Catholic theology
Catholic belief holds that the church exists both on earth and in heaven simultaneously, and thus the Virgin Mary and the saints are alive and part of the living church. Prayers and devotions to Mary and the saints are common practices in Catholic life. These devotions are not worship, since only God is worshiped. The church teaches that the saints "do not cease to intercede with the Father for us. ... So by their fraternal concern is our weakness greatly helped."
Criticism of the Catholic Church
Section 8 of the Second Vatican Council's Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, "Lumen gentium" stated that "the one Church of Christ which in the Nicene Creed is professed as one, holy, catholic and apostolic ... subsists in the Catholic Church, which is governed by the sole successors of Peter the Apostle and by the Bishops in communion with him". (The term "successor of Peter" is here used of the Bishop of Rome, the Pope; see Petrine theory.). The Catholic Church likewise teaches that the "true Church of Jesus Christ ... is the One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Church", and that "the Mystical Body of Christ and the Roman Catholic Church are one and the same thing".