Why do Roman Catholics deny they pray to Mary?
Catholics do indeed pray to Mary, and indeed many of them worship her. They may try to split hairs on this, but kneeling and directing prayers and adoration cannot be understood as anything but worship. In direct contradiction to Scripture, they place her in the role of mediator between God and humanity. (“For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. ” 1 Timothy 2:5 ) The papacy makes no bones about Mary’s role as savior for humanity right alongside Jesus. (They even refer to her as co-redemitrix). From Redemptoris Mater (On The Blessed Virgin Mary In The Life Of The Pilgrim Church), Encyclical of Pope John Paul II promulgated on March 25, 1987: “21. … Thus there is a mediation: Mary places herself between her Son and mankind in the reality of their wants, needs and sufferings. She puts herself “in the middle,” that is to say she acts as a mediatrix not as an outsider, but in her position as mother. She knows that as such she can point out to her S
