Asking the prayers of those who have won their place in Paradise
By Abbot Tryphon, December 9, 2019
The concept of Christ as the “sole mediator between God and man”, assumes that “mediator” means “intercessor”. But, there is a more profound meaning, not merely an intercessor but the reconciliation of God and man in the reality of the hypostatic union of God and man in the person of Jesus Christ. That is the real meaning of “mediator”. The Latin source of the word, mediare, “place in the middle”, makes it clear that the Protestant view that we cannot ask the saints for help is missing the point. Once we understand that, then the whole argument against the intercession of the saints has no basis in fact.
The Bible indeed directs us to invoke those in heaven and ask them to pray with us. In Psalms 103, we pray, “Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, hearkening to the voice of his word! Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers that do his will!” (Psalms 103:20-21). And in Psalms 148 we pray, “Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his host!” (Psalms 148:1-2).
Not only do those in heaven pray with us, they also pray for us. In the book of Revelation, we read: “[An] angel came and stood at the altar [in heaven] with a golden censer; and he was given much incense to mingle with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne; and the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God” (Rev. 8:3-4). And those in heaven who offer to God our prayers aren’t just angels, but humans as well. John sees that “the twenty-four elders [the leaders of the people of God in heaven] fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and with golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints” (Rev. 5:8). The simple fact is, as this passage shows: The saints in heaven offer to God the prayers of the saints on earth.
It is true that we have Christ as the only intercessor before the Throne, but that never stopped any of our Protestant brethren from asking fellow believers to pray for them. All Christians ask the friends of God to pray for them all the time. When we ask for the prayers of our friends and fellow believers, we are seeking their intercession before the Throne of God. In the same way we can ask those who have gone on before us to pray for us because they are alive in Christ, and offer their prayers to Christ just as do our friends in this life, who are believers. We all, both those in heaven and those still upon this earth, pray before the same “sole mediator between God and man”, Jesus Christ. It is Christ through whom we approach the Throne of the Father. Why would we not want to ask for the prayers of those who have already won their place in Paradise, and are already standing before the Throne of God, worshiping the Holy Trinity?
Love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon
~Abbot Tryphon, The Morning Offering, https://blogs.ancientfaith.com/morningoffering/2019/12/friends-in-high-places-2/.
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