Saying Hail Mary is heresy?

Question

A born again Christians told me that saying a Hail Mary is a sin, because it means you are praying to Mary when you can only pray to God, because it makes Mary a mediator between man and God when Jesus is our only mediatory, because it calls Mary the "Mother of God" which is blasphemy, and because it calls Mary "full of grace" when only God is full of grace. How much of this is true?

Answer 1

(1) In light of the fact that the Hail Mary asks Mary to pray for us, think of it more as praying WITH Mary rather than to her. And there is nothing wrong with asking another person to pray for you.

(2) Anyone who quotes 1 Timothy 2:5 needs to read the previous four verses, which call on people to pray and make intercession for others. Asking another person to pray for you is not an example of making them a second mediator between man and God. Note that James 5:16 says to pray for one another, and it also states that the prayers of a righteous person (such as Mary!) are valuable.

(3) There is no reason to believe calling Mary "the mother of God" is blasphemy. The title "mother of God" is rooted in the fact that, according to the Bible, (a) Jesus is God, and (b) Mary is the mother of Jesus. Those two premises lead to the conclusion that Mary is, in some sense, the Mother of God. For an analogous line of reasoning, note that Jesus is both Lord and God (John 20:28), therefore Mary is the Mother of the Lord (Luke 1:43). By the same logic, Mary is the Mother of God.

(4) Ask them what verse says that "only God is full of grace"? The title Full of Grace is directly from Luke 1:28, which employs the participle "kecharitoomene". Even the ancient Peshitta and Vulgate translations rendered this "stuffed with grace" (Syriac: malyat taybooto) and "full of grace" (Latin: gratia plena), respectively.

You can see more on the subject here:

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=125682309&blogID=269593299

Answer 2

It's just the difference between Catholics and other Christian based religions. I never saw, nor felt, a problem with reciting "Hail Mary".

It's not so much praying to Mary, as it is asking her to remember you in her prayers.

And calling Mary the mother of God...well, she gave birth to Jesus, didn't she? And she nursed him? And raised him? Sounds like a mother to me.

Of course, these are only dogmatic differences and nitpicks that the Christian sects love to fight one another and condemn one another for.

I stay out of it, mostly, and follow a path that feels spiritually right and good for me. If you like to say Hail Mary and it makes you feel comforted, then do it---if it makes you uncomfortable, don't say it. But make that decision in your own heart...don't let someone else make it for you.

Answer 3

The Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, "Hail, (favored one, (full of grace)! The Lord is with you." Luke 1: 26.
We pray to the saints and ask them for their help,like we ask a friend or loved one to help us.
When we honor Mary, we honor the Son, Jesus.
Mary is Jesus' mother. Jesus is God.
How can this be a sin?

Answer 4

None of it is true, unless you think quoting the Bible and believing that Jesus is Lord and that He gives His followers the gift of eternal life is sinful!

Hail Mary, Full of Grace, the Lord is with thee
(a direct quote from Luke 1:28)
Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb
(a direct quote from Luke 1:42)
Holy Mary, mother of God
(a statement of belief that Jesus is Lord)
Pray for us sinners, now an at the hour of our death
(a request for Mary's prayers that indicates
we believe Jesus gave her the gift of
Eternal Life and that she's not dead but
alive in Him)

I can't believe your friend thinks that saying "Mother of God" is blasphemy. He obviously doesn't think that Jesus is Lord! If he did, then he would see that Jesus has a mother and her name is Mary, so it's totally right to call her Mother of God.

As for calling Mary "Full of Grace," it's in the BIBLE, dude. So your friend must not be the kind of Christian who follows Scripture. Does he think the Bible is heretical?

I think if I were you, I'd get some good books to read and stop having religious debates with your very confused friend.

Answer 5

The Hail Mary comes from the Bible, check out the book of Luke chapter 1.

We feel that Mary is our intercessor for many reasons. One reason can be found in story of the wedding at Cana in the book of John chapter 2.

Answer 6

Your friend is wrong.

Mary is the Mother of God. She carried Jesus in her womb and gave birth to him. The flesh and blood of Jesus came from his earthly mother.

The Rosary comes from scripture:

Hail Mary full of Grace
Luke 1:28 "And coming to her, he said, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you."

Blessed art thou among women
Luke 1:41-42a "When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women..."


Blessed is the fruit of thy womb
Luke 1:42b "and blessed is the fruit of your womb."

Mary Mother of God
Luke 1:43 "And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

All these things are in the Bible. That is where the words of the Hail Mary come from.

The rest, asking for her prayers are also

Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
Luke 2:35 "...and you yourself a sword will pierce so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed."

John 2:5 "His mother said to the servers, "Do whatever he tells you."

Mary sees a need and appeals to Her Son to satisfy it. He does. We turn to Mary to ask her to intercede with her Son in our daily spiritual and material needs, but especially at the hour of our death. At that moment our salvation hangs in the balance as the devil makes his final foray to deter us from the path to God (Rev. 2:10).

It is not surprising, therefore, that both the Hail Mary and the Our Father conclude with an appeal to be delivered from the evil one.

The Rosary is a beautiful and appropriate prayer. There is nothing wrong with asking the Mother of God to pray for you and for others. Jesus and Mary and not competing with each other. Mary says "my soul doth magnify the Lord" meaning she points the way towards her son, the Savior.

Answer 7

Praying= talking to/ asking Mary for something

PRAY FOR US SINNERS your asking her to pray for you. If your not allowed to do that then all Christians are screwed including Paul for asking to pray for each other. Isn't Jesus God? Marys his mother... so......... Remember christian theology teaches Jesus divinity and humanity is inseparable, and the last part even I as an atheist know clearly that the first chapter of Luke Clearly says HAIL FULL OF GRACE THE LORD IS WITH YOU... the KJV interperts it HAIL HIGHLY FAVOURED ONE, but HAIL FULL OF GRACE is right.

Answer 8

We should not pray to anyone other than God. The "hail Mary" is a cobbled together prayer from Luke 1. I can't find in any versions that I have where Mary is said to be "full of grace". That term is only used once, for Christ.

Joh 1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father), full of grace and truth.

What the Scriptures say is:
Luk 1:28 And entering, the angel said to her, Hail, one having received grace! The Lord is with you. You are blessed among women!
She received grace, or unmerited favor from God.

The term "mother of God" is found nowhere in Scripture.

And yes, there is only one mediator between God and man, Christ Jesus.

1Ti 2:5 For God is one, also there is one Mediator of God and of men, the Man Christ Jesus,

Pray to God directly, do bother with middle men or women.

Answer 9

let's see:

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you (what Gabriel the angel said when greeting Mary)

Blessed are you among women(what Mary's sister said to Mary before becoming pregnant)

and Blessed is the fruit of your womb Jesus(obvious)

Holy Mary mother of God(Mary is Jesus' mother, He came out of her)

pray for us sinners(saints CAN pray and God does listen, see revelation 8:3-4)

now and at the hour of our death.Amen.

in other words, whoever said that had little to know idea what they were talking about.


lost.eu/21618

Answer 10

Actually, I think that prayer is sort of like praying in her name rather then directly to her.Sort of like saying "in Jesus name".

Traditional version:
Hail Mary, full of grace.
Our 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 our death.
Amen.

Newer version:

Hail Mary, full of grace.
Our Lord is with you.
Blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb,
Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

The Hail Mary is based on these passages from the Bible:

Luke 1:28-35, 42-48.