And as for evidence: ... whew, lots! But more later, I'm outta here to eat some pork. Blessings and BBQ, friend.
Contemplate the tagline. Nobody ever said we stoip being part of the Body when we are... ahem... departed saints. That means we haave a living connection to each other! Always! Love ya!
I never turn down prayer from someone on earth!
As for evidence - you’ll not find it in the Bible:
1. No verse that commands we pray to departed saints
2. No verse that encourages us to pray to departed saints
3. No verse that demonstrates Christians praying to departed saints.
If you have ANY 1st century references to praying to departed saints, please share them after your pork eating. :-)
Beyond those two sources, you might as well pray to a tree and tell us God made creation to echo our prayers. It is an argument from silence. I don’t find those persuasive - any more than the apparitions of Mary appearing on toast.
In the meantime, we are commanded to pray to the Father and commanded to pray in the Son’s name. We are told HE is our ONE mediator.
Nowhere are we told that any particular saint has more “leverage” with God than any other saint.
best,
ampu