Hail Mary?

 The rosary is uplifting on so many plateaus, but what does it mean to say the rosary and why is it important? I've heard many times, "Yea, that's cool and all, but I can pray on my own thanks.". I myself have not given enough time to pray this wonderful devotion, but I'm seeing that I need to change that. For those of you who might be reading that don't know what the rosary consists of, it's easy to understand and you can go to this site for a detailed outline of the mysteries, etc.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst 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.

Hail Mary:

Where does this well known term come from...I know, you may be thinking that it came from the great Roger Staubach; the Dallas Cowboy's hall of fame quarterback who actually coined the phrase as a type of passing play, but as great as he was he didn't author the term...it stems from something much greater. The angel of God, Gabriel greeted Mary in this way saying, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women." (Luke 1:28) There is so much we can learn from this and Dr. Scott Hahn probably does one of the best jobs of walking us through.  The following contains some writing from Dr. Hahn and what many early Church fathers before him have taught.

 The angel uses a word - variously translated hail or rejoice - that the prophets used to foretell the joy of the people at the Messiah's coming (Joel 2:23-24; Zechariah 9:9). In fact, the angel's announcement seems to be drawn almost word for word from a prophesy of Zephaniah (3:14-18). I'll place the words drawn from Luke in parenthesis and the words that are not are from Zephaniah:

"Shout for joy (Hail), O daughter Zion (favored one)! The King of Israel, the Lord (The Lord) is in your midst (is with you)...Fear not, O Zion (Do not be afraid, Mary)...Your God is in your midst (You will conceive in your womb), a mighty saviour (...Son of the Most High).

The angel tells Mary that her Son will be "Son Of the Most High" and will be given "the throne of David His Father." In fact, the angel's words we hear echoes of God's covenant with David (2 Samuel 7:12-16; Psalm 89:4-5; 27-30). God swore that David's son would be "a son to Me." God also swore that David's son would rule on his throne forever. The angel promises that Mary's Son will be seated on "the throne of David his father...forever." 

It gets deeper, Mary asked how she, as a virgin, will conceive the child promised by the angel. The angel replies: "For nothing will be impossible for God" (Luke 1:37). An angel spoke almost these same words to Abraham's wife, Sarah, when she laughed at the notion that in her old age she would bear the son that God had promised to Abraham (Gen. 18:14). Luke shows us that Mary, too, is being called to bear the son of God's covenant promise. Mary's response to the angel takes up the story of still another barren woman who found favor with God - Hannah the mother of Samuel (1 Samuel 1:11, 19-20). In presenting herself as "the handmaid of the Lord", she recalls the oath of Hannah - who pleaded with God for a son, vowing to consecrate him to the Lord. Three times Hannah described herself as the Lord's "handmaid" (1 Samuel 1:11, 16, 18). 

The historical events, and the manner in which these events are written about, communicate far more than factual info. They reveal the existence of a plan of salvation that God is working out in human history. The reason for the careful use of quotes and allusions to Israel's past is to reveal that unity between the Old and New Testaments - to show what happens to Mary is a continuation and culmination of what has gone before. This is how Jesus taught his apostles to read the Old Testament. He referred to Jonah (Matt 12:39-41), Solomon (Matt 12:42), the temple (John 2:19), and the brazen serpent (John 3:14) as types or signs that prefigured Him. On the first Easter night He said that, "Everything written about Me in the Law of Moses, and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled." (Luke 24:44-45).

In the writings of the prophets and psalmists, often we find typological readings of earlier events, deployed to prepare Israel for it's coming savior. Isaiah spoke of a new creation (Isaiah 65:17) and a new exodus (11:10, 15-16; 43:16-22; 51:9-11). He and others, Ezekiel and Jeremiah, spoke of the coming of a new Davidic sheperd-king and the restoration of the kingdom (Isaiah 9:1-7; Jeremiah 23:5-6; Ezekiel 16:59-63; 34:24-30; 37:23-28). Jesus was the new Adam, the first born of a new creation (Romans 5:14; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22, 45-49). His Cross and Resurrection mark a new exodus (Luke 9:31; 1 Corinthians 10:1-4). His Church is the new Jerusalem and the new kingdom of David (Galatians 4:26; Acts 1:6-9; 1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6).

The second part of this prayer, "...and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus." is taken from Luke's gospel as well. (Luke 1:42). This entire situation is interesting to me because of how Mary's own family reacts to her visit. "And it came to pass that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the infant leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost. And she cried out with a loud voice and said: Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy." 

This was a cousin of Mary's...I don't know if I've ever been greeted at any family member's house in this way. As if it were an honor for me to grace them with my visit. The great part about it is the fact that this is not Elizabeth's feeling, this is the Holy Spirit at work here. It was the sound of Mary's voice that caused the infant to leap for joy...and notice the separation that is spoken, "Blessed art thou among women AND blessed is the fruit of thy womb (Jesus)..."

So to speak the words that Mary is Blessed is to speak as the Holy Spirit spoke through Elizabeth in scripture but, the cool thing is how Mary responded to Elizabeth's words, immediately directing us to how great God is. (Similar to how she directed the people at the wedding in Cana, to follow the instructions that her son gives them.) Mary, in Luke, tells us that from that moment forward all nations will call her blessed. Jesus gives His mother to John at the foot of the cross and gives "the one whom he loved" to His mother. John was to honor her as if she were his mother and she was to treat John as if he were her son. 

There are also many early Church fathers who write with a great honor of Mary...which only makes sense. If we are to look at Christ as our brother (John 20:17), look to his disciples for teaching (2 Thess. 2:15, 2 Tim. 2:2), treat the scriptures as the Word of God, and use the Church as the pillar and foundation of truth (1 Tim. 3:15) then shouldn't we have a great honor for Jesus' mother just as it shows in all of the above. 

To say "Hail Mary" has much more meaning and roots than ever imagined by me.