Intercession
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Intercession, in both Christianity and Islam, is a prayer to God on behalf of another person.
Contents |
[edit] Christianity
In Christian practice, intercessory prayer is the act of one person praying for or on behalf of another person or situation. The prayer intercedes on behalf of the subject, believing that God will answer the prayer accordingly.
[edit] Intercession in the Catholic and Orthodox Churches
- Main article: Intercession of saints
In Catholic and Orthodox practice intercession has several senses:
-
- As among Protestant Christians, intercession commonly refers to a Christian praying to God on behalf of others. This is common to all Christian traditions.
- Intercession may also refer to the Catholic and Orthodox faithful asking members of the Communion of Saints in Heaven to intercede with God on their behalf or that of others.
- Among Catholics (both western/eastern rites), the faithful may pray (and celebrate Mass/Divine Liturgy) in intercession on behalf of those who are in Purgatory, for their reception into Heaven. In Orthodoxy, intercession for the dead is also common, even though the Orthodox theology of an intermediary state between death and Heaven is not as clearly or as consciously developed as it is in Catholicism.
[edit] Intercession in the Protestant Church
Intercession in liturgical Protestant churches (as well as in the Anglican Church) is a regular part of the worship service, often spoken by one or more people with the congregation responding, "Hear our prayer." Protestant intercession is usually by the living and for the living, although many Anglo-Catholics share the Catholic belief in the Communion of Saints (see above).
In some evangelical, Pentecostal and charismatic churches, the role of "Intercessor" or "Prayer Warrior" is believed to be a divinely appointed spiritual gift or ministry. The intercessor agrees to take on the burden of another; this kind of prayer is often an intense religious experience. Some well known charismatic intercessors are Joy Dawson and Cindy Jacobs. A notable intercessor in Christian history was Rees Howells, a Welsh minister about whom Norman Grubb wrote the book Rees Howells: Intercessor.
[edit] Islam and intercession
In Islam, intercession is known as Tawassul. Intermediary prayer is a contested subject in Islam. Both the Twelvers Shia and Ismaili Shia accept intercession at the levels of Jurispudence and Creed. Sunnis and Zaydī Shia have disagreement on the subject, though on the whole, tend to favor its creedal position. Sufis accept the concept of intercession, while Salafis, Wahhabis and modernist Muslim thinkers rejects it wholeheartedly.
