"A Cloud of Witnesses " The author of the Book of Hebrews writes, "We are surrounded by so great of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1). The "cloud of witnesses " are the Saints who have passed on to the Church Triumphant. They are with us in the stadium as we run the race of life. They applaud us and cheer us on to victory. They pray for us to attain our goal. They have advice to give. For they have run on the same track and have the won the garland of victory. They offer us more than applause and prayers; they offer us evidence. They can tell us how they ran the race and won, how they trained for it, how they maintained their strength. We are surrounded by these witnesses. The air is thick with them. They are like a cloud in their multitude. The walls of the Orthodox Churches are filled with them. And every one of them have a story to tell, a story of grace and divine mercy, a story that is full of encouragement for the runners of today, if only we will listen to them. David, Daniel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and millions of others. "We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses " - not one of them silent or indifferent; all of them eager to share with us what the Lord did for them, how they found God, what grace they received. It is because we are " surrounded by so great of witnesses " that we " lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely" " (Hebrews 12 :1 ) - Anthony M. Coniaris

My very first KZread upload and one of my first personal smartphone video uploads. This was done on Saturday 22nd February 2020. Please excuse my occasional slurring voice. This is all new to me. About to enter the Orthodox Church in this video at minute 8:20 seconds

Saint Basil writes, "I accept the saintly Apostles, prophets, and martyrs, and in my prayer to God l call upon them and through their prayer l receive mercy from our God who loves all humanity " Since Lord Jesus Christ is the "one mediator between God and man" , saints are not mediators but intercessors. We do not pray to Saints, rather we ask saints to pray for us. The Theotokos (Mother of God ) is venerated and honored because of her Son and never apart from her Son, Jesus Christ . She is the 'Panagia' , the first and fullest of the Saints, leading the Church Body in a continuous intercession to the Holy Trinity. Saints are not worshipped; they are venerated. Only One Holy God is worshipped.

8:20

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Brother, do you do the Will of God? A medium by definition is an Intermediary between the spirit world and our world. Necromancers communicate with the dead. Praying to the Saints and Mother Mary is praying to the dead. They were once living humans, now dead humans. * There is one God and one mediator. 1 Tim 2:5. Matt 4:10. John 4:24 * God tells us to listen to Jesus Christ. Mark 1:11 Luke 9:35 John 6:40 *Christ Jesus tells us how to pray. Matt 6:9-13. Mark 1:35. Luke 5:16 Brother, I pray your desires are in alignment with the Will of God, in Christ Jesus Name I pray.

@neckpains1821

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intercessions are fully biblical, if we can ask for prayers from people around us, we can also ask for prayers of those that are in heaven since people in heaven are not dead but actually more alive than we are and live eternally