Orthodox View of Saints

I would like to share with you something that often seems unusual to Christians from Baptist or other Protestant backgrounds: why the Orthodox Church honors the saints and asks for their prayers. I hope this explanation will show that it is very much rooted in the Bible.

All believers are part of one Body. Saint Paul teaches us: “Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it” (1 Corinthians 12:27). This means that in Christ, there is no separation between Christians on earth and those who have already gone to be with Him. We are one family, united in Him.

The saints are alive in Christ. When Christians die, they do not cease to exist. Jesus said, “God is not the God of the dead, but of the living” (Luke 20:38). In the book of Revelation, we see the saints in heaven worshipping God and even interceding for us. “The twenty-four elders fell before the Lamb, each holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints” (Revelation 5:8).

The Bible encourages us to pray for one another. We are told, “Pray for one another, that you may be healed” (James 5:16). If we ask our brothers and sisters here on earth to pray for us, how much more can we ask the saints who are already close to Christ to pray on our behalf? They are not replacing Christ, but helping us in Him.

The saints are examples of faith for us. Hebrews 12:1 says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” The saints are this great cloud of witnesses. Their lives encourage us, and their prayers support us as we continue our own race of faith.

Mary, the Mother of Jesus, has a special place. When the angel Gabriel spoke to Mary, he said, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28). Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, called her “blessed among women” (Luke 1:42). Because she said yes to God and gave birth to Jesus, we call her Theotokos, which means “God-bearer” or “Mother of God.” We honor her not as a goddess, but as the woman chosen by God to bring the Savior into the world. Just as at the wedding in Cana, she interceded with her Son (John 2:3–5), we believe she continues to pray for us now.

When Orthodox Christians ask for the prayers of the saints, we are not worshipping them. Worship belongs to God alone (Matthew 4:10). We honor the saints as friends of God and members of His household (Ephesians 2:19), just as you might respect a godly pastor or elder and ask for their prayers.

The saints are our brothers and sisters in Christ, already in His presence, praying with us and for us, as we all await the day when we will be united forever in His Kingdom.

With love in Christ,
Fr. Charles

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