.jpg)
In the course of my studying the Faith, I've been introduced to a wide variety of practices and traditions that were foreign to me in my Protestant background. One of these practices was praying to Mary and the saints. Before I learned about the foundations of this practice, I expected to find it a difficult pill to swallow. Surprisingly, once I learned where the practice has its origins, it was relatively easy to attest to its truth.
I know this is a practice with which many Protestants object, pointing out Christ's sole mediatorship, skepticism as to whether the saints in heaven can actually hear those of us on earth, and the obvious argument that the believer may go directly to Jesus. My purpose here is not to delve deeply into the topic or to defend/debate the practice, but for the purpose of creating a general understanding, I will summarize some of the foundations for it (for a fuller description of the practice, click here):
- In Revelation 5, the saints are described as interceding for believers on earth: they fall on their faces before the Lamb "holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints" (v. 8). In Revelation 8, there is another description of angels offering the prayers of the saints up to God. These passages show that the saints in heaven are aware of our prayers and actively interceding on our behalf (vv 3-4).
- Believers in the Catholic church are actively encouraged to bring their petitions and concerns directly to Christ. So why bother offering prayers to the saints in heaven? Simply because a saint is in heaven does not mean he/she ceases to be a part of the Body of Christ. If we can petition Christ directly (as we should), then why do we ask our friends in the flesh to pray for us? In the same way, we can petition the saints in heaven to offer up prayers to God on our behalf. Christ is not offended or maligned when we ask fellow believers to intercede for us; in fact, intercessory prayer is encouraged (1 Tim 2:1 and James 5:13-16 are just a couple examples). In the same way, we may ask those saints in heaven to bring our prayers before the throne of Christ.
A simple Google search will yield novenas for almost any purpose imaginable, or to any saint you've heard of (and probably some you haven't). Not long ago, I mentioned to M my continued stomach troubles. After a few months of only mild symptoms since my diet change, I had a sudden and unexpected relapse. My old pain was back with a vengeance and it lasted for days on end. He suggested a novena. I had seen the word before, but really didn't know what it meant or how it was intended to work.
Though I grasped in a cognitive sense that saints in heaven are not only aware of, but can hear our prayers and intercede on our behalf, I still felt weirded out by the idea. I've only ever prayed directly to God and I have to admit, it seemed like a bit of a betrayal at first. But then I reasoned that I was asking for a fellow member of the Body of Christ -- a member who was in a glorified state, no less -- for assistance. Because intercessory prayer is encouraged both explicitly and implicitly in Scripture (just count how many times Paul asks the churches for prayer!), I know that God is not the least bit offended when I ask my friends to pray for me. If I'm reading the passages in Revelation correctly, the saints, elders, and angels in heaven bring our prayers to the throne of God. It couldn't hurt to ask, could it?
A common misconception is that prayer to a saint is worship. Think of the last person you asked to pray for you: were you displacing God's authority by asking him/her to pray for you? After all, we can go directly to Christ, right? But He gives us the Body, both mystical (in heaven) and corporeal (on earth) for our benefit. In the same way, asking for the intercession of a saint in heaven is not worship anymore than asking for the intercession of a friend in the flesh (a saint on earth) is; by asking for intercession from a saint in heaven, I'm asking for another member of the Body of Christ -- one who has been cleansed of the effects of sin -- to bring my request before God. These, our "cloud of witnesses", are not idle where the Body of Christ on earth is concerned. They have run the race before us and continue to assist believers on earth in their own journeys heavenward. And ultimately, any saint or angel in heaven is not seeking any glory for themselves. At the end of the day, they all point to God.
As part of my reasoning process, I arrived at the realization that this practice has been around since the inception of the Church. Assuming there is truth in the practice, even my feeling weird about it wouldn't make it any less true. If it were entirely without merit, would it still be a practice that the Church would maintain for so long? Would not the practice of praying novenas have died ages ago if it were completely bogus? I also realized that if saints and angels do have any power where our prayers and supplications are concerned, this power comes only from God and is bestowed by Him for our use and our benefit.
Yes, we can and should pray to God directly. Absolutely! But we may also ask those glorified members of the Body of Christ to put our pleas before Him in a language we cannot yet know. Much like we might employ a lawyer to present a compelling case for our requests before a judge, we can ask the saints in heaven to intercede and help us when we especially require the help.
I did some research a found this Novena to Saint Raphael. I was looking for someone who was known for intercession with physical illness. Appropriately enough, the name Raphael means "God heals". So I printed out the novena and kept it by my bed.
The first night, I knelt beside my bed, still feeling weird about the whole process; rationally, it made sense but I still had that internal knee-jerk response that made me feel uncomfortable about the whole process. I breathed in and out slowly, asking for the smallest shred of faith to pray this prayer.
And so I did -- for that night and the eight nights that followed.
I suppose it could be rationalized or explained in other ways. I expect that medical tests could be ordered to confirm what I already suspect to be true. But I don't need any blood work or doctor's chart to tell me that I feel the best I've felt in two years. I have managed to gain back a healthy amount of weight; this is no small feat considering I have only lost weight over the past two years. Even the mildest of symptoms have disappeared. I have even more energy than before and not the slightest twinge of pain. My body -- as far as I can tell -- is functioning in a completely normal, healthy way.
I praise God for the healing, and offer humblest thanks to the archangel Saint Raphael for interceding for me!
.jpg)
