A Catholic priest was invited by a Christian group to speak in their Church about the Catholic devotion to Mary. Before he began his talk, the pastor reminded him firmly that they were a Bible-based community and they do not say prayers to Mary as they were not “Mary worshippers.”
As the priest began, he invited the congregation to stand and pray. “For our opening prayer, please open your Bibles to Luke 1:28 and let us read it aloud together.” They read, “Hail, O highly favored daughter, the Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women.” Then the priest invited the congregation to turn their Bibles to Luke 1:42 and asked them again to read it aloud. They read, “Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb.” Then he said, “My dear friends, you have just prayed the Catholic prayer, Hail Mary.”
The Hail Mary is not a Catholic invention. It is a Scriptural prayer taken directly from Luke’s account of the Visitation which is the Gospel for today. The first part of the Hail Mary is taken from Luke 1:28, uttered by the Angel Gabriel no less. The second part is from Luke 1:42, a tribute spoken by the lips of Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist. The angel Gabriel honored Mary and so did Elizabeth. There’s no reason why we should not do the same. A Christian who claims to be Bible based should not feel uneasy with the Hail Mary. Ignoring the Hail Mary is not biblical.
The Hail Mary, or any prayer or doctrine attributed to Mary, is not intended for her alone. Every Catholic doctrine regarding Mary is Scriptural, i.e., from the Bible, as well as Christological, i.e., pointing to Christ. We give loving attention to Mary only insofar as she points our attention to Christ. She reminds every Christian, “Do whatever He tells you.”
In a few days, we shall celebrate the birth of our Lord. Mary is inescapably a part of the Christmas mystery and ultimately, of the Christian mystery. We look to Mary as the highest honor of the human race. We worship the fruit of her womb, Jesus the Emmanuel.
