Mary

The biblical roots of the Hail Mary

The Hail Mary begins with two greetings from Luke’s Gospel. First, the angel Gabriel speaks to Mary in Nazareth. Then Elizabeth welcomes Mary into her home. When we pray these words, we remember what both greetings announce: Mary is carrying Jesus.

“Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.”

At the Annunciation, Gabriel greets Mary before telling her that she will become the mother of Jesus. “Full of grace” is the prayer’s traditional wording. Some Bibles say “favored one.” Both expressions point to the gift Mary has received from God. Read Luke 1:26–38, especially verse 28.

“Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.”

At the Visitation, Elizabeth hears Mary’s voice, her child leaps, and she is filled with the Holy Spirit. She blesses both Mary and the child Mary carries. The prayer adds his name, Jesus, the name Gabriel had given Mary. Read Luke 1:31 and 1:39–45, especially verse 42.

“Holy Mary, Mother of God”

Elizabeth calls Mary the mother of her Lord. Catholics call Mary “Mother of God” because the son she bore is Jesus, the eternal Son of God who became human. The title tells us who Jesus is. Read Luke 1:43.

“Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.”

Here the greeting becomes our own request. This closing line comes from the Church’s prayer tradition. James urges Christians to pray for one another. In that spirit, we ask Mary to pray for us in whatever we face today and to accompany us with her prayers as we entrust ourselves to God at the end of life. Read James 5:16.

Read the Catechism’s explanation of the Hail Mary, paragraphs 2676–2677.