- from CatholicCulture.org
An intercession is when someone asks for something on behalf of someone else. People all over the world ask others to intercede for them. As kids when we ask a friend to find out if someone likes us. When we ask someone to use their connections to help us find a job. When we do something wrong and ask someone to speak on our behalf. When we ask someone to pray for us when we are going through something difficult. However, as Catholics, we are able to go beyond just those we know in this life and ask for the intercession of those who have believed and gone before us. This is what we do when “pray to” saints. The word “pray” comes from an old English word which means “to ask.” When we pray to a saint, all we are doing is asking that saint to intercede for us with God. Just as we would ask our friends and family to pray for us, we turn to the saints, our heavenly family, and ask them to pray for us too. You also find this term used at Mass. Following the homily, we pray what is called the “Prayers of the Faithful.” Another term for these prayers are the “General Intercessions.” In these prayers, the entire community is interceding for the individuals and requests read by the lector. In doing this, we recognize the power of each person to intercede for another and, by extension, for all mankind.