This morning, I woke up to freezing temperatures here in Spain — a stark zero degrees. Fortunately, the cave remains warm and insulated, thanks to the heavy layer of earth above it. It’s a day of quiet reflection. Over time, I’ve withdrawn from the outside world, only venturing out when absolutely necessary. I find I want for little, and the chaos beyond these walls feels overwhelming. Stepping back to observe it all, it’s difficult not to feel a profound sense of sorrow. Humanity seems caught in a trap — struggling daily to make ends meet, yet blind to the deeper corruption shaping the world. Most tragically, many remain unable to uncover the truth.
Today, I’ll be delving into the topic of praying to the dead, an act that Scripture identifies as an abomination before the Lord. Alongside this, I’ll explore the cult of Dionysus — its human sacrifices, sacrificial altars, and the ritualistic drinking of wine believed to be infused with the essence of the demon god himself.
The Catholic interpretation of Revelation 5:8 and Revelation 8:3-4 to justify praying to saints is flawed when analyzed closely. Let’s examine each verse individually, beginning with Revelation 5:8
"And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints."
The “saints” referenced here are not the elders or the living creatures; instead, the “prayers of the saints” are being offered by the 24 elders.
If the “saints” in this verse are understood to be faithful Christians on earth (as the New Testament often refers to living believers as “saints” — e.g., 1 Corinthians 1:2), then this passage shows the elders (likely angelic beings) offering prayers on behalf of the living believers on earth, not prayers being sent from dead humans in heaven.
There is no solid biblical basis to support the idea that glorified humans in heaven can hear the prayers of people on earth. On the contrary, Ecclesiastes 9:5-6 explicitly states, “For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.”
This clearly indicates that the departed faithful are unaware of earthly affairs.
Furthermore, the idea that the 24 elders (or angels) in Revelation are presenting prayers to God does not imply that glorified humans in heaven are actively hearing or receiving prayers from people on earth. The text simply portrays angelic beings offering the prayers, not originating them or responding to them.
Mediation is clearly assigned to Christ alone, as stated in 1 Timothy 2:5, which declares, “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”
If Christ is the sole mediator, then assigning this role to the glorified contradicts Scripture.
Additionally, Revelation 8:3-4 describes an angel (not a deceased human) adding incense to the prayers of the saints and presenting it to God. However, this act does not constitute "mediation" in the biblical sense. The role of mediator, as defined in Scripture, belongs exclusively to Christ, not angels or glorified humans.
The Bible is clear in its warnings against seeking the dead or consulting spirits. Isaiah 8:19 (KJB) states, “And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?”
This verse questions why anyone would seek guidance from the dead instead of relying on God.
Deuteronomy 18:10-12 (KJB) expands on this by explicitly condemning any form of necromancy or consultation with spirits: "There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord.”
This passage categorically lists necromancy (seeking to communicate with the dead) as an abomination in the eyes of God.
Leviticus 19:31 (KJB) warns, “Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I am the Lord your God.” Here, God makes it clear that consulting spiritists results in spiritual defilement. By extension, if Roman Catholic priests encourage the faithful to pray to dead humans, they can be seen as taking on the role of "spiritists" — intermediaries facilitating contact with the dead, which Scripture directly condemns.
Leviticus 20:6 (KJB) provides a warning about the consequences: “And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people.”
This verse emphasizes the serious spiritual danger of engaging with familiar spirits, which would logically extend to the practice of praying to demonic beings, present in a parallel dimension
These verses collectively show that Scripture firmly condemns consulting the dead or seeking communication with spirits. Praying to deceased humans — whether glorified or not — contradicts God's clear commands. Moreover, since only God truly knows the heart (1 Samuel 16:7), no one can be certain if someone who appeared righteous in life was free from hidden sin. Assigning a mediatory role to the dead, a role Scripture reserves for Christ alone (1 Timothy 2:5), directly opposes biblical teachings.
Revelation 8:3-4 (KJB) describes an angel offering the prayers of the "living" saints before God:"And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne."
However, there is no indication that humans are to request intercession from angels or the departed. The angel's role is to present prayers directly to God, not to act as a mediator. If Catholics argue that this scene justifies praying to the deceased humans, it fails logically.
The angel is not receiving prayers from humans, nor is it shown that the glorified are aware of earthly prayers. Instead, the prayers are offered directly to God.
Moreover, Scripture defines "saints" as living believers, not departed souls in heaven.
1 Corinthians 1:2 (KJB) says, "unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints."
This shows that "saints" are simply those who are sanctified by faith in Christ while still alive. There is no biblical basis for calling dead Christians "saints" in the sense of intercessors in heaven.
Furthermore, in Matthew 6:9-13 (KJB), Jesus Himself teaches us to pray directly to God:"After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name."
If Jesus instructs us to pray directly to God, it would be contradictory to seek intercession from the glorified or angels. Nowhere does Jesus command prayers to the departed faithful or angels.
The logical conclusion is that Revelation 8:3-4 highlights the role of angels as messengers who deliver prayers to God, not as mediators. Combined with the biblical definition of saints as living believers, the Catholic practice of praying to dead saints has no scriptural support.
Continuing with today’s topic, it’s hard to ignore the striking parallels between the cult of Dionysus (known as Bacchus in Rome) and certain ritualistic practices. Dionysus embodied the forces of chaos, ecstasy, and transformation — concepts symbolized by wine, revelry, and altered states of consciousness.
Wine played a pivotal role in Dionysian worship as it was believed to be the physical manifestation of the god’s essence. In mythology, Dionysus is credited with discovering viticulture and gifting wine to humanity, making it a sacred tool for achieving spiritual transformation. Drinking wine during Dionysian rites wasn't merely for enjoyment; it was a spiritual act. Worshippers believed that by consuming wine, they could become “possessed” or filled with the presence of Dionysus, achieving a mystical union with the divine.
Some ancient texts hint at the possibility that early Dionysian rites involved human sacrifice, especially in its more archaic forms. This would later evolve into more symbolic or theatrical representations, but the early connotations of blood, chaos, and transformation remain a key part of the Dionysian mythos.
It's hard not to see parallels between Catholic transubstantiation and elements of the Dionysian cult. The Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, rooted in Aristotelian metaphysics, teaches that the substance of bread and wine changes into the literal body and blood of Christ, while the accidents (appearances) of bread and wine remain. This is seen as Catholics partaking in the divine essence of Christ. However, this interpretation seems to contradict the plain words of Christ at the Last Supper, where He said, “This do in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19, KJV). The phrase "in remembrance" implies a memorial act rather than a literal transformation of elements.
Moreover, Christ, in His resurrected state, no longer had a mortal body of flesh and blood, as 1 Corinthians 15:50 states, “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.”
If Christ's body was glorified, then logically, the consumption of "flesh and blood" would not fit this new reality.
The cult of Dionysus (or Bacchus, as known in Roman tradition) also reveals similarities. Dionysian rites emphasized catharsis (emotional purification), death, resurrection, and transformation, often through symbolic consumption. Worshippers reenacted Dionysus’ death and rebirth, mirroring his dismemberment by the Titans. This was represented in rituals like sparagmos (tearing apart of a sacrificial animal) and omophagy (consumption of raw flesh). Participants believed they were consuming the essence of the divine, achieving a mystical connection with Dionysus.
In both traditions, there is an emphasis on consumption as a means of divine union. The Catholic Eucharist claims the bread and wine become Christ's literal body and blood, while Dionysian rituals sought to ingest the essence of Dionysus, symbolized by wine and raw flesh. The practice of drinking wine as a divine medium further underscores the connection. In Dionysian worship, wine was more than a drink — it was seen as the god’s very essence, capable of inducing a mystical state. This notion is echoed in the Catholic Eucharist, where wine is believed to become the literal blood of Christ.
The logical problem lies in reconciling Christ's "in remembrance of me" command with the notion of literal transformation. If it were a literal change, why would it be called a "remembrance"? Furthermore, the claim that the resurrected, glorified body of Christ is somehow divided into pieces at every Mass contradicts the scriptural assertion that He is glorified, no longer bound by flesh and blood. This raises questions about the consistency of the doctrine and its parallels with pre-Christian pagan traditions.
What struck me the most is the striking similarity between the cult of Dionysus (Bacchus) and certain practices in the Roman Catholic Church (RCC), particularly regarding the use of remains or ashes from sacrifices. In Dionysian rituals, the remains of sacrifices—such as bones or ashes—were kept on or beneath the altars, serving as a means to honor the victim in connection to the deity. This is eerily similar to how Catholic altars are known to contain the remains of saints, including bones, skulls, and other body parts.
This raises a serious question: Where do these remains come from in Catholicism, and how did they acquire them? If we approach this logically, one might wonder if these remains were originally from a sacrificial offering, since they are placed in a context that seems to honor the deceased in a way that recalls sacrificial rites. It makes little sense for the Church to venerate bones and remains if they acknowledge that flesh profits nothing (John 6:63) and cannot inherit the Kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 15:50). Further, if the dead know nothing, as Ecclesiastes 9:5-6 states, why keep and venerate human remains?
The most logical explanation, albeit disturbing, is that these remains could be seen as the remains of an offering, potentially linked to practices of honoring the dead through sacrifices or relics. Though the RCC insists that the veneration of relics is a way of honoring saints, the parallels to pagan sacrificial practices cannot be ignored. This idea raises more questions than it answers, particularly when considering the RCC’s own theological stance on the nature of the afterlife and the role of human remains. The connection to sacrificial offerings is hard to dismiss, given the historical context and symbolic practices surrounding altars and relics.
This practice seems to blur the line between Christian veneration and pagan ritual, especially when one considers that these bones are not viewed as mere physical relics but as objects imbued with spiritual significance, much like how the Dionysian cult treated the remains of sacrificial victims.
The similarities between the cult of Dionysus and practices within the Roman Catholic Church are striking and hard to ignore. The use of wine to symbolize a divine essence, the ritual consumption of raw flesh, the practice of venerating human remains at altars, and the focus on sacrifice are all common elements. These rituals mirror each other in disturbing ways, particularly when considering the Catholic practice of transubstantiation, where bread and wine are believed to become the literal body and blood of Christ, much like the Dionysian rites where wine was seen as the essence of the god himself. Both involve seeking a spiritual transformation through sacred acts tied to death and sacrifice. This overlap should cause us to pause and reflect deeply on the gospel of Christ, which calls us to salvation through faith alone and not through rituals that align with ancient pagan practices. It's time to return to the core message of the gospel, turning away from man-made traditions and seeking the truth that leads to eternal life, as revealed through Jesus Christ and His Word. Only in Christ can we find true salvation, not in the rituals of man.
Satan has long sought to counterfeit and distort the works of Christ in order to mislead humanity and redirect their worship away from God. His ultimate goal is to draw people to worship him and ultimately destroy them, just as he rebelled against God and desired to take God's place (Isaiah 14:12-14, Ezekiel 28:16-19). By imitating Christ’s actions and divine authority, Satan seeks to deceive people into believing his counterfeit is the true way to salvation.
For example, Satan has mimicked Christ’s miracles, transforming himself into an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14), and has sought to establish false systems of worship that mirror the truth. In the book of Revelation, the Antichrist (the beast) will mimic Christ’s Second Coming by performing signs and wonders, leading people astray (Revelation 13:11-14). The false religions, rituals, and ideologies promoted by Satan throughout history, like pagan rituals or corrupt religious practices, serve to distract and deceive, substituting the true worship of God with empty forms that serve only to bind humanity to eternal destruction.
In doing so, Satan aims to blind the minds of unbelievers, keeping them from recognizing the true Gospel of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 4:4), replacing it with a false narrative that leads them into worship of created things and false deities. His strategy is clear: by imitating Christ, he seeks to rob God of the glory due to Him alone, draw worship to himself, and ultimately destroy humanity by keeping them in spiritual darkness.
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