For example, in Colossians 1:1-2, St. Paul says, "Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father (emphasis added)."

This does seem pretty convincing. Why do Catholics refer to only canonized saints in heaven as saints when Paul seems to refer to the Colossian Christians that way?

Revelation 5:8 adds, "And when [the Lamb, Jesus Christ] had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and with golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints."

Here we have “the twenty-four elders,” representing the people of God from both Old and New Covenants (twelve patriarchs plus twelve apostles equals “twenty-four elders”), receiving and communicating “the prayers of the saints” ascending from earth as incense. So again, we have Christians on this side of the veil referred to as “saints.”

Some Catholics will argue that the term saints is being used in the sense of an aspiration. Paul wills the Colossians to be saints, so he refers to them here in accordance with their ultimate calling rather than their present state. I have never found that line of reasoning to be compelling. It doesn’t seem to work for either text, especially Revelation 5:8.

But even more importantly, that doesn’t seem to jibe with Church teaching.

So what gives?

When Colossians 1 and Revelation 5 refer to ”the saints,” it seems clear they both are referring to Christians who are presently “walk[ing] through the valley of the shadow of death,” as the Psalmist says—at least, in some sense. But I find many among the non-Catholics I converse with regularly to be surprised when I tell them the Catholic Church acknowledges that all of the baptized can be referred to as “saints.” The Catechism says, "In the communion of saints, “a perennial link of charity exists between the faithful who have already reached their heavenly home, those who are expiating their sins in purgatory and those who are still pilgrims on earth. Between them there is, too, an abundant exchange of all good things.”

In this wonderful exchange, the holiness of one profits others, well beyond the harm that the sin of one could cause others. Thus recourse to the communion of saints lets the contrite sinner be more promptly and efficaciously purified of the punishments for sin (1475).

An earlier passage in the Catechism makes it even more clear that all of God’s faithful can be referred to as saints: "After confessing “the holy catholic Church,” the Apostles’ Creed adds “the communion of saints.” In a certain sense this article is a further explanation of the preceding: “What is the Church if not the assembly of all the saints?” The communion of saints is the Church. . . . The term “communion of saints” therefore has two closely linked meanings: communion in holy things (sancta)” and “among holy persons (sancti)” (948).

Sancti, or “holy ones,” is the word from which we get saints.

The Catechism continues: "Sancta sanctis! (“God’s holy gifts for God’s holy people”) is proclaimed by the celebrant in most Eastern liturgies during the elevation of the holy gifts before the distribution of Communion. The faithful (sancti) are fed by Christ’s holy body and blood (sancta) to grow in communion of the Holy Spirit (koinonia) and to communicate it to the world."

Since the Church teaches that the faithful on earth can be called saints, why do Catholics use the term to refer to a special group of canonized persons in heaven?

I think St. Paul best answers this question. In Colossians 1:1-2, as we saw above, Paul definitively refers to all of the faithful at Colossae as “saints.” (The Greek hagioi is comparable to sancti in Latin, meaning “sanctified,” “set apart,” or “holy.”)

From a Catholic perspective, we would say of course Paul would refer to these Christians, and by allusion all Christians, in this way because “being set apart and made holy” is precisely what baptism accomplishes in the life of every Christian. We “have been baptized into Christ Jesus” (Rom. 6:3), who is the source of all holiness.

But here’s the rub: the Catholic Church also acknowledges what Colossians 1:12 says: "Giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light."

The Greek word for “share” in this text is merida, which means “to partake in part or a portion.” According to Paul, the saints on earth possess in part what the saints in heaven possess in fullness. Thus, it is fitting that the Catholic Church reserves the title of saint to those it has declared to be in heaven. They alone (the saints in heaven) possess sainthood, if you will, in its fullness. They have reached the destination that we saints on earth—holy ones by virtue of the graces God gives us for the journey—are in hope striving to reach.
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Tim Staples, Aren't We All Saints?, Catholic Answers, Nov. 1, 2023, https://www.catholic.com/magazine/online-edition/arent-we-all-saints?

Will You Catholics Please Stop Praying to the Saints Already!
by Amy Thomas, The Catholic Pilgrim

“Catholics pray to the dead and that’s a grave sin.”

“Catholics pray to saints because they are worshipping them. Worship is for God alone.”

“Catholics practice the grave sin of necromancy when they pray to dead saints, which is strictly forbidden in the Old Testament.”

(Sigh)

You know, I used to believe these things, too, once upon a time. Then I actually had to listen to a Catholic and learn about what they really believe in. I had to actually listen. Many Protestants love to tell Catholics what they believe in without ever actually asking a Catholic.

On several occasions, I’ve had people tell me that Catholics engage in necromancy when they pray to the saints.  Necromancy is defined as the act of trying to conjure up dead spirits in order to have a two-way conversation with them to ask about the future or gain information from them. Think seance. Think Ouji board. Think the movie “Ghost.” I’ve been a Catholic now for eight years and never once have I seen or heard a Catholic doing anything of this nature. In fact, such a practice is condemned by the Catholic Church.

So, I thought I’d start with some basics so that if you have a misunderstanding, you can see exactly what Catholics do believe with regards to praying to the saints.

1. Catholics do not believe saints are mini-gods. We do not treat them as the one true God. In fact, we are repeatedly told not to.
2. Catholics ask the saints to intercede for us–that is, pray for us. That’s why we say things like, “St. Paul, pray for us.” No different than if I asked an earthly friend to pray for me here. “Hey, Mom, pray for me, please.”
3. Before Protestantism came along, “to pray” meant “to ask.” Did you ever read old English text where they say, “Pray, tell”? I used to read that and raise an eyebrow wondering what the heck they meant. Well, it makes sense if you realize that pray also meant to ask–“I ask you, tell.” Protestants have changed the word to mean only giving adoration and worship to God. Catholics see it in a slightly different way. Prayer can mean to worship, give thanks, praise, and…ask. Catholics are taught to ask the saints for their prayers. We aren’t taught to worship the saints through prayer–only ask.
4. Catholics do not believe that saints are dead. In fact, a fundamental belief of Christianity is that Christ conquered death and that those in heaven are alive in Him. Our physical body is dead, but the soul is eternal. If a believer has died in good faith, we have the hope that they are alive in spirit in heaven.
5. We do not expect to have a two-way conversation with the saints. We offer up our voice to them asking for their prayers. Some Protestants chastise Catholics for trying to have contact with the “dead.” Yet, I’ve met scores of people–Protestant or Catholic–who try to have some contact with their loved ones that have passed on. People talk about “feeling” their loved one around them. They “feel” them “watching over me.”  Many people who have loved ones pass on, talk aloud to them. They ask for them to be with them and guide them. Are these not prayers? Prayer does not always mean that you are worshipping and giving glory and honor to that person. No one ever chastises a person for trying to continue to have a relationship with those passed on. No one ever says to them, “You know, you are really practicing necromancy by asking your grandfather to watch over you.”
6. Catholics believe that worship and adoration are reserved for God alone. Asking the saints to pray for us is not giving the saints worship or adoration. It’s asking our brothers and sisters in Christ, that are there with Him, to continue to pray for us. If all believers are members of the Body of Christ, we continue to be even into heaven. It doesn’t follow that God would cut us off from one another.
7. The Catholic Church does not require anyone to pray to the saints. You are encouraged to ask them for their prayers, but you don’t have to as a means to salvation.

“But, nowhere in scripture does it say to pray to the saints.”

You know, you are right. There is no sentence in the Bible that says, “Pray to the saints in heaven.”  Also, there is no verse in the Bible that calls the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity. However, nearly every Protestant that I know of uses the term “Trinity.” There’s also no where in the Bible that says that the Bible alone is the supreme authority.  In fact, in 2 Thess. 2:14, St. Paul tells us to “stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught, either by an oral statement or by a letter of ours.” Remember, the Apostles didn’t have a comprised New Testament to work off of. The world wouldn’t get the completed Bible until the turn of the 4th century.

We do, however, see in Scripture in 2 Maccabees of the Old Testament, reference to a saint in heaven praying for us.  “Judah has a vision in which St. Onias the high priest shows him Jeremiah the prophet, who was in heaven.” (James Akin)

“And Onias spoke, saying, ‘This is a man who loves the brethren and prays much for the people and the holy city, Jeremiah, the prophet of God.”

If you are a Protestant you may not like this reference, because you won’t have 2 Maccabees in your Bible. It was one of the books removed by Luther during the Protestant Reformation. What gave Luther the authority to remove not only one, but seven books? Luther claims to have more authority than the magisterium of the Catholic Church, which is just one guy’s word against over a thousand years of teaching by Christian leaders.

Another point to think about: If God doesn’t want us having contact with the “dead” then did Jesus do something wrong when He conversed with Moses at the Transfiguration? We know that Moses died because it tells us in Deutreronomy. In Matthew 17, we read about Jesus having a conversation with Moses. You could argue that Jesus is God, so He can do whatever He wants. However, Jesus was also fully human, as well as divine. We are supposed to imitate Christ and we see here that Jesus is speaking with the “dead.” Obviously, Christ didn’t do anything wrong, because he is God and He doesn’t sin. Christ would never do anything that would lead us to sin if we followed His actions.

Several times in the Bible, we see that believers are called the Body of Christ. We are all one in Him. Does it make sense that when a believer passes on and goes to heaven that he/she is now separated from the rest of the body? Why would God cut us off from each other? We are told in James 5:16, that the prayers of a righteous person are very powerful. Those in heaven are very righteous, so doesn’t it make sense that their prayers would be heard? Why would our loved ones in heaven cease to care about praying for us? Do they just stop wanting what is best for us once they reach heaven and they don’t pray for our goodness anymore? That just doesn’t follow everything we know about Christ and Christianity.

We also can have the assurance that the saints in heaven are offering prayers because in Revelations 5:8 and 8:2-4 we see “the prayers of the holy ones mixed with incense at the throne of God.” John is given a vision of heaven and he sees the prayers of the holy ones being offered up. Some suggest that this means something else rather than the saints (holy ones) offering up prayers. I think, though, it takes some scriptural gymnastics to get to that conclusion. I’ve read Protestant views on their interpretation and I haven’t found a clear description of what is happening here.

Most Christians–Catholic and Orthodox–across the world believe in asking for intercession through the saints. Protestants are a small percentage of Christians over the whole world and even within Protestant circles, there is disagreement. So, who is right? Well, the Catholic Church has been around since the beginning of Christianity. For a very long time, the practice of praying to the saints has been established and encouraged. It wasn’t until the 1500s that we see a break and even then Protestants weren’t in agreement.

The Catholic Church teaches that “being more closely united with Christ, those who dwell in heaven fix the whole Church more firmly in holiness…They do not cease to intercede with the Father for us, as they proffer the merits which they acquired on earth through the one mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus.”  

What makes more sense to Christianity?

That upon death, a Christian is cut off from all those on earth and cannot in any way offer prayers in heaven. On earth, they could offer prayers for their brethren, but that ability is not continued into heaven.  

OR

That upon death, a Christian remains apart of the Body of Christ and can offer prayers for those on earth that need those prayers; that those of us on earth can reach out to them and ask them for their prayers, just as we ask another Christian on earth to intercede for us.

Saints praying for us is not a bad thing. In fact, it’s a beautiful witness to the wholeness of Christ’s Body. The saints in heaven only want God’s will for us and to help those of us on earth to be brought to the fullness of heaven. How good it is to know, that those of us on earth, can still ask for them to intercede for us. Catholics ask our departed brothers and sisters in heaven to intercede for us to the Father because they are still apart of the Body of Christ and we know that they love us enough to continue to want to help us in heaven.

St. Dominic (1170-1220) before his death saying to his brothers, “Do not weep, for I shall be more useful to you after my death and I shall help you then more effectively than during my life.”

St. Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897) said, “I want to spend my heaven in doing good on earth.”
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Amy Thomas, A Protestant's Plea; Will You Catholics Please Just Stop Praying to the Saints Already?!, Nov. 2023, https://catholicpilgrim.net/will-you-catholics/