Protestants Pray This Mary Prayer Frequently... It Backfired

From Totus Catholica

The words you reject as "Catholic invention" are actually straight from Luke 1 - word for word. Gabriel greets Mary: "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you." Elizabeth blesses her: "Blessed are you among women." These are the exact opening words of the Hail Mary. You've probably sung these verses at Christmas without realising you were speaking the same prayer Catholics pray. So the real question isn't whether the Hail Mary is biblical - it obviously is. The question is whether speaking those biblical words to Mary counts as worship or something else entirely. 📌 The Point: Mary's intercession participates in Christ's mediation as subordinate cooperation, not competition - like asking a living Christian to pray for you, but extended beyond death through the communion of saints. 📖 Core Sources Scripture: Luke 1:28 - Gabriel's greeting: "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you" (Greek: kecharitomene - one who has been graced by God in a unique way) Luke 1:42 - Elizabeth filled with the Holy Spirit: "Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb" 1 Timothy 2:5,6 - "There is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" - immediately followed by Paul's command that "intercessions" be made for all people Hebrews 12:1 - Saints in heaven "worship God continually" Early Church Evidence: St. Irenaeus (c. 180 AD) - Mary as "new Eve" whose obedience undid the first Eve's disobedience: "What the Virgin Eve had bound fast through unbelief, the Virgin Mary set free through faith" Subtuum Precidium Prayer (c. 250 AD, papyrus fragment from Egypt housed in Manchester) - Christians addressed Mary as Theotokos (mother of God) asking for her protection - shows Marian intercession invoked nearly two centuries before Council of Ephesus (431 AD) Catholic Teaching: CCC 495 - Calling Mary "mother of God" affirms that the child she bore is truly divine, one person with both divine and human natures CCC 956 - The communion of saints is not broken by death; those in heaven continue to intercede for the Church on earth CCC 2676 - Marian prayer flows from Mary's closeness to Christ, not from any power she possesses independently Vatican II, Lumen Gentium - "Mary's maternal role in salvation flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rests on his mediation, depends entirely on it, and draws all its power from it" Three Levels of Honour (Safeguards Against Idolatry): Latria (adoration) belongs to God alone Dulia (veneration) is the respect given to saints Hyperdulia (special honour) is given to Mary because of her unique role as mother of God 📺 Chapters 0:00 - You've Been Praying This Mary Prayer Every Sunday (Luke 1:28, 1:42) 0:44 - The Real Question: Worship or Something Else Entirely? 2:14 - Scripture & the Early Church: Gabriel, Elizabeth, and Irenaeus 3:40 - The Church's Teaching: Latria, Dulia, Hyperdulia (Three Levels) 5:46 - Objection: "There Is One Mediator" (1 Timothy 2v5) 6:38 - Second Objection: "Not Explicitly Commanded in Scripture" 7:08 - Conclusion: Every Prayer to Mary Is Ultimately a Prayer Through Mary to Her Son 🌐 Connect 📿 https://totuscatholica.org/rosary 🌍 https://totuscatholica.org/ ✉️ https://totuscatholica.org/contact 🔍 https://catholicexaminationofconscien... 💬 Question If Gabriel's greeting to Mary ("Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you") and Elizabeth's blessing ("Blessed are you among women") are found in Luke 1 - which every Christian reads - how is the Hail Mary a "Catholic invention" rather than a biblical meditation? Does asking Mary to pray for you violate Christ's unique mediation, or does it participate in it like asking any living Christian to intercede?