“And he came to her and said, “Hail, Full of Grace! The Lord is with you.” But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus.” Luke 1:28-31
“When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”” Luke 1:41-45
““My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me..” Luke 1:46-49
I had a recent discussion with a Protestant who was upset that Catholics ‘pray to’ and venerate Mary so much. Praying the ‘Hail Mary’ was ‘blasphemy’ is his thoughts. ‘There is nothing in the Bible.’
Sola Scriptura? Oh yeah, the Hail Mary prayer is outlined in Luke’s Gospel so clearly, if you have eyes to see and ears to hear.
As Catholics, we know that we do t pray TO Mary, we ask her intercessions. Who better to approach for added help than the one person lives by Jesus more than any other, His mom.
The Blessed Mother highlights and points to her Son and then, once we see Him, gets out of the way. Sort of like this queen will walk before us into the King’s throne room, because we are both unworthy to be there and a bit afraid and overwhelmed by His presence. She keeps His eyes on herself long enough that when she introduces us and our need, the King sees things through her intercession. “Now and at the hour of our death” – Mary again brings us to God, covered in her mantle and hidden, snuggled to her side. God only sees her presenting the gift of us. When she asks for her Son to hear our prayer or accept our soul, Jesus honors His mother through the 4th Commandment as He can honor no other’s wish.
Never hesitate to go to Jesus, He wants to hear from you and desires a deeper relationship. But, Mary is a good way to get closer to Jesus. Mary, and consecration to Jesus through her is the “surest, easiest, shortest, and the most perfect means to becoming a saint.”