

When you hear someone say "I prayed to St Jude" or whoever, what they really are saying is "I asked St Jude to pray with me". The word 'pray' just mean 'ask' in this situation.

lynn

 

[jukesk9]

We believe that upon a Christian's death, they are united with Christ and are able to pray for us in Heaven as they were able to here on earth.

 

[Malachi383]

First of all, welcome.

Secondly, we have what are called patron saints.  They are saints that are called upon for certain situations.  For example, St. Jude is often for lost causes, or serious situations.  St. Anthony is a favorite for those who like to lose things.  We are all apart of the communion of saints.  If you read some of Paul's writings, he refers to a "cloud of witnesses" or other things.  This is what he is talking about.  It also involves the Body of Christ still here on earth.  You see, there are three groups in the Church.  There is the Church Militant (here on earth), the Church Triumphant (Heaven), and the Church Suffering (Purgatory).  These are all apart of the Body of Christ, the Church.  Christ also says that He is the God of the living, not of the dead.  This tells us these people are not dead but rather more alive than we are.  Saints are not made saints by a declaration by the Pope, but rather, that is more like a recognition and a declaration of something already in existance.  By diving into their lives, we gain hope, and see how we too are called to sainthood.  They inspire us.  And so just as we ask each other to pray for us, we Catholics dont like to limit ourselves to our friends here on earth.  Make sense?

If you go to www.catholic.org, and go to the Saint and Angel index (link on left), you can go to a list of patron saints.  These are saints who had similar situations in their life, etc.  For example, St. Therese of Lisieux was an orphan, and so she is the patroness of orphans.  This is usual, but not applicable to all.

More later on prayer life...hope this helps with the saints!

God bless

 

[Malachi383]

For more clarification - there is no real wrong saint to pray too.  They are saints for a reason.  Either way, it is someone in heaven, who is in union with God in a way we can barely begin to understand.  I dont know about you, but if I am praying, I would love to have saints praying along with me and such.  The more prayer I get the better!

   Round 2!

Okay, this time I am going to talk more about prayer and spirituality.

First of all, there is no specific or set way to pray for Catholics.  We have a wide variety and lots of options.  You can go totally spontaneous, or you can go with a more structured prayer (Hail Mary, Lord's Prayer, and countless others).  There is nothing that says that as a Catholic, one has to pray 60% of the time to Christ, 25% of the time to Mary, and 15% saints.  There is no such thing.  Some people are 100% Christ even.  Its not that they dont believe in the saints or in Mary, but that is their devotion and spirituality.  And there is nothing wrong with that.  Others like to mix it up.  Its not like we are detracting from Christ by focusing on saints and Mary sometimes, because if you look at them, they are pointing to Christ.  All glory and honor is given to Christ.  We recognize that the saints are such because of their obedience to the will of God and following His call, and using the gifts that He gave them.

The Rosary is something that many find helpful.  The Rosary consists of a set of prayers, during which you meditate.  It takes practice and development, but after some time, you can not only engange in the prayers fully, but also enter into meditation on what are called mysteries.  Some include the Baptism of Christ, the Annunciation, Imaculate Conception, etc.  There are 4 sets of 5 mysteries.  They have a different focus in many ways.  It is really powerful.

Sometimes complete spontenaity is the path for some.  They may open and end with a song, they may include saints, they may include petitions, they may include thanksgiving, they may include everything under the sun or focus on just one thing.  Sometimes when I pray, it is because I am really in a mood to praise God, so I will do nothing but that during my prayer.  Sometimes, like in the mornings, I ask for God's strength and such throughout the day, guidance, that He use me as an instrument, whatever.  Sometimes at night my prayer will include an examination of conscience, basically a checkup on myself to see if I am living the way I should, etc, what I need to change, my week areas, etc.  This really helps spiritually.  Other times, I will focus on surrender, to God's will, to His love, to His care, etc.  Other times I will focus on healing in my life for whatever needs to be healed, wounds, etc.  Other times I will focus on intercession, praying for others and their needs.  Other times I will break out my rosary.  Or sometimes I will do some other chaplet, which you use the Rosary but use different prayers and different format.  Sometimes I will do a mix of these.

Often times it depends on the individual.  Have you heard of the Jesuits? Benedictines? Augustinians? Dominicans? These are all different groups within the Church.  They have their own religious priests, sisters, brothers, or whatever applies.  Yet they are all Catholic.  They have different spiritualities in that they have different ways of doing things.  Yet this is not to say that one is right and the others are wrong.  They also have different charisms and different focuses.  They were created/founded for different reasons.

I hope this has helped your understanding.

 

[JOYfulbeliever]

Thank you so much Lynn and Malachi383, and all of the others for your help! I think I understand this much better now...

I was under the impression that the saints that she was praying to were sort of like a "mediator" or an "intercessor"...in other words, she would pray to them, and they would take that to God. I couldn't understand why she didn't just go straight to God with it. But, you guys cleared that up for me... If I am understanding correctly, and please correct me if I am wrong....but praying to the saints isn't really "praying to them". It would be the same as if I asked you, Lynn, to pray for me because of this or that. The saints are just another person in the circle of prayers. You are basically just asking them to pray for you. Is that correct? In other words...St. Jude would be another person added to the prayer chain for someone that is terminally ill. I know I sound totally ignorant asking these questions, but it is because I am! I know nothing, and I so appreciate all of the information that you gave me, Malachi383. If was very informative and helpful!

 

[nyj]

Originally posted by JOYfulbeliever
If I am understanding correctly, and please correct me if I am wrong....but praying to the saints isn't really "praying to them". It would be the same as if I asked you, Lynn, to pray for me because of this or that. The saints are just another person in the circle of prayers. You are basically just asking them to pray for you. Is that correct? In other words...St. Jude would be another person added to the prayer chain for someone that is terminally ill.

You got it.

 

[JOYfulbeliever]

By the way...I hope I am not coming across as disrespectful in this! I'm certainly not intending to be at all. I have been in a "baptist bubble" all of my life, meaning that I have never really been confronted or introduced to anyone who practices another religion until my colleague joined our office. Don't get me wrong, I have been around many of non-believers, and probably people of other religions...I've just never had their beliefs presented to me the way that she has. And she isn't pushing her beliefs, she just is very open about them, and I am just eager to learn more about what she believes and understand them with an open mind. I'm just not comfortable talking to her about it just yet...although I'm sure she would be more than willing to explain. Again...I mean no disrespect or offense...I'm just eager to learn something new and gain a new respect for my fellow brothers and sisters who practice the Catholic faith.

Thanks again for all of your help! You guys are amazing!

 

[pax]

Originally posted by JOYfulbeliever
but praying to the saints isn't really "praying to them". It would be the same as if I asked you, Lynn, to pray for me because of this or that. The saints are just another person in the circle of prayers. You are basically just asking them to pray for you. Is that correct? In other words...St. Jude would be another person added to the prayer chain for someone that is terminally ill. I know I sound totally ignorant asking these questions, but it is because I am! I know nothing, and I so appreciate all of the information that you gave me, Malachi383. If was very informative and helpful!

That would be correct.  Catholics believe in the Communion of Saints which includes the "Church Militant" on Earth, the "Church Suffering" in Purgatory and the "Church Triumphant" in Heaven.  All are members of the Church (The Body of Christ) and each member is important.  All are working for the salvation of souls. 

 

[Lynn]

Ya know, I'll bet that the reason your friend is so open to sharing her beliefs is that you are so respectful in your responses.

God bless you for this

lynn

 

[Malachi383]

Dont worry - you havent been disrespectful whatsoever. If you ever have questions, please dont hesitate to ask. I would rather you ask and get the answer in a polite and respectful way than to believe a misconception or lie or a rumor. Besides, we too are fairly open about our faithes, and would be more than happy to help you understand it.

God bless

 

[Lady Grace]

Malachi, very well said. I think that is the whole thing in a nutshell,,,,,,,,,"respect" for one another.

It is better to ask and get true answers than to listen to just anyone and maybe be misinformed.

Lady Grace

 

[JOYfulbeliever]

Thank you guys so much. I was never around anyone with any other beliefs than my own until a few years ago. Not because I was secluding myself from them, but really and truely, everyone in my life existed within my school and church. I was in the "baptist bubble". I wasn't naive enough to think that there weren't other beliefs, I just never thought about them because they weren't up front in my life. I have to tell you, you guys have been so wonderful to me, and so understanding, and most importantly, so HELPFUL...I just can't thank you enough for that! God's love is truly shining through you all. We may be labeled differently, but I truly believe, we are all a part of the body of Christ, just in different "neighborhoods". Thank you for welcoming me into your neighborhood! I'm sure I'll be back with more questions!!!!!

God bless you all!!!

 

[BrianInNC]

Joyful, as one new poster to this Board to another:  Welcome.

 

I posted the following on another Board recently, though it may be pertinent to your question (and I love plagiarizing myself    )

 

**************

 

God doesn't need our prayers. God already knows our every thought, hope, and need before we express them. Matt. 6:8. Prayer is for Us--for our comfort, for our human need for empathy, for our encouragement, hope, and strength.

When I ask friends to pray for me, I will naturally tend to ask those whom I think are apt to be empathetic to my need. I seek that understanding, even though there may be others that I might view as more "powerful in prayer."

The same goes with the saints. We 'choose' a saint, not because God (who is omniscient and all-loving) is apt to better understand our need through that saint, but so that WE better understand our own need by reflecting on the commonality we have with the saint who has gone before us.

Anyway, I hope that at least clarifies a bit how we (or at least I) look at it.

 

Brian

 

[JOYfulbeliever]

Wow, Brian...you don't know how clear that just made it in my mind. Thanks to everyone in OBOB and their wonderful explanations, I really felt as though I had a grasp on this new "concept"...but that just made it perfectly clear! Especially the part about asking someone to pray who is empathetic with your needs and situations. That really brings it into perspective for me!

Thanks a million!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Preachers12]

Today at 10:50 AM JOYfulbeliever said this in Post #17

Wow, Brian...you don't know how clear that just made it in my mind. Thanks to everyone in OBOB and their wonderful explanations, I really felt as though I had a grasp on this new "concept"...but that just made it perfectly clear! Especially the part about asking someone to pray who is empathetic with your needs and situations. That really brings it into perspective for me!

Thanks a million!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Joyfulbeliever, Peace be with you.

Welcome to OBOB!  I read through the thread and find no need to repeat what others have so eloquently already said.  So, I'll leave it at WELCOME and I look forward future discussions about our faiths.

God Bless and stay safe.