--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Since both the departed saints and we…" description: "\"“Since both the departed saints and we ourselves are in Christ, we share with them in the 'communion of saints.' They are still our brothers and sister..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc3/n-t-wright-1173_afterlife_since-both-the-departed-saints-and-we-ou_2032005.png" --- # Since both the departed saints and we ourselves are in… ![“Since both the departed saints and we ourselves are in Christ, we share with them in the 'communion of saints.' They are still our brothers and sisters in Christ. When we celebrate the Eucharist they are there with us, along with the angels and archangels. Why then should we not pray for and with…” quote by N.T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc3/n-t-wright-1173_afterlife_since-both-the-departed-saints-and-we-ou_2032005.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc3/n-t-wright-1173_afterlife_since-both-the-departed-saints-and-we-ou_2032005.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc3/n-t-wright-1173_afterlife_since-both-the-departed-saints-and-we-ou_2032005.png) > ““Since both the departed saints and we ourselves are in Christ, we share with them in the 'communion of saints.' They are still our brothers and sisters in Christ. When we celebrate the Eucharist they are there with us, along with the angels and archangels. Why then should we not pray for and with them? The reason the Reformers and their successors did their best to outlaw praying for the dead was because that had been so bound up with the notion of purgatory and the need to get people out of it as soon as possible. Once we rule out purgatory, I see no reason why we should not pray for and with the dead and every reason why we should - not that they will get out of purgatory but that they will be refreshed and filled with God's joy and peace. Love passes into prayer; we still love them; why not hold them, in that love, before God?”” [N.T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Praying for the dead reflects love and communion, not a quest to alter afterlife status, fostering ongoing spiritual connection. **In simple terms:** Prayer for the dead shows love and connection. Key Takeaway Pray for the departed as an act of love. Themes prayer communion afterlife love tradition Mood respectful thoughtful Type theological contemplative When to use this quote - memorial services - personal devotion - community worship - interfaith dialogue Key Concepts ecclesiology intercessory prayer sanctuary Questions to Reflect On - How does praying for the dead shape your understanding of community? - What role does love play in intercessory prayer? A Different Perspective Some view such prayers as doctrinally contentious. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Afterlife](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afterlife/) [Brothers and sisters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brothers-and-sisters/) [Communion Saints](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communion-saints-2958404/) [Departed Saints](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/departed-saints-1037384/) [Eucharist Angels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eucharist-angels-3737664/) [Joy And Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy-and-peace/) [Paradise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paradise/) [Peace love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace-love/) [Prayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prayer/) [Purgatory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purgatory/) [Purgatory Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purgatory-need-3737663/) [Purgatory Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purgatory-reason-3737662/) [Sisters in christ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sisters-in-christ/) ## Related quotes > [The Heavenly City already exists and the departed Saints are already there!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-berg/the-heavenly-city-already-exists-and-the-departed-saints-are-already/) [David Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-berg/) > [Start at once a bedside library and spend the last half hour of the day in communion with the saints of humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-osler/start-at-once-a-bedside-library-and-spend-the-last-half-hour-of-the/) [William Osler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-osler/) > [“the dogma of the Communion of Saints. All the members of Christ's mystic body are organi cally connected with one another and enjoy spirit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pohle/the-dogma-of-the-communion-of-saints-all-the-members-of-christ-s/) [Joseph Pohle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pohle/) > [“We must be constantly aware of our responsibility in the Communion of Saints, without giving our honored predecessors the final say or making them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-must-be-constantly-aware-of-our-responsibility-in-the-communion-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The poor of the United States and of the world are your brothers and sisters in Christ. You must never be content to leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-john-paul-ii/the-poor-of-the-united-states-and-of-the-world-are-your-brothers-and/) [Pope John Paul II](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-john-paul-ii/) > [The Christian life is not just our own private affair. 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The ‘Voices of the Martyrs’ website reveals just how serious this killing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-price/christians-are-being-martyred-across-the-globe-at-alarmingly/) [John Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-price/) > [God helping me, I will help my brothers and sisters in Christ, because they are my brothers and sisters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-barber-lightfoot/god-helping-me-i-will-help-my-brothers-and-sisters-in-christ-because/) [Joseph Barber Lightfoot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-barber-lightfoot/) ## More by N.T. Wright > [“This means that the church, the followers of Jesus Christ, live in the bright interval between Easter and the final great consummation. Let's make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-t-wright/this-means-that-the-church-the-followers-of-jesus-christ-live-in-the/) [N.T. 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I respect people who do, but I don't believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-judt/i-don-t-believe-in-an-afterlife-i-don-t-believe-in-a-single-or/) [Tony Judt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-judt/) > [“There was no attack on religion because people were generally indifferent to religion. They were neither hot nor cold. 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Unless you are immortal, both the soul and body are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yelle-hughes/death-is-predestined-for-all-mortals-souls-live-forever-but-the-body/) [Yelle Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yelle-hughes/) [Browse all 844 Afterlife quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afterlife/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Since both the departed saints and we ourselves are in Christ, we share with them in the 'communion of saints.' They are still our brothers and sisters in Christ. When we celebrate the Eucharist they are there with us, along with the angels and archangels. Why then should we not pray for and with them? The reason the Reformers and their successors did their best to outlaw praying for the dead was because that had been so bound up with the notion of purgatory and the need to get people out of it as soon as possible. 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