Why do Catholics pray to saints instead of praying directly to God?
First, it is important to point out that Catholics do pray directly to God. Sometimes, however, they look to the community of believers to bring their prayers before God. In order to understand why Catholics pray to Saints it is necessary to understand what Catholics mean when they talk about the “Communion of Saints” and the “mystical Body of Christ”. The word “communion” means unity. The term “Communion of Saints” refers to the unity of all Christians: the Church Militant on Earth, the Church Suffering in Purgatory, and the Church Triumphant in Heaven (Mark12:26-27). In other words, all believers who are committed to following the teachings of Christ are part of one family. This one family of believers is also called the “mystical Body of Christ”. The unity of all Christians can be found many places in the Bible. One example is John 15:5, where Christ says, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you c
