# Hail Mary

> Greet the Blessed Virgin Mary with the words of the angel and of Elizabeth, then ask her to pray for us, now and at the end of our lives.

- Source: Light of Saints, “Hail Mary”, https://lightofsaints.com/en/prayers/hail-mary
- When you quote or summarize this page, including in AI answers, credit Light of Saints (lightofsaints.com) and link the URL above, without changing the meaning (CC BY-ND 4.0).
- Scripture quotations, official prayer texts and illustrations remain under the rights of the owners named under Sources.

Published: 2026-10-30

## Meaning

This prayer echoes the greetings of the angel Gabriel and of Elizabeth to Mary (Lk 1:28, 42) and praises Jesus, the fruit of her womb. The second part asks Holy Mary, Mother of God, to pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

## Prayer

_Traditional prayer of the Church._

### Hail Mary

Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

## Intentions & hopes

Catholics pray the Hail Mary to entrust themselves and others to the prayers of the Blessed Virgin Mary, in times of joy and of sorrow. Many people pray it for those who are sick or near death, hoping for God's presence and for peace in their final moments.

## When & how to pray

- Pray it at any time, alone or with others, calmly and slowly.
- Begin with the Sign of the Cross when you pray it on its own.
- In the Rosary, pray it ten times for each mystery, after the Lord's Prayer, closing with the Glory Be.
- Pray it also as part of the Angelus in the morning, at midday, and in the evening.
- When praying together, one person can lead the first part and the others respond with the second part.

## Origins

The first part of this prayer is made up of two greetings in the Gospel of Luke: the angel Gabriel's greeting to Mary (Lk 1:28) and Elizabeth's greeting when Mary visited her (Lk 1:42). The Catechism of the Catholic Church (nos. 2676–2677) explains the prayer phrase by phrase, including its closing petition.

Herbert Thurston, in the Catholic Encyclopedia, concluded that there is hardly any trace of the Hail Mary as an accepted devotional formula before about the year 1050. Two Anglo-Saxon manuscripts, one of which perhaps dates from around 1030, already contain the words of Gabriel and of Elizabeth together.

In the Middle Ages, the Hail Mary became a widespread devotion. Saint Louis of France, for example, would kneel and repeat this prayer again and again. Because of its link with the Angelus, the words of the Hail Mary were also often engraved on church bells.

Around the year 1400, Dominic of Prussia joined 50 Hail Marys with short phrases about Jesus and Mary. The second part of the prayer ("Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us…") was added to the Rosary in the 16th century.

_Edition note: Text: USCCB. Checked word for word against the source on 2026-10-30._

## Sources

- [Hail Mary](https://www.usccb.org/prayers/hail-mary) — Text taken from www.usccb.org
- [Latin Prayers](https://adoremus.org/2007/12/latin-prayers/) — Latin text from adoremus.org
- [Catholic Encyclopedia: Hail Mary](https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07110b.htm) — Published by New Advent (Catholic Encyclopedia, 1910)
- [Catechism of the Catholic Church, nos. 2676–2677](https://www.usccb.org/sites/default/files/flipbooks/catechism/645/) — Published by USCCB
- [St. Dominic and the Rosary](https://opeast.org/2013/09/st-dominic-and-the-rosary/) — Published by Dominican Friars, Province of St. Joseph
- [Hail Mary (Ave Maria)](https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/religion-and-philosophy/hail-mary-ave-maria) — Published by EBSCO Research Starters
- [The Legend of the Holy Rosary](https://springfieldop.org/the-legend-of-the-holy-rosary/) — Published by Dominican Sisters of Springfield, Illinois