Is it okay to teach your kids to pray to a dead saint?

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presidente

Senior Member
#1
May 29, 2013
9,166
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#1
Is it okay to teach your kids to pray to a dead saint... like by writing a letter to one and asking for a bunch of toys.

Is it acceptable to lie to your own children and tell them-- using the same mouth you use to say that God split he Red Sea and raised Jesus from the dead-- that a magic fat guy flies around in a sleight and brings presents to all the houses in the world?

Is it wrong to present this dead saint as an omniscient man who knows everything about them, and if they aren't good, that he won't bring them any toys?
 
Pilgrimshope

Pilgrimshope

Well-known member
#2
Sep 2, 2020
15,082
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#2
presidente said:
Is it okay to teach your kids to pray to a dead saint... like by writing a letter to one and asking for a bunch of toys.

Is it acceptable to lie to your own children and tell them-- using the same mouth you use to say that God split he Red Sea and raised Jesus from the dead-- that a magic fat guy flies around in a sleight and brings presents to all the houses in the world?

Is it wrong to present this dead saint as an omniscient man who knows everything about them, and if they aren't good, that he won't bring them any toys?
Click to expand...
i sure wouldn’t tell anyone to pray to anyone other than God in the name of Christ Jesus.
 
tourist

tourist

Senior Member
#3
Mar 13, 2014
42,762
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Tennessee
#3
I never told my daughter about Santa, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy or for that matter, the Great Pumpkin. She was pretty smart and figured it out by herself.

I'm not saying that it's not OK to say to the children that there is this character called Santa Clause but that was not the road that I took.

What would be the point to teach your children to pray for dead saints? Nothing that I would recommend.
 
Eli1

Eli1

Well-known member
#5
Apr 5, 2022
5,637
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#5
presidente said:
Is it okay to teach your kids to pray to a dead saint... like by writing a letter to one and asking for a bunch of toys.

Is it acceptable to lie to your own children and tell them-- using the same mouth you use to say that God split he Red Sea and raised Jesus from the dead-- that a magic fat guy flies around in a sleight and brings presents to all the houses in the world?

Is it wrong to present this dead saint as an omniscient man who knows everything about them, and if they aren't good, that he won't bring them any toys?
Click to expand...
I told my kids about Santa but I didn’t tell them to pray to Santa. Lol
By 6 years old they figured out that Santa wasn’t real.
 
XavierJesusLovesIndia

XavierJesusLovesIndia

Banned
#6
Nov 26, 2021
1,125
545
113
India
#6
The Saints in Heaven are not dead. That is an error of the Sadducees. Also, no one should pray TO the saints, but one can ask the Saints in Heaven to pray for us TO GOD, just as one asks other believers in Earth to pray for us to Our Lord Jesus.

Rev 5:8 Worthy Is the Lamb
8 Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

Notice the 24 elders living in Heaven are worshipping God and the prayers of the Saints ascend before God's Throne.

Luk 16:24 “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’

Notice that Abraham is not "dead" but alive in Heaven. The Rich Man asks Abraham certain things, which is like asking for his intercession with God. Jesus Christ is telling the story, and this shows it was a common belief among the Jewish faithful that Saints such as e.g. Abraham lived in Heaven and now pray for us. These things are expressly said in the Book of Maccabees.

Maccabees is one of the 7 Deuterocanonical books, meaning it is in Catholic/Orthodox Bibles, but not Protestant bibles.

2 Maccabees 15:14-17

14 Onias said: "This is God's prophet Jeremiah, who loves the Jewish people and offers many prayers for us and for Jerusalem, the holy city."
15 Then Jeremiah stretched out his right hand and gave Judas a gold sword, saying as he did so,
16 "This holy sword is a gift from God. Take it and destroy your enemies."
17 The eloquent words that Judas spoke encouraged everyone to be brave, and inspired boys to fight like men. Their city, their religion, and their Temple were in danger. So the Jews made up their minds not to waste any time, but to make a daring attack against the enemy and bravely decide their fate in hand-to-hand combat."

God Bless.
 
IloveYeshua

IloveYeshua

Banned
#7
Oct 29, 2022
73
32
18
#7
presidente said:
Is it okay to teach your kids to pray to a dead saint... like by writing a letter to one and asking for a bunch of toys.

Is it acceptable to lie to your own children and tell them-- using the same mouth you use to say that God split he Red Sea and raised Jesus from the dead-- that a magic fat guy flies around in a sleight and brings presents to all the houses in the world?

Is it wrong to present this dead saint as an omniscient man who knows everything about them, and if they aren't good, that he won't bring them any toys?
Click to expand...
no it is not O.K. to pray to anyone but the Living God. It is not O.K. to lie to children about santa. the truth must be told always. Children are not stupid and deserve the truth.
 
Pilgrimshope

Pilgrimshope

Well-known member
#8
Sep 2, 2020
15,082
6,091
113
#8
tourist said:
I never told my daughter about Santa, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy or for that matter, the Great Pumpkin. She was pretty smart and figured it out by herself.

I'm not saying that it's not OK to say to the children that there is this character called Santa Clause but that was not the road that I took.

What would be the point to teach your children to pray for dead saints? Nothing that I would recommend.
Click to expand...
you sound like my daddy and mama.

The first I heard of Santa was the one overnight visit I had in grade school with a friend across the holler and over a couple hills

i asked daddy and he explained it was actually pronounced “ satans claws “

well that’s was the end of the Santa inquiry lol
 
Dino246

Dino246

Senior Member
#10
Jun 30, 2015
25,935
14,008
113
#10
XavierJesusLovesIndia said:
The Saints in Heaven are not dead. That is an error of the Sadducees. Also, no one should pray TO the saints, but one can ask the Saints in Heaven to pray for us TO GOD, just as one asks other believers in Earth to pray for us to Our Lord Jesus.

Rev 5:8 Worthy Is the Lamb
8 Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

Notice the 24 elders living in Heaven are worshipping God and the prayers of the Saints ascend before God's Throne.

Luk 16:24 “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’

Notice that Abraham is not "dead" but alive in Heaven. The Rich Man asks Abraham certain things, which is like asking for his intercession with God. Jesus Christ is telling the story, and this shows it was a common belief among the Jewish faithful that Saints such as e.g. Abraham lived in Heaven and now pray for us. These things are expressly said in the Book of Maccabees.

Maccabees is one of the 7 Deuterocanonical books, meaning it is in Catholic/Orthodox Bibles, but not Protestant bibles.

2 Maccabees 15:14-17

14 Onias said: "This is God's prophet Jeremiah, who loves the Jewish people and offers many prayers for us and for Jerusalem, the holy city."
15 Then Jeremiah stretched out his right hand and gave Judas a gold sword, saying as he did so,
16 "This holy sword is a gift from God. Take it and destroy your enemies."
17 The eloquent words that Judas spoke encouraged everyone to be brave, and inspired boys to fight like men. Their city, their religion, and their Temple were in danger. So the Jews made up their minds not to waste any time, but to make a daring attack against the enemy and bravely decide their fate in hand-to-hand combat."

God Bless.
Click to expand...
With respect...

When John wrote about the "bowls... full of prayers of the saints", he wrote nothing about which saints prayed them. It is complete speculation to conclude they are the prayers of saints in heaven.

Lazarus could do nothing for the rich man, and the rich man could do nothing for his relatives.

2 Maccabees is not considered Scripture by most Christians.
 
L

Locoponydirtman

Guest
#12
#12
Saul was condemned for seeking Samuel.
 
Cameron143

Cameron143

Well-known member
#13
Mar 1, 2022
20,943
7,173
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#13
presidente said:
Is it okay to teach your kids to pray to a dead saint... like by writing a letter to one and asking for a bunch of toys.

Is it acceptable to lie to your own children and tell them-- using the same mouth you use to say that God split he Red Sea and raised Jesus from the dead-- that a magic fat guy flies around in a sleight and brings presents to all the houses in the world?

Is it wrong to present this dead saint as an omniscient man who knows everything about them, and if they aren't good, that he won't bring them any toys?
Click to expand...
This was not the direction I saw this thread going when I read the title initially.
 
Cameron143

Cameron143

Well-known member
#14
Mar 1, 2022
20,943
7,173
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#14
XavierJesusLovesIndia said:
The Saints in Heaven are not dead. That is an error of the Sadducees. Also, no one should pray TO the saints, but one can ask the Saints in Heaven to pray for us TO GOD, just as one asks other believers in Earth to pray for us to Our Lord Jesus.

Rev 5:8 Worthy Is the Lamb
8 Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

Notice the 24 elders living in Heaven are worshipping God and the prayers of the Saints ascend before God's Throne.

Luk 16:24 “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’

Notice that Abraham is not "dead" but alive in Heaven. The Rich Man asks Abraham certain things, which is like asking for his intercession with God. Jesus Christ is telling the story, and this shows it was a common belief among the Jewish faithful that Saints such as e.g. Abraham lived in Heaven and now pray for us. These things are expressly said in the Book of Maccabees.

Maccabees is one of the 7 Deuterocanonical books, meaning it is in Catholic/Orthodox Bibles, but not Protestant bibles.

2 Maccabees 15:14-17

14 Onias said: "This is God's prophet Jeremiah, who loves the Jewish people and offers many prayers for us and for Jerusalem, the holy city."
15 Then Jeremiah stretched out his right hand and gave Judas a gold sword, saying as he did so,
16 "This holy sword is a gift from God. Take it and destroy your enemies."
17 The eloquent words that Judas spoke encouraged everyone to be brave, and inspired boys to fight like men. Their city, their religion, and their Temple were in danger. So the Jews made up their minds not to waste any time, but to make a daring attack against the enemy and bravely decide their fate in hand-to-hand combat."

God Bless.
Click to expand...
Who can advocate for you better than Jesus? I don't personally believe it is possible to have saints in heaven pray for us, but why choose less than the best?
 
Pilgrimshope

Pilgrimshope

Well-known member
#15
Sep 2, 2020
15,082
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113
#15
Eli1 said:
I told my kids about Santa but I didn’t tell them to pray to Santa. Lol
By 6 years old they figured out that Santa wasn’t real.
Click to expand...
yeah I don’t think you’ve ruined them lol
 
Cameron143

Cameron143

Well-known member
#17
Mar 1, 2022
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#17
Pilgrimshope said:
you sound like my daddy and mama.

The first I heard of Santa was the one overnight visit I had in grade school with a friend across the holler and over a couple hills

i asked daddy and he explained it was actually pronounced “ satans claws “

well that’s was the end of the Santa inquiry lol
Click to expand...
And kudos for knowing what a holler is.
 
Pilgrimshope

Pilgrimshope

Well-known member
#20
Sep 2, 2020
15,082
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#20
Cameron143 said:
And kudos for knowing what a holler is.
Click to expand...
aha I’m suprised anyone else does. I was born in the hollers and grew up for a while on the hills across the way
my daddy actually knew Loretta Lynn before she got famous for singin “ butcher holler “
 
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