A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 1:26-38
The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you." But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end." But Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?" And the angel said to her in reply, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God." Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.
REFLECTION: "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you."
October is the month of the Rosary. We all remember our grandmother, rosary in hand, praying for all the grandkids. In fact Catherine, a PAPA member, is affectionately called Mama Rosary. She prays for all her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. The rosary has been given to us by Mary and is a very practical way of meditating on the central events of the lives of Mary and her Son, Jesus.
Mary has given us the weapon of the Rosary to combat the forces of evil. Through the intercession of Mary, evil collapsed in Lepanto, in Fatima, and will collapse in our lives. "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you." is a direct quote from the Archangel Gabriel. Its final form has the petition for a happy death. "Pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death."--at the definitive moment we meet with Jesus, her Son.
The prayer of the Rosary is a song of love for her. It is a conversation we have with her who will eventually lead us closer to her Son. Today's feast, instituted by St Pius V, recalls the wonderful event of the Battle of Lepanto (1571) and the defeat of the Turks, thus sparing Europe the Turkish invasion.
The Hail Mary
"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 death." Amen
Ave Maria Latin Text
Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen.
God Bless You
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