To Whom Should We Pray
Q. To whom should we pray? A fellow Christian recently explained that all prayers should be directed only to God the Father or the Trinity. She said that there are very few "ancient" prayers addressed to Jesus Christ and none to the Holy Spirit. I am having trouble with this. I believe that all 3 persons of the Trinity are present when I pray and all 3 hear and respond, no matter which Person I address. I have frequent prayers to Jesus. I ask the Holy Spirit's guidance in my faith life. When I pray, I pray to Jesus. And I can see nothing wrong in this. The Bible and the catechism have no restrictions.
A. In answer to the question "To whom should we pray," Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation (Concordia Publishing House, 1986) clearly answers: "We should pray to the true God only, Father, Son and Holy Spirit." According to Scripture and the historic teaching of the Lutheran Church, Christians may offer their prayers to any or all of the three persons of the Trinity, each of whom is "true God." This is a clear and indisputable teaching of Scripture and of the Lutheran Church.
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Prayers for the Dead
Q. I would appreciate knowing our official LCMS doctrinal position on prayers for, or on behalf of, the dead, specifically those who have died (as far as we know) in the faith.
A. Question 201 of Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation (Concordia Publishing House, 1991 edition) answers the question "For whom should we pray?" as follows: "We should pray for ourselves and for all other people, even for our enemies, but not for the souls of the dead." Hebrews 9:27 is cited in this connection: Since individuals are judged by God immediately after their death and enter either heaven or hell, there is no reason to pray for them. Those in hell cannot be helped by prayer, and those in heaven have no need of our prayers.