Featured Praying to the dead - should Christians do it?

I understand where you are coming from, and your reasoning is consistent in that it follows logically from your belief system.

But there are a couple of things wrong with it: Apostolic Succession, or an unbroken line of monarchial bishops traced back to the apostles is, as Wesley discovered, a fable, reason being that in apostolic times there were no monarchial bishops and in the NT there were only two orders. We have gone into this before. However, this is not what is most important to the central issue of our discussion. What is central is that ordained bishops in apostolic succession has not and does not assure adherence to Biblical doctrine, as has been proven in all those denominations that claim such succession, the RCC included.

The reason for the Protestant Reformation was because Luther discovered that the RC hierarchy with its apostolic succession had not maintained the Biblical faith.

And today in such movements as Continuing Anglicanism groups have risen up to protest the departure from Biblical Christianity of apostate Anglican bishops ordained in apostolic succession.

So, the so-called apostolic succession is no guarantee that the Biblical faith, the faith and teachings of the apostles, has been maintained and carried forward.

No, adherence to scripture as the final authority, it being the sole record of the apostles' teaching, is the only true guarantor of authentic Biblical faith. Liberal Protestantism has departed from that, and so has the RCC by its centuries of added "traditions" which are not only not found in scripture but are contrary to it. In this respect, liberal Protestantism and the RCC are guilty of the same thing: they both set their non-Biblical traditions and additions above scripture.

However, unlike some, I am very glad and thankful to have the RCC as an ally on moral issues, on which the RCC has stood firm.

 

not ONE verse supports that in entire bible!

 

Of course there are, but you just say we read too much into those verses. You and people like you who do not share the Catholic Christian faith life have difficulty with the appearance that in their prayers (petitions), Catholics appear to pray to the Saints, to Mary, as one prays to God. This "praying to" appears to you to indicate a worship of the Saint as if giving to the Saint or Mary what is due to God alone. I know, I used to be just like you!

Through Baptism we pass "from death to life; death no longer has dominion over us." Christians must believe that there is no real distinction between the believer in human life and after human life. Saints, living or dead, are indistinguishable before God.

If we can pray for and with saints in this life, we can pray for and with those saints after human life.

And as Paul asked saints to imitate him as he imitates Christ, the Church encourages Christians to imitate the holiness of the saints as they imitated the holiness of Christ and the Father.

 

This is called "begging the question" fallacy.

 

Walter may as well pray to a tree. He'll get the same reply from the tree as he will praying to Mary... absolute silence and no results.

 

I see no harm in praying for the dead. Having said that, I do not believe it does the dead any good nor ill. The primary positive aspect I can see is that is probably is psychologically good for the person praying for one they loved in life.

 

The only instances we find in the Word of God of one praying for the dead is when one is praying for God to restore life into a dead body.

I think it would be foolish for one to pray a prayer such as that once the dead are in the coffin and buried. Reminds me of the old joke, "What would Colonel Sanders be doing if he were alive today? ...Scratching on the lid of his coffin trying to get out."

Seriously, praying for the one that is dead and buried is as useless as a Funk & Wagnall Encyclopedia is to a starfish.

 

Are you omniscient?

I don't think we can know if it would do any good or not, but I don't see that it would be harmful. So, if someone wants to do it, what's the problem with that? And I'm talking about praying for the dead, not to the dead.

 

OK so I do not find any Bible verses on praying TO the dead.
How about this one? This is one that has always boggled me.

 

1Co 15:28 When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all.
1Co 15:29 Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf?
1Co 15:30 Why are we in danger every hour?

I believe that this is not in reference to just any dead person, but only One... the Lord Jesus Christ.

Many did not believe in the Resurrection. Paul was basically saying, "if the dead are not raised, why are you getting baptized in the name of one who you don't believe that One was resurrected?