The Catholic prayer drawn from Luke 1 — combining the angel Gabriel's and Elizabeth's greetings to Mary.
Word-for-word from Luke 1:28 — the angel Gabriel's greeting to Mary at the Annunciation. The Greek kecharitomene (translated "full of grace") is a perfect passive participle suggesting a permanent state — Mary has been and remains graced. "The Lord is with thee" echoes the angel's assurance to figures across the Old Testament (Judges 6:12 to Gideon).
From Luke 1:42 — Elizabeth's greeting to Mary at the Visitation. The phrase "blessed art thou amongst women" is also found at Luke 1:28 in some manuscripts. The name "Jesus" was added in the medieval period to make the prayer's subject explicit.
Mary is called "Mother of God" (Greek: Theotokos — "God-bearer") — a title defined dogmatically at the Council of Ephesus (431 AD). The title is not a statement about Mary's origin but about her son's identity: the child she bore is fully God. To deny that Mary is the Mother of God is to deny that Jesus is God.
The petition. Mary is asked to pray for those reciting the prayer — exactly as anyone might ask another Christian to pray for them. The Catholic understanding: those in heaven, especially the mother of Jesus, are perfectly attuned to Christ's will and pray with the full effectiveness that comes from being in his presence.
Two moments framed: the present and death. The Hail Mary is a prayer for both today (whatever you face now) and for the final moment (the moment Catholics consider the most important of their earthly life — the moment of death, when the soul transitions to eternity).
The first half of the Hail Mary — the biblical greetings — has been used in Christian worship since the earliest centuries, particularly in the Eastern church. The combined greeting (angel + Elizabeth) appears in the 6th century. By the 11th century, this combined biblical greeting was widely used in Latin-speaking Christianity as a devotion to Mary.
The closing petition — "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death" — was added gradually between the 13th and 16th centuries. The Roman Catechism of 1566 standardized the form used today.
The prayer is integral to the Rosary, where 53 Hail Marys are prayed in five decades while meditating on the Mysteries of Christ's life — the Joyful, Sorrowful, Glorious, and (since 2002) Luminous Mysteries. Many Catholics pray a daily Rosary as part of their devotion.
The first half is — Luke 1:28 (Gabriel's greeting) and Luke 1:42 (Elizabeth's). The closing petition was added by the 14th–15th centuries.
No — worship is reserved for God alone. Catholics honor Mary (hyperdulia) and ask her intercession, similar to asking any Christian to pray for them.
53 — 50 in 5 decades plus 3 introductory. Praying all four sets of Mysteries means 200+ Hail Marys.
Greek for "God-bearer" — the title for Mary defined at the Council of Ephesus (431 AD). It is a statement about Jesus's identity (he is God) as much as about Mary's role.