“Why would someone have a need to kiss a statue? Especially when Christ is alive and lives within us, readily accessable to us as He is?”
Which is why I asked the question if we are in fact permitted to make an image of God.
Are we, or are we not? Your issue has nothing to do with Mary, but everything to do with the fact that you believe that it is improper to have an image representing God. Fair enough. However, we *are* in fact permitted to do so.
If Catholics sincerely believed that Mary were the equal of Christ, they would kiss her feet in the same ceremony. They do not. Clearly, saying that Catholics do in fact regard them as equal is incorrect.
“As for making requests to Mary to pray for them. Again why go to a departed person”
God is a God not of the dead but of the Living. Christ himself said so. For if we believe they are alive in Christ, then we have that hope also. If they are dead, then there is no hope and we are living a lie.
When people are still under the law it is not uncommon the need for “something” else...or “something more” than Christ and His sufficiency... and becomes necessary in which to validate to themselves they are worthy “enough”.
The fact you mentioned being “Permitted” to make images attest to an attitude of law...of which we are no longer bound to.
No..my arguement is not only that of making images..which is where you want to take this discussion...my arguement is that of Mary worship, and that of other departed people being sought as intercessor’s. Christ is the only mediator need and has asked us to bring all our requests to Him...never once has He directed we go thru people who have departed...and in fact warned us not to attempt to do such things.
Trying to make an arguement of the departed as being alive or dead is fruitless. They are not here....and indeed He is the God of the Living who are Here. You are attempting to evade the issue that catholics do place the departed and Mary on the same or higher level than Christ..their behavior attest to this.
The root problem is the loss of the Communion of Saints for some outside the Church. Many still "believe" it by saying the creed, however what Communion of Saints means in the creeds has been lost. And with it full knowledge of the Mystical Body of Christ.
Until this is returned, intercessory prayer by the Saints in Heaven is incomprehensible.