The Meaning of Ave Maria

The angel Gabriel greeted Mary with:

“Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

In Latin, this is Ave, gratia plena, Dominus tecum — “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.” (Luke 1:28)

The Scene

Take a moment to read the scene in Luke 1:26-38.

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.”

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

Ave Maria

Though it has a role in many of our Christmas pageants, Gabriel’s announcement to Mary that she would be the mother of the Messiah is a moment in the story of Advent that is often passed over in our reflections on the meaning of the coming of Christ. But this encounter is worth a closer look.

Mary received the news of her role in the upcoming birth of Jesus in a display of power and glory as an angel, sent directly from the presence of God, appeared to her. What likely began as an ordinary day for this young woman in Nazareth was to contain a moment so dramatic and significant that its impact continues today.

Mary was a person who, as we learn in Luke 2:19, “treasured” things and “pondered them in her heart.” These few life-changing moments must have given her much to ponder. Below are some of my own thoughts on some of the underlying significance of Gabriel’s announcement to Mary.

Message

First, there was a practical need for information.

Mary was about to become pregnant while still a virgin. It is a great understatement to say that she needed an explanation. In addition, she needed to be told what to name her Son. And interestingly, she was also told who this Child was to become. This was to be a unique event in the history of the world, but Mary was not just told what to do. She was also told why, and she was expected to respond.

We see here that Mary was not just a tool to be used in God’s great plan. She mattered. God was at work, and Mary was included as a willing and active participant.

Messenger

Second, an announcement of this nature required an appropriate form of delivery.

When speaking about the birth of a future king, there is a certain amount of grandeur, of protocol involved. The timing is carefully chosen, and the messenger must hold high office, and the proclamation is made to the masses. No birth had ever taken place that could touch the significance of this one.

Gabriel was there to announce the coming birth of the most important king who ever lived. The messenger is appropriate, the timing is perfect, but, surprisingly, Mary is alone to receive this announcement. The actual birth of this Messiah would have the same mix of great glory and great understatement. The great and glorious King of all creation would present Himself to the world in a state of utter humility.

Meaning for Mary

Third, there was the value of announcing this event before Jesus was even conceived.

In the Old Testament prophets, there is the idea that God announced His actions beforehand to make it clear that He alone had brought them about. Then, when what was predicted took place, no one could question its source. No one could offer a different explanation of the situation, because the prediction was accompanied with an explanation.

And so, as Mary becomes pregnant without the involvement of a man and gives birth to a Son just as Gabriel said, it would be clear that this was from God, to fulfill His purpose. This information might not have been helpful to Mary in explaining her pregnancy to her family and neighbors, but it would provide her with much-needed assurance in the challenging days to come, and it would ultimately be revealed in Scripture as evidence to support our faith.  

Meaning for us

And finally, the angel who was sent to Mary was Gabriel, to whom we are introduced in the book of Daniel.

Gabriel was sent to Daniel on a couple of occasions in chapters 8 and 9 with the task of explaining to Daniel how God’s plan of history would unfold, particularly with reference to the time of the end. A time which, among other things, would “finish the transgression, … put an end to sin, and … atone for iniquity, … bring in everlasting righteousness” (Daniel 9:24).

In sending this same Gabriel to Mary, the Lord was making a statement. He was confirming that history had arrived at the time Daniel foretold—the time of the end. With the birth of Jesus, the Lord is beginning the process of bringing history to a close. That final kingdom of righteousness is about to begin its earthly reign.

And so, as Gabriel appears to Mary, he announces that the Lord is about to reach into human history to establish an eternal kingdom of righteousness over which Jesus, the Son of God, will rule and under which all the world will prosper. Glorious good news. He comes in fulfillment of God’s messages through His prophets, a King who is caring, who honors and works with His servants, and who, despite His great glory, comes humbly as a servant, to provide a place for the weak, the lowly, the outcast in His kingdom.

Glory to God in the highest!

Norm’s bio: Norm Baugh first encountered Francis Schaeffer at a L’Abri conference in Calgary, which led to a year of work and study at Swiss L’Abri. He later graduated from Regent College. After a fulfilling career supporting people with developmental disabilities, he is now retired but remains actively involved with Agape Fellowship—a Christian ministry serving marginalized individuals and others in New Westminster, BC, Canada.

Image credit: John B. MacDonald, © 2025, using specific prompts for illustration purposes in conjunction with A.I.