Today the Church celebrates the birthday of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
The Bible clearly tells us how God the Father sent His only Son to Earth to save humankind from their sins. The Holy Spirit espoused the Virgin Mary and Jesus was made man. Jesus grew in Mary’s womb for nine months until his birth in the humble stable in Bethlehem. In accord with the will of the Father, Jesus gave His life for us and was crucified on the cross.
In honor of Mary, the Church created a prayer originally referred to as the “Ave” and today called the “Hail Mary.” In its original form, the prayer simply consisted of Gabriel’s words to Mary and the biblical words of Elizabeth as Mary visited her:
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you
Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus
The second part was officially added as a prayer of petition by Pope Pius V:
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
As described in Champions of the Rosary by Fr. Donald Calloway, the rosary is a spiritual sword that we can use effectively in the battle against the culture of death.
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ website explains how the Hail Mary is combined with the Our Father, the Glory Be, and the Apostles’ Creed to form the prayers of the rosary, and it gives instructions on how to pray it.
For this week’s action item, and in honor of Mary’s birthday, we ask our readers to say a rosary for the conversion of all who mistakenly fight for the “choice” to kill God’s children.