page_title: Intercession of saints
section_title: Lutheran views
hierarchical_section_title: Intercession of saints / Protestant views / Lutheran views
caption_attribution_description: English: I cropped this from the image to the right. I release any rights I gained from cropping it into the public domain. [[:en:File:Wenceslas_Hollar_-_The_Augsburg_Confession_(State_2).jpg|thumb|Illustration of each of the 28 articles of the Augsburg Confession by Wenceslas Hollar.]]
context_page_description: Intercession of the saints is a doctrine held by the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Roman Catholic Churches. The practice of praying through saints can be found in Christian writings from the 3rd century onward.
  The 4th-century Apostles' Creed states belief in the communion of saints, which certain Christian churches interpret as supporting the intercession of saints. As in Christianity, this practice is controversial in Judaism and Islam.
context_section_description: The Lutheran confessions approve honoring the saints by thanking God for examples of his mercy, by using the saints as examples for strengthening the believers' faith, and by imitating their faith and other virtues. However, the confessions strongly reject invoking the saints to ask for their help. The Augsburg Confession emphasizes that Christ is the only mediator between God and man, and that he is the one to whom Christians ought to pray.
caption: "Scripture does not teach calling on the saints or pleading for help from them. For it sets before us Christ alone as mediator, atoning sacrifice, high priest, and intercessor."—Augsburg Confession (Lutheran), Article XXI.[18]
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