Mary, Lady of Light, Explains the Hail Mary
You are the honoured Mother of Light; from the rising of the sun to its setting, praises are offered to you, O Mother of God, the second heaven, for you are the bright, unchanging star and the Mother who remains a virgin. The Father chose you, the Holy Spirit overshadowed you, and the Son came down and took flesh from you. Ask him to grant salvation to the world he created and to deliver it from temptation. Let us sing him a new song and bless him, now and ever and unto ages of ages.
Once, when Saint Mechtilde was rapt in spirit, the Virgin Mary appeared to her, bearing on her breast the “Ave Maria” written in golden letters, and said to her:
“Know, my daughter, that no one can honour me with a more beautiful greeting than the one the most adorable Trinity offered me, by which it raised me to the dignity of Mother of God. By the word ‘Ave’, which is the name ‘Eva’ (Eve) reversed, I learned that God in his almighty power had preserved me from all sin and from the misery to which the first woman had been subject.
The name ‘Mary’, which means ‘Lady of Light’, shows that God filled me with wisdom and light, like a shining star, to light up heaven and earth. The words ‘full of grace’ show that the Holy Spirit poured his abundant graces upon me, so that I can share them generously with those who ask for them through my intercession.
When you say ‘the Lord is with thee’, you renew in me the indescribable joy I felt when the eternal Word became flesh in my womb.
When you say to me ‘blessed art thou among women’, I praise the divine mercy that raised me to such a height of happiness.
And at the words ‘blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus’, all heaven rejoices with me to see my Son adored and glorified for having saved mankind.”
It is worth noting that Saint Mechtilde often had the joy of seeing the Mother of God during her life, and of learning how best to show her the tenderness of her devotion.
So come, my brothers and sisters, let us bring joy to God and to the heart of our Mother, the Virgin Mary, by praying the Hail Mary more and more.
Prepared by Rita of the Sawt el Rab team
