圣经故事:圣母经 Hail Mary

拉丁语作Ave Maria
　　天主教向童贞玛利亚说的主要祈祷文。第一段是天使长加百列问候圣母和伊莉莎白的话（出自〈路加福音〉）∶“万福玛利亚，满被圣宠者，主与尔偕焉。女中尔为赞美，尔胎子耶稣并为赞美。”最后一段祷词，“天主圣母玛利亚，为我等罪人，今祈天主，及我等死候。阿门。”于14世纪成为普遍诵念的祷文。教徒在告解后常被要求覆诵圣母经为所犯罪行赎罪。

Principal Roman Catholic prayer addressed to the Virgin Mary. It begins with the GREetings spoken to Mary by the Archangel Gabriel and by her cousin Elizabeth in the Gospel of Luke： “Hail Mary， full of grace， the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou aMong women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb， Jesus.” A closing petition， “Holy Mary， Mother of God， pray for us sinners， now and at the hour of our death，” came into general use by the end of the 14th century. Churchgoers who attend confession are often asked to repeat the prayer as penance for sins.