How can Mary (or any Saint) hear all those prayers

[DavidFilmer]

Some years ago (circa 1996) I had apologetical e-mail exchanges with several individuals. I really believe the Holy Spirit was guiding me in some of these exchanges. I've found some of these old messages, and wish to share some of the "better parts" (many of which I had since forgotten) with a broader community...

One exchange dealt with the question of how a Saint could "hear" many prayers "at once." The question was particularly directed at St. Mary, being the most "popular" Saint (with good reason!), but could apply to any Saint.

The usual response points out that Saints, in their Glorified state, are not limited by the constraints of time in the manner of the Church Militant, and that arguments based on cronology aren't relevant. This is all true and valid, but many folks start to glaze over when you try to explain this...

However, Christians of any background have no problem with the idea of Satan having his "finger in every pie," and acting in many ways "at the same time." Yet, Satan - an angel - is a created being (like the Saints).  However, we (being created in the Image of God) are superior to the angels. If we can attribute nearly omniprescent qualities to Satan (a fallen angel), why not to a glorified Saint (created in the Image of God, and standing in His Glory)?

[Seeker]

That's a good point David.  

By the way, if you're willing to share them with us, I'd be interested in seeing some of your email exchanges.  Sometimes the truth is best revealed through good discussion and dialogue.

[Melody]

Dear David,

This question has done the rounds! Other versions of it are:

"Can a human being such as Mary hear the prayers of millions of Roman Catholics, in many different countries, praying in many different languages, all at the same time?"

or

"How, then, can they listen to and answer thousands upon thousands of petitions made simultaneously in many different lands and in many different languages? Many such petitions are expressed, not orally, but only mentally, silently. How can Mary and the saints, without being like God, be present everywhere and know the secrets of all hearts?"

The answer is very clearly given in Catholic Answer's 'Praying to Saints' (today I just seem to be cutting & pasting! lol):

If being in heaven were like being in the next room, then of course these objections would be valid. A mortal, unglorified person in the next room would indeed suffer the restrictions imposed by the way space and time work in our universe. But the saints are not in the next room, and they are not subject to the time/space limitations of this life.

Further, the Bible indicates that the glorified human intellect enjoyed by the saints in heaven has a phenomenal ability to process information, dwarfing anything we are capable of in this life. This is shown by the fact that, on Judgment Day, we will review every act of our lives. But since Judgment Day is not going to take eighty years to review the events of an eighty year life (if it takes any time at all), our intellects will be able to process enormous amounts of information and experience once freed from the confines of this mortal life. And not only will we be aware of the events of our own lives, but of the lives of those around us on Judgment Day as well, for Christ stated that all our acts will be publicly revealed (Luke 12:2–3).

This does not imply that the saints in heaven therefore must be omniscient, as God is, for it is only through God’s willing it that they can communicate with others in heaven or with us. And Boettner’s argument about petitions arriving in different languages is even further off the mark. Does anyone really think that in heaven the saints are restricted to the King’s English? After all, it is God himself who gives the gift of tongues and the interpretation of tongues. Surely those saints in Revelation understand the prayers they are shown to be offering to God.

The problem here is one of what might be called a primitive or even childish view of heaven. It is certainly not one on which enough intellectual rigor has been exercised. A good introduction to the real implications of the afterlife may be found in Frank Sheed’s book Theology and Sanity, which argues that sanity depends on an accurate appreciation of reality, and that includes an accurate appreciation of what heaven is really like. And once that is known, the place of prayer to the saints follows.

I also share Seeker's interest to see your email discussions, if they are not personal.

Blessings,

Melody

[DavidFilmer]

Yes, I'm familiar with the "typical" arguments, such as those that Catholic Answers raises. However, these are not always easy arguments for some folks to understand.

But everyone has some understanding of Satan, and most would agree that Satan is capable of "seeing" and "acting" in many places "at once." And if Satan (a created being) can do it, why not a glorified Saint (also a created being)?

It's just another way of demonstrating the truth of the Catholic position. I've never seen this approach published in any apologetical material. I believe the Satan argument would be more effectively understood by people not inclined to metaphysical concepts.