Short answer
Yes. In Islam, calling on someone in prayer is worship, and worship belongs to God (﷾) alone. The Qur'an says those whom people call on besides God (﷾) are only servants, like them. It says that if they are called they do not listen, and even if they listened they could not answer. Jesus taught his followers to pray to the Father, and said that God (﷾) alone is to be worshipped. He never told anyone to pray to his mother or to a saint. Islam holds its own Prophet (ﷺ) to the same rule. When he warned his family, he told his daughter Fatima that he could not help her at all against God (﷾). So a Muslim who prays to Muhammad (ﷺ) does wrong too. God (﷾) is near, and He hears and answers every caller Himself.
Full explanation
Why Catholics ask the saints and Mary
The Catholic and Orthodox (Eastern) churches teach that the saints in heaven pray for believers on earth. They teach that believers should ask the saints to do so. Mary is asked above all. The Hail Mary asks "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners". Patron saints (saints linked to a cause) are asked for particular needs: Anthony for lost things, Jude for hopeless causes and Christopher for travellers. The angels are asked too. Michaelmas, on 29 September, is the Catholic feast of the archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. Catholics pray "Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle". Most Protestants reject prayer to saints, but they pray to Jesus and in his name.
Teaches the intercession of the saints: those in heaven, being more closely united to Christ, do not cease to intercede with the Father for the faithful on earth.
Teaches that the saints who have gone before share in the Church's prayer, that their intercession is their highest service to God's plan, and that Catholics can and should ask them to intercede for them and for the whole world.
Explains the second half of the Hail Mary, "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death": Catholics ask Mary to pray for them and entrust themselves to her now and at the hour of death.
Teaches that in its liturgy the Church joins the angels in worshipping God and calls on their help, for example asking the angels to lead the dead into paradise, and that it celebrates the memory of certain angels in particular (Michael, Gabriel, Raphael and the guardian angels).
Prayer is worship
The Prophet (ﷺ) said that supplication (du'a, calling on God (﷾) for help) is itself worship. He then recited the verse: call on Me and I will answer you. The Qur'an says God (﷾) is close and answers every caller. So whoever is called on in prayer is being worshipped, whatever name the caller gives it.
Al-Nu'man ibn Bashir reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said that supplication is itself worship, and then recited the verse in which God says: call on Me and I will answer you (Qur'an 40:60).
“And your Lord says: "Call on Me; I will answer your (Prayer): but those who are too arrogant to serve Me will surely find themselves in Hell - in humiliation!"”
“When My servants ask thee concerning Me, I am indeed close (to them): I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me: Let them also, with a will, Listen to My call, and believe in Me: That they may walk in the right way.”
Those called on cannot answer or help
The Qur'an says that those called on besides God (﷾) are servants like the people who call them. If they are called, they do not listen. If they listened, they could not answer. It also records the reason the idol-worshippers gave: we only serve them so that they bring us nearer to God (﷾). That is the same reason given for asking the saints. The angels are no different. The Qur'an says no prophet would tell people to take angels and prophets as lords. Christopher shows the problem plainly. In 1969 the Catholic Church took his feast day off its universal calendar, and its own note calls the accounts of his life legends. A Catholic reference work says almost nothing certain is known about his life. He is still counted a saint, and many still pray to him for a safe journey.
“Verily those whom ye call upon besides Allah are servants like unto you: Call upon them, and let them listen to your prayer, if ye are (indeed) truthful!”
“If ye invoke them, they will not listen to your call, and if they were to listen, they cannot answer your (prayer). On the Day of Judgment they will reject your "Partnership". and none, (O man!) can tell thee (the Truth) like the One Who is acquainted with all things.”
“Is it not to Allah that sincere devotion is due? But those who take for protectors other than Allah (say): "We only serve them in order that they may bring us nearer to Allah." Truly Allah will judge between them in that wherein they differ. But Allah guides not such as are false and ungrateful.”
“Nor would he instruct you to take angels and prophets for Lords and patrons. What! would he bid you to unbelief after ye have bowed your will (To Allah in Islam)?”
The revised General Roman Calendar, approved by Pope Paul VI in 1969, dropped the 25 July feast of St Christopher from the Church's universal calendar and left it to local calendars. He was not removed from the list of saints. The calendar's commentary says the Acts of St Christopher are legendary, and that his cult, which entered the Roman calendar around 1550, does not belong to the Roman tradition.
A Catholic reference work says that almost nothing certain is known about Christopher's life or death, and retells the story of his life as a legend, while holding that a martyr of that name existed.
Jesus sent prayer to the Father
Jesus told his followers to pray to their Father in secret. He taught them to begin "Our Father which art in heaven". He told Satan that God (﷾) alone is to be worshipped and served. Even in John, he tells them to direct their requests to the Father. The Qur'an says Jesus will deny ever telling people to worship him and his mother. The Qur'an adds that God (﷾) is near and hears every caller Himself (2:186). So Islam holds that prayer made to Jesus, or to any creature, gives that creature a place that belongs to God (﷾).
“But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.”
“After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.”
“Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”
“And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.”
“Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.”
“And behold! Allah will say: "O Jesus the son of Mary! Didst thou say unto men, worship me and my mother as gods in derogation of Allah'?" He will say: "Glory to Thee! never could I say what I had no right (to say). Had I said such a thing, thou wouldst indeed have known it. Thou knowest what is in my heart, Thou I know not what is in Thine. For Thou knowest in full all that is hidden.”
“When My servants ask thee concerning Me, I am indeed close (to them): I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me: Let them also, with a will, Listen to My call, and believe in Me: That they may walk in the right way.”
| Who | What the Qur'an or Jesus says |
|---|---|
| Mary | Jesus will deny telling anyone to worship him and his mother |
| The saints | Those called on besides God (﷾) are servants like you, and cannot answer |
| The angels | No prophet would tell people to take angels and prophets as lords |
| Jesus | He taught prayer to the Father, and worship of God (﷾) alone |
| The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) | He could not help even his daughter against Allah (﷾) |
| God (﷾) | He is near, and answers every caller Himself |
The Prophet (ﷺ) could not help his own daughter
God (﷾) told the Prophet (ﷺ) to warn his nearest kinsmen. He called his tribe, his uncle, his aunt and his daughter Fatima by name. He told each that he could not help them at all against Allah (﷾). Fatima could ask him for whatever she liked of his wealth, but he could not help her at all against Allah (﷾). The Qur'an tells him to say that he has no power to bring good or harm even to himself, except as Allah (﷾) wills. If he had no power to help even his daughter against Allah (﷾), no one may pray to him. Muslims believe the Prophet (ﷺ) will intercede (plead for people before God (﷾)) on the Day of Judgement, but only by God's (﷾) permission. On that Day, the report says, people will come to him in person. Even then he will first ask his Lord's permission and fall down in prostration before he intercedes. In this life, Muslims ask God (﷾) for that intercession.
“And admonish thy nearest kinsmen,”
Abu Hurayra reports that when the verse "warn your nearest kinsmen" (Qur'an 26:214) came down, the Prophet (ﷺ) called out to Quraysh, to his uncle al-Abbas, his aunt Safiyya and his daughter Fatima, telling each that he could not help them at all against Allah; Fatima could ask him for whatever she liked, but he could not help her at all against Allah.
Abu Huraira reports that when the verse "warn your nearest kinsmen" (Qur'an 26:214) came down, the Prophet (ﷺ) got up and told Quraysh, his aunt Safiyya and his daughter Fatima that he could not save them from Allah's punishment; Fatima could ask him for anything from his wealth, but he could not save her from Allah's punishment.
“Say: "I have no power over any good or harm to myself except as Allah willeth. If I had knowledge of the unseen, I should have multiplied all good, and no evil should have touched me: I am but a warner, and a bringer of glad tidings to those who have faith."”
“On that Day shall no intercession avail except for those for whom permission has been granted by (Allah) Most Gracious and whose word is acceptable to Him.”
“Allah! There is no god but He,-the Living, the Self-subsisting, Eternal. No slumber can seize Him nor sleep. His are all things in the heavens and on earth. Who is there can intercede in His presence except as He permitteth? He knoweth what (appeareth to His creatures as) before or after or behind them. Nor shall they compass aught of His knowledge except as He willeth. His Throne doth extend over the heavens and the earth, and He feeleth no fatigue in guarding and preserving them for He is the Most High, the Supreme (in glory).”
Anas reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: on the Day of Resurrection the believers will gather. They will look for someone to intercede for them with their Lord. They will go in turn to Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus, and each will say he is not fit for it. Then they will come to him. He will ask his Lord's permission and be given it. When he sees his Lord he will fall down in prostration, and stay so for as long as Allah wills. Then he will be told to raise his head: to ask, and it will be given; to speak, and he will be heard. He will be told to intercede, and his intercession will be accepted. He will praise his Lord with words his Lord teaches him, and then intercede. Allah will set him a limit, and he will bring those within it into Paradise. He will return and the same will happen again.
Verse by verse
James 5:16 — Epistle of James, chapter 5, verse 16
“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
Cited for
Christians ask one another to pray for them. Asking Mary or a saint in heaven is the same thing: they are alive in Christ, and a righteous person's prayer achieves much.
The response
James speaks of living believers in one church, confessing to one another and praying for the sick among them. Islam allows that too. After the Prophet (ﷺ) died, Umar said: we used to ask our Prophet to pray for rain, and now we ask his uncle. He turned to a living man. He asked al-Abbas to pray to God (﷾) for them. Calling on someone who is not present, as if he could hear every caller everywhere, is another thing. Only God (﷾) hears every caller everywhere. He says: "I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me" (2:186). The Qur'an says those called on besides God (﷾) cannot answer the call. It records that idol-worshippers gave the same reason: we only serve them so that they bring us nearer to God (﷾).
Where it lands — James permits asking the living who are with you to pray for you. It does not permit praying to anyone who is not present, which the Qur'an calls worship.
John 14:14 — Gospel of John, chapter 14, verse 14
“If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.”
Cited for
Most Christians read this as Jesus inviting prayer in his name and promising to answer it himself, so praying to Jesus is right.
The response
In the same talk Jesus tells them where requests go: "Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you" (16:23). He says it again: "whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name" (15:16). Jesus himself prayed to the Father, and the prayer he taught his disciples begins "Our Father". Islam goes one step further, as the Qur'an does: God (﷾) is near, and He hears every caller Himself.
Where it lands — Even in John, Jesus sends requests to the Father and prays to the Father himself.
Acts 7:59 — Acts of the Apostles, chapter 7, verse 59
“And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Cited for
Stephen, the first martyr, prayed to Jesus as he died, so praying to Jesus is right.
The response
Stephen was seeing a vision. He looked into heaven and saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God (﷾), and he spoke to the one he saw. That is a dying man's cry, not a teaching of Jesus. In Luke's account of the crucifixion, Jesus committed his spirit to the Father: "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit". The prayer Jesus taught begins "Our Father". Islam holds to that: God (﷾) hears every caller Himself (2:186).
Where it lands — One cry in a vision is not a teaching of Jesus; Jesus sent prayer to the Father.
Perspectives
Catholic and Orthodox
The saints in heaven are alive in Christ and pray for the Church. Asking Mary or a saint to pray for us is like asking a friend to pray for us; it is not worship of them.
The Catholic Church teaches that the saints in heaven intercede for believers and that Catholics should ask them to.
Rebuttal
Islam agrees that a believer may ask a living friend to pray for him. Islam also teaches intercession on the Day of Judgement, by God's (﷾) leave alone. But the Qur'an says those called on besides God (﷾) cannot answer the call.
The Catholic Church calls on the angels for help in its liturgy. It honours Michael, Gabriel, Raphael and the guardian angels in particular.
Rebuttal
Islam believes in the angels and honours them. But the Qur'an says those called on besides God (﷾) are "servants like unto you" (7:194). It also says no prophet would tell people to take angels and prophets as lords (3:80).
James tells believers to pray for one another, and says that a righteous man's prayer achieves much. Catholics apply this to the saints.
Rebuttal
James speaks of living believers praying for one another, and Islam allows that. Umar asked the living al-Abbas to pray to God (﷾) for rain. Praying to someone who is not present, as if he could hear every caller, is another matter: only God (﷾) hears every caller (2:186).
The Islamic perspective
God (﷾) hears every caller Himself. Calling on a saint, on Mary, on Jesus or on the Prophet (ﷺ) gives to a creature the worship that belongs to God (﷾). Intercession belongs to those God (﷾) permits (2:255), and a person may ask a living believer to pray for him.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said that supplication is worship.
The Qur'an teaches that those called on besides God (﷾) are servants who cannot answer the call.
Jesus told his followers to pray to the Father and to worship God (﷾) alone. No New Testament Gospel has him tell anyone to pray to Mary or a saint.
The Qur'an says no prophet would tell people to take angels and prophets as lords. So calling on the angels in prayer is ruled out too.
St Christopher is still counted a saint and prayed to. Yet in 1969 the Catholic Church took his feast off its universal calendar and called the accounts of his life legends. Almost nothing reliable is known about him.
The Prophet (ﷺ) told his own daughter Fatima that he could not help her at all against Allah (﷾).
The Qur'an tells the Prophet (ﷺ) to say he has no power to bring good or harm even to himself. The only exception is as Allah (﷾) wills.
After the Prophet's (ﷺ) death, Umar asked the Prophet's (ﷺ) living uncle al-Abbas to pray to Allah (﷾) for rain. Asking a living believer to pray for you is allowed.
Intercession on the Day of Judgement belongs only to those God (﷾) permits. It is not a gate a person must pass through in this life.