“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
Wherever we are, when we come in contact with another person, we show some sign of greeting. Whether it is a kind “hello” or a smile, we show acknowledgment of their presence. When we see someone we know, we usually will say his or her name or his or her title. For example, we could say “Hi Father!” if we see our local priest, or “hello doctor” if we see our physician. When the Angel Gabriel came in contact with Mary, his greeting and acknowledgment was more profound and special.
Why was Gabriel’s greeting special? His greeting is not just of his own accord, but that of God’s. He is known as the messenger angel, and Gabriel wished to bring the words of God to Mary. There are countless appearances of angels in both the Old and New Testaments, but in every case the human lowers themselves in posture to the angel, never does an angel lower or bow down to a human. Remember in the hierarchy of creation, angels are higher than humans. The case of Mary is different. She is chosen by God to be the perfection of the human race, free from all sin and full of Grace. In this case, alone the angel bows down before a human, the Blessed Virgin Mary. The humble Virgin would in time be named by the Church, “Queen of the Angels”. It is under this this title that Mary was honored in the naming of one of America’s largest cities. The original name of Los Angeles, founded in 1781, is "El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de losÁngeles de Porciúncula" which translates "town of our lady the Queen of Angels of the little Portion").
How did Gabriel greet Mary? “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” (Luke 1:26) This greeting was very unique in many ways. First, it has double greeting. Gabriel greets Mary as “full of grace” and “blessed are you among women”. This was not a usual greeting. Also, she was not greeted by her name, Mary. In addition, the angel acknowledges her as blessed among all women. This made Mary troubled.
Why did this greeting trouble Mary? “On account of her humility and modesty. She was so humble that she regarded herself as the least of all creatures, and could not comprehend how such an honor could be hers. She was so modest, and loved virginal purity so much that the presence of the angel and his message troubled her. From this all maidens should see that their loveliest adornments and most necessary virtues are modesty, humility and love of purity, which Mary so valued that she would not lose them even to become the Mother of God”. [1]
What does “full of grace” mean? We first have to take a look at the word before these, which is “hail”. For an angel to “Hail Mary”, this expressed great reverence for the Blessed Virgin. The words: full of grace remind us that God bestowed more graces upon the Blessed Virgin than upon all men and angels together. [2] It also means that she was completely filled with God’s Grace, and thus lacking in nothing. Lastly, this was how the angel of God named her. Gabriel did not say, “Hail, Mary!” He said, “Hail, full of grace!” This shows the essence of Mary is full of Grace and without any sin, even original sin. Mary is honored with the title, “Immaculate Conception”. Pope Pius IX made the solemn definition of the Immaculate Conception in 1854, a definition, which was confirmed by Our Lady herself when she appeared to Saint Bernadette, four years later and called herself the Immaculate Conception. This belief does not begin in 1854 but traces back to the Church Fathers. “Mary, they said, was most perfect in purity or morals and holiness of life. St. Ephrem (306-373) addressed Christ and Mary with the words, ‘You and Your mother are the only ones who are totally beautiful in every way. For in You, O Lord, there is no stain, and in Your mother no stain.’” [3]
The word “grace” in the language of the Bible means a special gift, which according to the New Testament has its source precisely in the Trinitarian life of God himself. His gift was completely and entirely whole for Mary. Her gift was even more special than anyone else's. Because of this gift of sublime grace, she far surpasses all other creatures, both in heaven and on earth.
What does “the Lord is with you” mean? St. Augustine wrote, “The angel wished to say: The Lord is with thee more than with me; the Lord is with thee, so that He may be in thy heart, in thy body, may fill thy spirit, may fill thy flesh.” [4]
Why did Gabriel say “blessed are you among women”? This means, “you are the happiest of women, for you of all your sex are chosen to be the Mother of God, at the same time Mother and Maid.” [5] God had a plan for Mary set before all of time. She was seen with favor and was blessed beyond anything and anyone before her.
There is so much contained in this simple yet profound double greeting from one of the highest angels closest to God addressing Mary as full of God’s Grace, and blessed more than anyone. Just as we love and acknowledge Mary, Satan hates Mary because it is through Mary that his defeat was ushered. It is important to have a love and devotion to our Lady for many reasons. We want to always pursue good and avoid evil. We see that it is God, the angels and Jesus that honor, love and respect Mary. How much it should move us to love and acknowledge Mary, our most tender Mother.
[1] Fr. Leonard Goffine’s; The Church’s Year pg. 582
[2] Cf. Fr. Leonard Goffine’s; The Church’s Year pg. 584
[3] Modern Catholic Dictionary pg. 266
[4] Fr. Leonard Goffine’s; The Church’s Year pg. 584
[5] Ibid.