Mother Mary:

Mother Mary, the unique person is spoken of by God Almighty, even from the very beginning of the bible in Genesis 3:15. She is a human being but has no sin in her. In Luke 1:26-33, even the Lord God Almighty sent His mighty Archangel Gabriel to this virgin lady as a messenger and greets her. The Angel says that she has found favor with God and is going to become the Mother of the Son of God. Yes, she became the Mother of the Son of God. Jesus is God and thus she became the Mother of God. How great it is that the Son of God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity is dwelling inside the womb of Mother Mary. Thus the Godliness in full as a person is inside her. In Luke 1:41, “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with Holy Spirit.” This is what the incidence, Luke 1:15 says about the child John the Baptist that reads, “Even before his birth he will be filled with Holy Spirit.” Holy Spirit also greets Mary through Elizabeth in Luke 1:42, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.”

Mary the Queen:

We see her the most righteous woman and a specially chosen one by God. Righteous people will receive a great reward even after their death. This is what the Lord says through the Wisdom of Solomon 5:15-16: “But the righteous live for ever, and their reward is with the Lord; the Most High takes care of them. Therefore they will receive a glorious crown and a beautiful diadem from the hand of the Lord, because with his right hand he will cover them, and with his arm he will shield them.” Revelation 3:21 says, “To the one who conquers I will give a place with me on my throne just as I myself conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.” Jesus says in Revelation 2:26, “To every one who conquers and continues to do my works to the end, I will give authority over the nations; to rule them with an iron rod as when clay pots are shattered- even as I also received authority from my Father.”

In this connection, the Catholic Church through her authority received from God (Mathew 16:18-19) confirms a great honour on Mother Mary, “The Queen of Heaven and Earth.” Being blessed among women and the most righteous, she is a person who conquered and received authority over nations. Regarding righteous persons, Wisdom of Solomon 3:8 also says, “They will govern nations and rule over peoples and the Lord will reign over them forever.” So the Mother of God Mother Mary, subject to the authority of God, is reigning over all the earth from heaven. Her authority is subject to our Lord God Almighty as He is the donor of authority. Since the Lord honors Mother Mary we too should honor and respect her. Since she is the Queen of Heaven and earth we can pray to her and receive favors from her. Let us remember Psalms 45:9 that says about a queen standing on the right side of the throne of Jesus the King of kings: “and on the right of your throne stands the queen, wearing ornaments of finest gold.” Can’t we rightly say that this queen is Mother Mary?

Pentecostals views:

But Pentecostals take a different view, saying that the dead persons including Mother Mary are in the pit or Sheol where they are in the state of sleep and forgetfulness. They are not in heaven but in the world of darkness. So they cannot pray to God, as they are not with God. However these dangerous views of falsehood spread fast in the world against the Truth. Let us spend some time to find out the truth according to bible.

Verses Pentecostal quotes:

They quote numbers of verses:

a) Psalms 6:5 says, “For in death there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who can give you praise?”

b) Psalms 115:17 says, “The dead do not praise the Lord, nor do any that go down into silence”.

c) Psalms 88:10-12 says, “Do you work wonders for the dead? Do the shades rise up to praise you? Is your steadfast love declared in the grave or your faithfulness in A.bad’don? Are your wonders known in the darkness, or your saving help in the land of forgetfulness?”

Pentecostals Arguments:

Based on the verse of Psalms 6:5, Pentecostals argue that a man when he becomes dead is in the world of dead. In the Good News bible, which is widely adopted by the Pentecostals, Psalms 6:5 says towards God, “In the world of the dead you are not remembered; no one can praise you there.” So in the world of dead, the Lord God is not remembered and the dead persons cannot praise the Lord. So the so-called dead saints and even Mother Mary cannot remember Lord and praise the Lord. Then how can they pray to God for us?

Quoting Psalms 115:17 they argue that the dead persons are going down in to the pit - the world of silence where they cannot praise the Lord. In the Good News bible also it says, “The Lord is not praised by the dead, by any who go down to the land of silence.”

Quoting Psalms 88:10-12 they argue that the lord will not work wonders for the dead. The shades – the dead will not rise up and praise the Lord. The love of God or His faithfulness is not declared in the grave – the Place of destruction i.e., A.bad’don. It is the world of darkness and forgetfulness and He will not do any help or do wonders for the dead who dwells there. The Good News bible says in Psalms 88:10-12, “Do you perform miracles for the dead? Do they rise up and praise you? Is your constant love spoken of in the grave? Or your faithfulness in the place of destruction? Are your miracles seen in that place of darkness? Or your goodness in the land of the forgotten?”

In this situation, they argue how will the Lord do miracles for the so-called prayer of so-called dead saints? They say that including Mother Mary, they cannot pray to God as the dead are in forgetfulness. If at all any miracle is done in connection with dead persons, surely it is the act of Satan. Is it true?

The Answer:

Lord’s miracle for the dead:

First of all we have to note that the verses of Psalms 6:5 and Psalms 115:17 are question sentences in Catholic bible but in Good News bible these are affirmative sentences. Without any dispute we accept the affirmative sense. But the verses in Psalms 88:10-12 are only question sentences and not the affirmative sentences in Catholic bible as well as in Good News bible that is accepted by Pentecostals. So it is not said in the bible affirmatively that the Lord is not doing wonders for the dead but it is raising a question whether the Lord does wonders for the dead. But it is proved in many saints that their dead bodies still exist without destruction or damage. Saint Bernadette is an example. Without any processing, her dead body is still uncorrupted free from any damage. So the Lord is doing wonders for the dead. Yes, Psalms 16:9 says, “My body also rests secure.” It is the voice of a saintly man.

Dead means dead body:

I am giving my attention to find out, whom does the word, “dead” refers to. In Luke 24:5 when Jesus had resurrected, the angels said to the women who were looking for the dead body of Jesus in the tomb, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.” That means, Jesus is the resurrected living man; you do not search him in the grave where dead bodies alone lie. Grave is the world of dead bodies that is the world of dead where you should not search for the living man Jesus. So the word, “dead” refers to dead body. In the world of dead- in the graves the dead bodies are always in the state of destruction. Nobody cares for it. There is always darkness in the grave. The dead bodies are senseless and so it is in the state of silence and forgetfulness. They cannot even remember the Lord. They are not rising and praising the Lord. They are remaining as the shades in our memory. The dead bodies cannot pray for us; they are in A.bad’don. So we clearly find out that the ‘dead’ means the dead bodies and the Psalms 6:5, 115:17, 88:10-12 refer only to the dead bodies and not to the dead persons.

Souls are living:

But the souls of the saints are not in the grave - pit or Sheol or A.bad’don. Actually they are living. Let us read Mark 12:26-27 where Jesus tells to the disciples, “And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the story about the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is God not of the dead, but of the living; you are quite wrong.” When Jesus tells these verses, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had already been dead. Since He is the God of living and not the God of dead, He could not be the God of dead Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Yet, Jesus says that He is the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob. So in reality, the dead Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are living by soul. As for these dead, they were being raised in soul. In this context, Luke 20:38 says, “for to him all of them are alive.”

When we read Ecclesiastes 12:7 it says that the soul of the dead is going to God Almighty who gave the soul to him. Let us read the verses: “And the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the breath returns to God who gave it.” We know that the breath of the man is the life and his soul. We come to know this in Genesis 2:7 that reads, “Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being.” So the breath of life is his life and soul and thus he became a living person. At his death, this soul is going to the Lord who gave it to him. So it is sure that the souls of the saints are going to the Lord to share the joy of Paradise with the Lord God. Confirming this, Psalms 16:10-11 says, “For you do not give me up to Sheol, or let your faithful one see the Pit. You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasure forever more.” Psalms 30:3 also says, “O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol, restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.” In the Pentecostal bible - King James Version, Psalms 30:3 says, “O Lord, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave; thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.”

So, it is clear that the soul of saints, the righteous is brought up from the grave and restored to life for joy and pleasure in the presence of the Lord God. We also see that the souls of the dead is living in the parable of the Rich Man and Lazar that was told by Jesus about the dead in Luke 16:19-26. Someone may say that it is merely a parable told by Jesus. Is it a merely a parable as against real facts? No, Jesus is the only one who knows clearly about the life after death and that the facts stated therein is related with truths. All the time Jesus tells the parables in touch with reality. In that period of atrocious Sadducees, Jesus is revealing the secret of life after death through this parable.

Laz’arus’ Soul in heaven:

Let us read Luke 16:19-26, “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Laz’arus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Laz’arus by his side. He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Laz’arus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.’ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your good lifetime you received your good things, and Laz’arus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.’ He said, ‘Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house - for I have five brothers - that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.’ Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’ He said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’ “

Here we see the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man died and was buried but he was in Hades as he was not good. We know clearly that both of them were buried and their dead bodies are in the grave but their souls are in different worlds - Laz’arus with Abraham and the rich man in Hades. Here we see the soul of the rich man speaking to Abraham. Yes, the soul of the dead can speak to others. He can sense the agony of the flame. He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Laz’arus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.’ Here we have to note another thing that the tip of the finger of a good soul is the source of comfort. And also we find that the soul, even the condemned soul is praying for its relatives who exist in this world. So it is evident that Jesus was referring to this present time and not about the time after the resurrection of body and soul in the second coming of Jesus. Since it is a bad soul, Abraham denies its prayer. Now imagine the tendency of good souls! Even when the condemned soul is praying for its relatives who exist in this world, won’t they pray for their kith and kin that live in this world? Definitely they will pray for us, as they are living with God as His Children in Heaven. We clearly see that the souls of the dead are living in another world as we live in this Physical world; the good souls are living in joy and comfort with the Lord. They are not in darkness or in the world of forgetfulness. But the dead bodies of the dead are in the world of death- the pits. So the argument of Pentecostals that the dead persons in body as well as in soul are in pit or Sheol is met with failure.

Pentecostal’s another view:

When their arguments met with failure, now the Pentecostal friends take another view that the good souls are living in heaven, of course in Paradise! That is the place where Abraham dwells. But they are not with God. They say that there was nothing mentioned in that verses that Abraham is with God. Is Paradise apart from God’s presence? We have already seen in Psalms 16:10-11 that the soul of dead is in the God’s presence. Let us read the verses once more: “For you do not give me up to Sheol, or let your faithful one see the Pit. You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasure forever more.” Let us go further deep into the matter that the souls of the saints are living with the Lord God in the next sub title.

Saints Living with God:

Jesus went to the mountain to pray where His transfiguration took place. He exposed his full divinity and the dead Moses and the Prophet Elijah who is alive in heaven came to Jesus in the mountain and discussed about the holy sacrifice that was to take place at Jerusalem. Here we see that dead Moses was with God Jesus and Prophet Elijah and even he took part in the discussion of holy plan of human salvation. Even there was a cloud, which over shadowed them where God the Father was present. Let us read Luke 9:29-35. It says, “And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. ……… A cloud came and over shadowed them…then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him.” “ We know the voice is of God the Father. He is in the cloud. The Son the second person of Holy Trinity is there in full divinity. Here with them the dead Moses and Prophet Elijah are seen. We know Prophet Elijah had been taken alive to Heaven. So we have no doubt that dead persons can be with the Lord God in soul.

In Luke 23:43 Jesus says to good thief, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” That day Jesus and the good thief died and they were buried. Their dead bodies were in the tomb in that day. But Jesus says to the thief that he would be with Jesus in heaven on that particular day itself. How is it possible? Even though Jesus is in the tomb, he is within God the Father always. Like that, Even though the dead body of good thief is in the tomb, his soul is in heaven with Lord Jesus on that particular day. So the dead persons can be with the Lord God in soul. We already have seen in Ecclesiastics 12:7, “And dust returns to the earth as it was, and the breath returns to God who gave it.” We can quote many numbers of verses to authenticate that the dead are living in soul with God.

Psalms 116:15 says, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful ones.” This is because a holy man is born in heaven at his death in soul. 2 Corinthians 5:6-9 says, “So we are always confident; even though we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we do have confidence, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him.” Saint Paul in Philippians 1:23-24 says, “I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better, but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you.” Thus it is explicit that when we are away from body in death, we are at home with the Lord in soul.

At last, we see the souls of saints in heavenly Jerusalem with innumerable angels. These saintly souls are the spirits of the righteous that were made perfect. In Christ, we come to Zion the heavenly Jerusalem; and to these Spirits and to Jesus and angels who are in heaven. Let us read Hebrews 12:22-24: “But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the first born who are enrolled in heaven and to God the judge of all and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.” 1 Thessalonians 5:9-10 says, “Jesus Christ who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him.” Yes, Jesus died for us and so we will be with him when we are living this world (awake) or even when we are in death (sleep). This is the desire of Jesus. Let us read John 17:24, “Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me, where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.” John 12:26, “Whoever serves me must follow me, and were I am, there will my servant be also.” Thus we see very clearly that the dead person is in heaven with God Almighty Jesus. In the next sub title let us see the glory of the saints in heaven.

Saints in Glory:

We had seen, when a person dies, he is away from his body and at home with Jesus. Yes, the dead person is resurrecting in soul to live with God Almighty in heaven. Let us read Luke 20:37-38, “And the facts that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.” These resurrected persons like Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are living in Heaven like angels and furthermore they are children of God there. Let us read the verses Luke 20:35-36: “But those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection.” Hebrews 1:14 says that the angels are to serve the human beings. But the resurrected souls i.e. saints in Heaven are above the rank of angels. They are children of God. Let us read the verses: “Are not all angels spirits in the divine service, sent to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?” Let us read Psalms 8:5 also: “Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor.” In this context, with reference to the original Hebrews text, we can translate the word ‘God’ into ‘angels’ also. In the Pentecostal bible - King James Version, Psalms 8:5 says, “For thou hast made them a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor.” Yes, after the resurrection of the saints in soul the Lord crowned them with glory and honor. Thus saints are in such a great position in Heaven. So after their death they are not away from the God but they are at home with the Lord and too they are children of God there. When they are living in such a glory with God can’t they pray for us? Won’t the Lord God do wonders for their intercession prayer? This we see in the next sub title.

Saints can pray and our Prayers:

My Pentecostal friend asks me, “Is there any soul praying in the bible? Are they capable of praying?” We see in Luke 16:27-28, even the evil soul of the rich man is praying. Since it is a bad soul his prayer is denied. However the soul is capable of praying. Let us read the verses: “He said, ‘Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house - for I have five brothers - that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.’ “ Revelation 6:9-10 read, “When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slaughtered for the word of God and for the testimony they had given; they cried out with a loud voice “Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long will it be before you judge and avenge our blood on the inhabitants of the earth?”” Here, the souls of the dead are praying to the Lord in the heavenly altar. So the soul of the dead can pray to God in the heavenly altar.

And we see in Revelation 8:3-4, the angels are offering the prayer of God’s people to the Lord with incense. Let us read the verses: “Another angel with a golden censer came and stood at the altar; he was given a great quantity of incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar that is before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel.” Here saints mean the God’s people on the earth. Even if an angel is capable of offering prayer of the God’s people of the earth with incense to God, can’t the souls who are like angels, even more, in above the rank of angels – the children of God, offer the prayer of the God’s people of the earth? They can offer prayers definitely to God

Value of saint’s prayer:

1 Peter 3:12, says, “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer.” Psalms 34:15-17 says, “The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are open to their cry. The face of the Lord is against evildoers, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth. When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears, and rescues them from all their troubles.” Psalms 53:2-3 says, “God looks down from heaven on humankind to see if there are any who are wise, who seek after God. They have all fallen away, they are all alike perverse; there is no one who does good, no, not one.” And Psalms 143:2 says, “For no one living is righteous before you.” But in heaven we have seen the good souls of the saints whom the scripture says that they are Spirits made perfect. Let us read once more the verses Hebrews 12:22-23: “But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the first born who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect.” For the prayer of these perfect Spirits, the ear of the Lord is eager to hear as we have seen in 1 Peter 3:12 and in Psalms 34:15. So the Lord gives respect and is eager to hear the prayer of the perfect Spirits – saintly souls in heaven and sure we can receive the graces and miracles from God on these prayers. God also desires the intercession prayer.

Intercession prayer needed:

James 5:16 says, “pray for one another.” That is why our priests, pastors, and even lay evangelists pray for others and the Lord also showers the graces upon the people. The Lord expects good people to pray for sinners and through their prayers the Lord forgives their sins. God the Father says in Job 42:8, “ Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly; for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has done.”

Disaster where no Intercession:

The Lord destroyed the race where He found no good people to do intercession prayer. The Lord sought for such a man but nobody was there and He destroyed the race. Ezekiel 22:30-31 says, “And I sought for any one among them who would repair the wall and stand in the breach before me on behalf of the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one. Therefore I have poured out my indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath; I have returned their conduct upon their heads, says the Lord God.”

Disaster removed through intercession:

In Numbers: 14:19-20 the Lord forgives the Israel due to the intercession prayer of Moses. Let us read his prayer and the answer of the Lord: “Forgive the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of your stead fast love, just as you have pardoned this people, from Egypt even until now.” Then the Lord said, “I do forgive, just as you have asked.”

In Exodus 32:10-14 also we find that the Lord forgives the Israel through the intercession prayer of Moses and did not destroy them. The Lord was very angry and asks Moses not to do the intercession prayer and to leave Him alone. So that He may destroy the sinners. But Moses implored the Lord and then the Lord forgave them. Let us read the verses: “ “Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation.” But Moses implored the Lord God, and said, “O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’ “ And the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people.”

Mother Mary’s Intercession:

According to the plan of God the time was not yet come to Jesus to do wonders. But only to fulfill the desire of Mother Mary the most righteous person, Jesus made a change even in the plan of God and does the first miracle in his life. Such a powerful intercession is Mother’s. Let us read the verses: John 2:3-9, “When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.” So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from…”

But our Pentecostal friends often misinterpret the meaning of the verse quoted above. This verse in King James Version, reads as “Woman, what have I to do with thee?” According to them, Jesus calls Mary “Woman” and tells her that He does not have anything to do with her as He had contempt for Mary since she had other children apart from Him (Find the real truth in the chapter “MOTHER MARY EVER VIRGIN”). Pentecostal friends argue that He degrades her as a mere woman without giving her even the normal respect to be given to a mother that Jesus ought to do. This would imply that Jesus is a sinner according to the fourth commandment. But we know that Jesus, the Son of God is sinless. So this view is deplorable. But in fact, Jesus is pointing out that she is the “Woman” promised by God in Genesis 3:15 that says “I will put enmity between you and woman...” This promise is the first declaration of the plan of human salvation by God Almighty. We see that the same greeting is given to Mary at the foot of the Calvary cross also in the verse John 19:26, “…Woman, here is your son”. In both these instances, Jesus proclaims Mary’s unique role in the plan of salvation. So these types of their arguments are totally baseless and misguiding. But such misinterpretation is very grave in the eyes of the Lord of which Mathew 12:36 says “I tell you, on the day of judgement you will have to give an account for every careless word you utter;”

The real interpretation is that – “My time has not yet come. So, why should you and me concern about this particular problem right now?” Yet, Mother expects from Jesus to do a miracle and He does it. Thus Mother Mary’s intercession was so powerful to change even the timing of God’s plan.

Can’t we pray directly?

My pentecostal friend raises another question that is very feeble in this context. He asks since we are God’s children, why can’t we pray directly to Him?

Friend, once more let us remember the verses 1 Peter 3:12 and Psalms 34:15-17. 1 Peter 3:12 says, “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer.” Psalms 34:15-17 says, “The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are open to their cry. The face of the Lord is against evildoers, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth. When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears, and rescues them from all their troubles.” James 5:16 says, “The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.” Are we righteous or evil doers? We know that we are not perfectly righteous. Priests and pastors may be more righteous than us so that their prayer is more effective and so we are going to them for intercession prayer. Their prayer is heard more than our prayer. Heavenly saints are perfectly righteous persons and so their intercession prayer is highly effective and we can reap the fruit of their intercession prayer. All the human beings are children of God and we can directly pray to God. One may sincerely say that he is more righteous and intimate to God than priests and pastors and pray effectively. We can not say that his prayer will not be heard. Out of mercy and love of God, even a sinner’s prayer may be heard. But the intercession prayer of heavenly saints brings more favors from God as they are perfectly righteous.

The Lord accepts a sinner when he repents for his sin. But the Lord shows a difference between the good child and the repented child. Jesus says to good child, “you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.” There may be a good amount of reception from God for the repented child; yet the saying, “you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours” does not belong to the repented child. But this inheritance of the good child rightly belongs to Mother Mary more than any other human being. Yes, she is holy, Mother of God, and is always with Him, and all that are His are hers. Let us read Luke 15:22-24 where we see the reception that the Father gives to the repented child: “But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly, bring out a robe – the best one – and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate.” But very calmly a very great truth is expressed to the good child that we find in Luke 15:31 that says, “Then the father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.’ “

We may be in a state of sin or grace and God in general hears our prayers according to our state. That is why as I said above, we usually seek the intercession of priests and pastors who, by virtue of their commitment, is closer to God than us. Their intercession is more powerful than our own prayers, to obtain heavenly graces and favors. Then imagine the power of the intercession prayer of perfect souls - Mother Mary and other saints who are in heaven as the children of God! Why should we lose such a powerful intercession prayer of Mother Mary and other heavenly saints? Once more refer the above four sub titles, “Intercession prayer needed”, “Disaster where no Intercession”, “Disaster removed through intercession”, “Mother Mary’s Intercession”. Oh! My Pentecostal friend, Please! Think it over and change your heart.

Is Jesus the only interceder?

My Pentecostal friend raises another doubt that we are having only one person for us to intercede with God, who is Jesus. How can we have many interceders? He is quoting Romans 8:34 that reads, “It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us.”

In Good News Bible Romans 8:34 says, “Not Christ Jesus, who died, or rather, who was raised to life and is at the right-hand side of God, pleading with him for us!”

In King James Version Romans 8:34 says, “It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.”

Nothing is said in these three versions that Jesus alone is the interceder. It is said that Jesus is the person who is at the right hand of God and intercedes for us. These verses do not prevent anybody to intercede with God. We see Holy Spirit intercedes for us. Romans 8:26-27 says, “the Spirit helps us in our weaknesses; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” The necessity of intercession prayer for one another is emphasized in James 5:16 that says, “pray for one another.” Paul says in 2 Corinthians 1:11, “many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.” So blessings will be granted through this type of intercession prayer and many will give thanks to God. We have seen already many persons intercede with God and receive favors from God. So it is not wrong to have heavenly saints and Mother Mary to intercede for us.

Mediator different from interceder:

There is a wrong notion among pentecostal friends that the meaning of mediator and interceder are one and the same. But actually it is entirely different. Mediator means one who connects two parties who are apart from each other. But an intercessor is a person who pleads with somebody to persuade him to show pity towards another person. Mother Mary is the interceder towards God for the sinners. But Jesus is the only mediator who connects the humankind with God through His death of Calvary. In this connection, 1 Timothy 2:5-6 says “For there is one God, there is also one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself a ransom for all.” At the time of Jesus’ death we see in Luke 23:45, “And the curtain in the temple was torn into two”. This signifies that Jesus removed the barrier between man and God and connects us with Him through His death.

Salvation through Jesus alone:

Always my pentecostal friend projects the verse Acts 4:12 that says, “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved.” We know that salvation means restoration of humanity from Adam’s fall. I am very happy to declare that Jesus is the sole person whose name alone is given for the salvation of humankind. But then what is the role of Mother Mary in salvation? She is coming in the name of Jesus and she declares herself as the handmaid of the Lord. 1 Corinthians 3:9 says, “For we are God’s servants, working together…” In King James Version, 1 Corinthians 3:9 says, “For we are labourers together with God…” Mother Mary is also a labourer together with God and is working for Jesus under Him.

Just like a pastor who leads his flock to Jesus, Mother Mary leads and offers the whole of humanity to Jesus. Since Mother Mary is the weapon against Satan, coming directly from God (Genesis 3:15), she has got the power to subdue Satan and thereby bring the whole humanity to Jesus. Eve prepared the way towards the fall of Adam and thereby the fall of whole of humanity. Similarly, Mother Mary is preparing the whole humanity and helping Jesus for the fulfillment of the plan of salvation in Jesus, as He is the person given to us for our salvation.

Saints share the gift with us:

The Lord Jesus says in John 4:37-38, “‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.” In Good News Bible John 4:37-38 says, “One man sows, another man reaps.” I have sent you to reap a harvest in a field where you did not work; others worked there, and you profit from their work.” We know that Moses believed in God and lived obediently to Him. And also we see in Exodus 34:28 that Moses was with the Lord for the forty days in the hilltop; he neither ate bread nor drank water in those days. Thus he was filled with heavenly gifts. But these gifts were shared from Moses and transformed to seventy persons as a free gift by God Almighty. We see this in Numbers 11: 25, “Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders.” Moses sowed but the seventy persons reaped the harvest freely. In such a way we can receive free gift through the saints. The saints when they lived in this world sowed many good deeds but we the ordinary people can share and enjoy their reaping with them. Similarly, Mother Mary shares with us her purity; her graces; and the Holy Spirit with which she is filled, as free gifts. The work of the Holy Spirit caused Mary to offer her soul as a beautiful bouquet to Jesus. Naturally, when we receive the Spirit from Mary as a free gift, it will bring us also to offer our souls as bouquets to the Lord. Yes, we can freely receive the heavenly gifts shared from the saints also that already belong to them. Why should we lose such great gifts? We are experiencing in practical life such things through saints and much more through Mother Mary. These saints including Mother Mary should be respected. Even the Lord wants them to be respected.

Saints should be respected:

Revelation 22:8-9 says, “I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me; but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your comrades the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God!” “ Quoting these verses my Pentecostal friend says that we should not worship angels as well as saints.

Of course, worship goes to God alone! But we should give respect to saints. Even God the Father wants to give respect to the angel. God the Father says to Moses in Exodus 23:20-22, “I am going to send an angel in front of you, to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared. Be attentive to him and listen to his voice; do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgression; for my name is in him. But if you listen attentively to his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes.” In Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, be attentive to him means be respectful to him. God the Father wants to give respect to the angel because His name is in the angel. Yes, he is coming in the name of the Lord. The Lord God speaks through the angel. His voice is the voice of Lord God. That is why the Lord says, “if you listen attentively to his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes.” Our saints are also coming in the name of our lord. They belong to Lord and working for the glory of the Lord. They are not working of their own but for the Lord. They are one among the persons who are in the service of the Lord. So we should be respectful to the saints, as we have to be attentive to the angels. And we should not rebel against them. Jesus in John 13:20 says, “Very truly, I tell you, whoever receives one whom I send receives me; and whoever receives me receives him who sent me.” God sent Mother Mary to Fatima and the Catholic Church received her messages.

Joshua 5:13-15 says, “Once when Joshua was by Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing before him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you one of us, or one of our adversaries?” He replied, “Neither; but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and he said to him, “What do you command your servant, my lord?” The commander of the army of the Lord said to Joshua, “Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy”. And Joshua did so.” Here we see that Joshua gives very great respect to the angel, the Commander of the army of the Lord. We should note that Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped him. The Commander of the army of the Lord accepted that worship and gave the command. Here in this context, the word ‘worship’ only means showing great respect. In addition to the meaning of worshiping God, the word “worship” has another meaning also that is admiration or love felt for somebody. Admiration means a feeling of respect. (Refer Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary.) Now we can daringly say that saints are to be respected.

Now let us see why the angel forbids St. John when he worships him by falling down before him in Revelation 22:8-9. Here also the word ‘worship’ does not mean as worshiping God but showing great respect. St. John is not a man of imprudence to worship an angel. But he shows very great respect to the angel by falling down before him like Joshua. St. John is not an ordinary man. He is the fellow servant with the angel. He is equal and more to the rank of an angel. Jesus promised him with other twelve disciples in Matthew 19:28, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man is seated on the throne of his glory, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” Such a great man St. John is. Yet out of his simplicity he shows such respect. The angel observing St. John’s greatness forbids him to show such a very great respect by falling down before him and the angel asked him to worship God who is the root cause of all these things. But these verses do not prevent to give respect to saints and angels. We clearly see above that the angels and saints should be respected.

Saints - Power Holders:

We come to know that angels have authority and power over specific fields. Revelation 14:18 says, “Then another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over fire and he called with loud voice…” We see here that the angel has authority over fire. In Revelation 7:2 we see another four angels have authority and power to destroy the earth and sea. Let us read the verse: “I saw another angel …called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to damage earth and sea…” But this power is subject to the power of Lord God. When the Lord sent a pestilence on Israel in 2 Samuel 24:15-16 and 25, seventy thousand of the people died, from Dan to Be-er-she-ba. But when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord relented concerning the evil, and said to the angel who was bringing destruction among the people, “It is enough; now stay your hand” and then plague was averted from Israel. So God gives the angels power and authority but it is subject to the power of Lord God.

The heavenly saints are like angels and are children of God (Luke 20:36). So saints also can hold power and authority. We read once more Revelation 3:21 that says, “To the one who conquers I will give a place with me on my throne just as I myself conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.” In Revelation 2:26-28 also Jesus says, “To every one who conquers and continues to do my works to the end, I will give authority over the nations; to rule them with an iron rod as when clay pots are shattered- even as I also received authority from my Father.” Regarding righteous persons, Wisdom of Solomon 3:8 also say, “They will govern nations and rule over peoples and the Lord will reign over them forever.” Yes, the Lord will reign over them as their power and authority is subject to the power of Lord God in the same manner as with the power and authority of angels.

Similarly, the Head of the Holy Catholic Church received authority from Jesus in Matthew 16:19 that says, “ whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” With this authority the Holy Catholic Church ordains the saints to be the “intercessor” of certain fields. For example, St. Jude is the saint of forsaken people. In Revelation 12:7 we read, “And war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back, but they were defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in Heaven.” Just as the Archangel Michael got power from God to defeat Satan, St. Antony also got power from God to defeat Satan through the Church.

Testimony of St.Antony:

Six hundred years back, St. Antony of Padua doubted whether Mother Mary is in Heaven. So he did not say his usual prayer towards Mother Mary. At that time, when he was in his room, Mother Mary appeared before him and said, “the Lord God did not want to let my body that bore the child Jesus in the womb corrupted in the grave. He has raised me in body and soul. The Lord crowned me as the Queen of Heaven and Earth.” Then she disappeared. St. Antony declared this testimony to the world and his tongue is still uncorrupted and fresh. It is kept afresh in Padua in Italy for more than six hundred years. This is the standing evidence that the Lord did not let the tongue that declared the Truth of Mother Mary to be corrupted in the grave. This St. Antony is still my Spiritual guide and actually he leads me in my spiritual life through the Holy Spirit.

From the early ages of Christendom the faithful believed that unlike other saints whose souls were in heaven, Mother Mary was assumed with both soul and body into heaven on her death. This the Catholic Church has declared as valid faith. The above incident in the life of St. Antony of Padua is an added proof for this dogma of Mother Mary’s Assumption.

Purgatory:

Matthew 5:8 says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” Psalms 24:3 says, “Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? Those who have clean hands and pure hearts, who do not lift up their souls to what is false, and do not swear deceitfully.” Mother Mary and other saints are such persons who lived in this world with purity and now they are in heaven. A man should become holy to enter heaven.

We all know that a man dies with sin can not enter into heaven. 1 John 5:16 says, “There is sin that is mortal.” This sin causes spiritual death. But there is a sin that does not cause spiritual death to a man as it is not a mortal sin.

1 John 5:17 says, “All wrong doing is sin, but there is sin that is not mortal.” 1 John 5:16 says, “ If you see your brother committing what is not a mortal sin, you will ask and God will life to such a one – to those whose sin is not mortal.” Here we see that a sinner can get out of the punishment of his sin that is not mortal and get life, not by his own deeds but by others prayers. Let us read John 4:37-38: “‘one sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into the labor.”

Now let us think of a man dies with sins that are not mortal. He is not holy as he is stained by these types of trivial sins. Can he go directly to heaven with these stains? No! But this sin does not cause spiritual death. What will be the state of this soul? Here the Catholic Church that is guided by Jesus Christ reveals the truth about Purgatory a spiritual purifying furnace.

Let us read Zechariah 30:8-9: “In the whole land says the Lord, two- thirds shall be cut off and perish, and the one-third shall be left alive. And I will put this third into the fire refined them as one refines silver.” Like this, Purgatory is a state of souls of the dead persons where they are getting purified from their sins that are not mortal, by the great fire of sufferings and agonies. These sufferings and agonies can be minimized by the prayers, Holy Mass and good deeds of those who live in this world also. As we see earlier, a sinner in the Purgatory can get out of the punishment of his sin and get life, not by his own deeds but by others prayers, Holy Mass and good deeds. Yes, 1 John 5:16 says, “You will ask and God will give life to such a one.” ‘One sows and other reaps.’

Through this purification in the Purgatory, a soul is clothed with purity. Let us think of Revelation 3:5: “If you conquer, you will be clothed like them in white robes and I will not blot your name out of the book of life. “The persons who are clothed in purity of white robes are eligible to enter into heaven. They are the spirits made perfect. We see these “spirits of the righteous made perfect” in Hebrews 12:23.

Thus Purgatory is a purifying furnace for the souls of dead persons who committed sins that are not mortal. After purification the souls are entering into heaven.

Plan of Satan against Mother Mary:

Genesis 3:15 says, “I will put enmity between you and woman and between your offspring and hers.” The Lady is Mother Mary and her seed is Jesus. The first enmity is between Satan and Mother Mary. So Mother Mary is an enemy of Satan. That is the will of Lord, God the Father. God the Father appointed her to be an enemy of Satan. So she is an instrument of God to defeat Satan and thereby restoring the fall of humanity. Since Satan opposes Mother Mary, whoever opposes her knowingly or unknowingly, works with Satan.

Satan is full of pride and he wants to be like God Almighty. He wants to be worshiped as God and he tries to project his own power. He always thrives to be like God but he knows that he has only little time (Revelation 12:12) to be defeated. His defeat is however, pre-destined but only wants to receive the defeat directly from the hand of God, so that he can claim that the Lord alone can defeat him and he can there by prove to be at least second to God.

But Lord God wants to establish justice. He wants Satan to be defeated in the same way he conquered. Satan caused Eve, a lady, to fall and through her, he defeated Adam and thus the whole of humanity fell. To reinstate this, the Lord gave us a Lady through whom he should be defeated and through her seed, the new Adam, all is to be restored to old glory. This is perverse to Satan and he could not tolerate the defeat through a Lady whose kind he had made fallen. That is, he cannot tolerate his defeat through a creature, but only from the Creator. But the will and justice of God is that he should be defeated through the Lady. That is why the Lady is important in the salvation of humanity. The Lady is very powerful since she is a weapon against Satan from God Almighty. She could not be defeated but can only win. So, she cannot be a dummy but active. She is acting from heaven even now in the battle to defeat Satan. Since he could not tolerate defeat through the Lady Mother Mary, he framed a plan to make it appear that Mother Mary is not participating in the plan of salvation. So he entered into some individuals at the medieval period and revealed a new plan of salvation for humanity through those revolutionaries. That is the plan of Satan not of God in which Mother Mary has no importance. Unknowingly, their followers even now become victims of Satan’s plan and propagate that Mother Mary has no importance in the plan of salvation. They say that Mother Mary and saints are in the grave and they are inactive. But we saw that it is wrong.

We have come across many verses proving that the saints are living in heaven, helping us and praying for us from heaven. Yet, Satan closed the eyes of our Pentecostal friends and made them to believe that saints are in the grave - in the world of Darkness. His main target is not to attack the saints but Mother Mary. If dead men are in the grave, automatically he can prove that Mother also in the grave and thereby she is inactive and a dummy person. Thus he can prove that the Lord alone is the person to defeat him. This is the plan of Satan coming out of his pride and vanity to prove that he is at least second to the Creator and not defeated through a creature, the Lady. But he cannot succeed in his plan, as the Lord will triumph.

Oh! My pentecostal friend, you are unknowingly following and acting in the plan of Satan excluding Mother Mary from the plan of Salvation of humanity. The Lord provides Mother Mary for our salvation according to His righteousness. She is acting even now. But, Oh! My dear Pentecostal friend, you are seeking your own ways for our salvation deviating form the plan of God. You should be aware of Romans 10:2–3, in which what Paul says: “I can testify that they have a zeal for God, but is not enlightened. For, being ignorant of the righteousness that comes from God, and seeking to establish their own, they have not submitted to God’s righteousness.”

Conclusion:

Now Mother Mary is reigning the entire world from heaven for God in the name of the Lord to prepare the world for the fulfillment of Kingdom of God and thereby defeat Satan. This is the will and act of God and all should obey His will. We could not and should not change it according to our own will and wish. So let us respect her and work with her in the plan of God to prepare the whole world for the fulfillment of Kingdom of God in this earth. Let us be co-workers with Mother the New Eve who is our leader in the name of God to prepare the world and pave the way for Jesus to establish Kingdom of God in full. Amen!