DO WE PRAY TO SAINTS OR THEY PRAY FOR US?

I have been working from home for about 11 months due to COVID-19 restrictions, and that means more time to notice things I would ordinarily not pay attention to in the house. I was sitting behind my laptop, and the mental strain forced me to look up into space eagerly, hoping to somehow figure out the problem at hand. As I gazed up, I looked into the fluorescent tube and noticed some moths trapped inside the casing. I started wondering why a moth would be so attracted to the light to the detriment of its life?

Fluorescent tube, 1 February 2021

It turns out that the moth's behavior seems to be a scientific mystery (well, it would seem, from my minimal research). Moths attracted to light can use the moon or stars to orientate their flying track. I will leave the science to the experts. Still, this scientific mystery sheds some light on the mystery of the communion of saints.

If we assume for a moment, two states, first, me at my desk representing all those on earth (with both body and soul intact). Second, beams of light illuminating the room represent those who have passed from this life in a state of grace and fully enjoy the glory of God (the Saints in heaven). Now the light source is Our Lord, Jesus Christ.

The pandemic has made death more of a visible reality to all of us and may leave us pondering what happens after death? The somberness awakens the realisation that death was never part of God's original plan for us. The end of our life is the consequence of the original sin, leaves us feeling empty and perhaps even incomplete. Even Jesus experienced this feeling before his miracle of raising Lazarus, who had already been dead for four days. We read, "When Jesus saw her weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled; and he said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus wept." (John 11:32-35).

If we consider the moths as those who have gone before us, in pursuit of the illuminating light. But, the quest toward home, that is, to be one with God, never killed them but rather stunned their bodies. Their souls will journey on through purgatory, mending and patching their garments damaged from misleading paths taken here on earth. Until one day, their wedding gown would be spotless and worthy to enter a wedding feast like no other, where they will dance face-to-face with God.

Now some have gone before us who have made every effort to mend their garments here on earth. They were not VIP guests but really good at following the example laid out by Jesus to ensure they were purified to enter the wedding reception. These are what we refer to when we talk about the Saints. They are our very own "go-to person" on the best spiritual instructions required to keep our garments clean. When we get them dirty, they help us recognise the best stain remover for the job. So, contrary to popular belief, Catholics don't pray to Saints' statues as if they were demi-Gods. We have them on speed dial, ready to call on them to help us with their prayers. Why? Well, they have entered the wedding reception. They can experience God more fully than we could ever understand down here. They are not limited from asking God on our behalf to please help so and so with their petition. Pretty cool, huh!

Well, that is why we love Mary so much, because her wedding garment was never stained, meaning she is the purest of all Saints, what more she bore Jesus in her womb. So, if any child wants to ask for something, Mom is always the first option because she knows how to convince Dad! Mary is then our most influential intercessor, and if it is God's will, the favours we ask through her to God will be granted. Big emphasis on God's will. By the way, I don't think you will win the Lotto if you ask Mary that petition. The Saints in heaven, souls in purgatory, and believers here on earth, together with Christ, form one family. We are a family across different states, some in the earthly condition, some in the purgatory state, and others in the heavenly state. But that makes us one Church, or more commonly the communion of saints.

The hope entrusted to Christians is that we are assured eternal salvation when we die in God's friendship. Still, we need purification to enter into the happiness of heaven (CC, 210). When we see death as the journey and not the destination, we see life differently. Ultimately we bravely repeat the words of St. Paul, "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" (1 Corinthians 15:55).

"And I shall seek you endlessly, for I am a moth, and you're my flame, Knowing that I'll burn at your touch I return, for you're a fire; untamed." (Zubair Ahsan)

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