Hail Holy Queen
The Hail Holy Queen with a Catholic reflection on exile, mercy, and turning to the Blessed Virgin Mary for intercession.
The Hail Holy Queen is a beloved Marian prayer often prayed at the end of the Rosary. It speaks with honesty about sorrow, exile, and hope while asking Our Lady to lead us to her Son.
Prayer
Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy,
our life, our sweetness and our hope.
To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve.
To thee do we send up our sighs,
mourning and weeping in this vale of tears.
Turn then, most gracious advocate,
thine eyes of mercy toward us,
and after this our exile show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.
Pray for us, O holy Mother of God,
that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Reflection
This prayer does not hide the heaviness of earthly life. It teaches Catholics to bring sorrow to Mary without losing sight of Jesus, who remains the goal of every true Marian devotion.