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By Father Michael Wensing STL
November begins with the feasts of All Saints and All Souls and is the month with a focus on remembering the deceased. For the November issue, The Bishop’s Bulletin asked me to write on two persistent questions by Catholics.
Can I pray for intercession from someone who has died but who has not been canonized?
The ultimate intercession for any of us is Jesus to the Father (cf. 1 Tm 2:5). All Christians agree on that. However, many of our Protestant friends vary and differ on whether we can ask those, whether canonized saints or not, to pray for us.
I once was counseling an engaged couple, Catholic and Protestant, who were debating this issue, especially when it came to Mary. The young lady, the Protestant party, thought we made too much of Mary’s power of intercession, almost to the point of worshipping her. I clarified that we give her honor but not worship and why we trust in her power of intercession above all other humans who have died. I asked her if she treasured a family member’s holiness and prayer life before they died. She asserted that her grandmother, who had died two years previous, was a wonderful Christian and a powerful prayer warrior. “I always go to her first when I need help because I know her prayers are more powerful than mine,” she said. “See,” I said, “you do believe in the intercessory power of some who have died, as we do as Catholics.”
We hold in first place the canonized saints as intercessors, for we have confirmation that they are in heaven (Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) 956, 2683). And this could extend to deceased relatives who are believed to be in heaven, as they are part of the communion of saints. Also, Catholics may ask deceased relatives for prayers if they believe they are in heaven or even purgatory for they are both parts of the body of Christ and someday those in purgatory will be among the Communion of Saints.
Those in purgatory, though unable to pray for themselves, can pray for others (CCC 958). The Church recognizes there are many in heaven who are not canonized but can intercede for us. The Church urges a certain caution in this, trusting in God’s mercy regarding a loved one’s state in the afterlife. Thus one should always appeal to the known saints (and even archangels) before asking other deceased members of the body of Christ for prayers.
The Bible supports intercession (cf. Rev 5:8) where the saints’ prayers are presented before God. 2 Maccabees 15:12-16 shows the deceased praying for the living. St. Augustine and others affirmed the practice of seeking intercession from the holy departed.
Why do we pray for the repose of someone’s soul if they have already died and their judgement has been determined?
Catholics believe that after death, a person undergoes a particular judgment, where that person’s eternal destiny is determined, and there are only two destinies: heaven or hell. However, there may be the requirement of purgatory in an intermediate state, a state that is temporary and will itself cease at the end of the world (cf. my book: “Death and Afterlife”). Thus, prayers for the deceased are purposely for those in purgatory, a state of purification for souls destined for heaven who need to be healed of the consequences of sins committed in the body when alive on earth. The souls in hell cannot benefit from prayers as their destiny is sealed. And souls in heaven do not need intercessory prayers for themselves.
For those in purgatory, prayers, Masses and good works by the living can influence their purification process, not their ultimate destination (CCC 1032, 1475). We know God is outside of time. All time is as one before God and thus our prayers for the deceased, though in the future, have already been accounted in God’s providence and grace for the deceased. It is almost like “paying it forward.”
All these kinds of good intentions and prayers are often described as assisting the soul in its journey of purification rather than altering God’s judgment. We believe that as members of the body of Christ, we are all connected, whether alive or dead, and that our influences on one another count in God’s plan and providence. 2 Maccabees 12:38-46 shows the practice of praying for the dead, believing such prayers are of benefit to the dead.
When praying for a deceased person, a Catholic expresses hope that the individual is in purgatory or heaven, acknowledging uncertainty about their state. If already in heaven, we ask God to apply our prayers to those yet in purgatory. Thus we often and should pray: “May God have mercy on the soul of “so and so” and grant them eternal rest.” This reflects trust in God’s justice and mercy without presuming to know the soul’s fate.
