Written by a cloistered nun Saturday, 20 February 2010 00:00
"What is your favorite prayer to Mary?" Recently, when asked this question, I had to think for a minute. Did I have a favorite prayer to Mary? If so, what would it be? Then it came to me: yes, there is one prayer to Mary I especially love. It is the Hail Mary. Why? It is because, in my mind anyway, this simple prayer which we say so often sets before us the Fifth Marian Dogma. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you. With these words I am reminded of Mary's role as Mediatrix. Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. In this phrase I find an allusion to Mary as Co-redemptrix. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. In this concluding plea I see how the Church instinctively turns to Mary as Advocate. Why do I feel I can make these connections which, to someone else, may not be immediately obvious? It is because of the scriptural, theological and philosophical foundations of the Fifth Marian Dogma. It is these foundations, so closely interrelated and interwoven together, which I would like to examine here.
Read more: The Hail Mary: at the Heart of the Fifth Marian Dogma
