Traditional Catholic prayer
The Hail Mary
Honoring Mary and asking her intercession.
Source: With God: A Book of Prayers and Reflections (1911), Rev. F. X. Lasance, page 153.
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.
About this prayer
Prayer source
With God: A Book of Prayers and Reflections (1911), Rev. F. X. Lasance, page 153.
View the printed prayer page.About our prayer sources- What it is
- The Hail Mary joins the scriptural greeting to Mary with a petition for her prayers now and at the hour of death.
- Prayer intention
- Honoring Mary and asking her intercession.
- When to pray
- In daily prayer, the Rosary, the Angelus, or a personal request for Our Lady’s prayers.
- Languages
- English and Latin
- Latin prayer source
- With God: A Book of Prayers and Reflections (1911), Rev. F. X. Lasance, page 153. View the Latin source.
- English prayer source
- With God: A Book of Prayers and Reflections (1911), Rev. F. X. Lasance, page 153. View the historical source. View the printed prayer page. Novena Regina provides the explanations above. The prayer text follows the source named here.
Traditional Catholic prayer
The Hail Mary
Source: With God: A Book of Prayers and Reflections (1911), Rev. F. X. Lasance, page 153.
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.
Questions about this prayer
These explanations are separate from the historical prayer text above.
Where does the Hail Mary come from?
Its first part draws on Gabriel’s greeting to Mary in Luke 1:28 and Elizabeth’s words in Luke 1:42. Its second part asks Mary, Mother of God, to pray for sinners. The Baltimore Catechism distinguishes these two parts; the whole prayer is not a single Bible quotation.
Read the Catechism on the two partsWhat do Catholics ask Mary to do in this prayer?
We ask her to pray for us now and at the hour of our death. The request is for her intercession, not for her to take God’s place. The Rosary repeats this prayer while contemplating the mysteries of Our Lord and Our Lady.
Learn how to pray the Rosary