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Three Hail Marys (Opus Dei)

2 min

Before sleep, three Hail Marys to Our Lady for the gift of holy purity — the counsel St. Josemaría gave again and again. Pray them slowly, recalling that you are a child of God and that she is watching over you.

For purity of body.

Hail Mary

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou amongst 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.

Ave María, grátia plena, Dóminus tecum.

Benedícta tu in muliéribus,

et benedíctus fructus ventris tui, Iesus.

Sancta María, Mater Dei,

ora pro nobis peccatóribus,

nunc et in hora mortis nostræ.

Amen.

For purity of mind.

Hail Mary

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou amongst 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.

Ave María, grátia plena, Dóminus tecum.

Benedícta tu in muliéribus,

et benedíctus fructus ventris tui, Iesus.

Sancta María, Mater Dei,

ora pro nobis peccatóribus,

nunc et in hora mortis nostræ.

Amen.

For purity of heart.

Hail Mary

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou amongst 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.

Ave María, grátia plena, Dóminus tecum.

Benedícta tu in muliéribus,

et benedíctus fructus ventris tui, Iesus.

Sancta María, Mater Dei,

ora pro nobis peccatóribus,

nunc et in hora mortis nostræ.

Amen.

Mother most pure, pray for us.

Mater purissima, ora pro nobis.

Blessed be your purity

Blessed be your purity,

may it be blessed for ever,

for no less than God takes delight

in such exalted beauty.

To you, heavenly Princess,

Holy Virgin Mary,

I offer on this day

my whole heart, life, and soul.

Look upon me with compassion;

do not leave me, my Mother.

On going to bed, bless yourself with holy water — a sacramental at the day's close, under Our Lady's protection through the night.

About this prayer

Three Hail Marys prayed before sleep, asking Our Lady for the gift of holy purity — a counsel St. Josemaría gave continually to those who came to him for spiritual direction.

History

Among the counsels St. Josemaría repeated most often to his spiritual children was the nightly prayer of three Hail Marys for holy purity. *Camino* §514 puts it plainly: *My son, every day pray three Hail Marys to Our Lady for your purity, that you may close the night clean and rise unstained.* The practice predates Opus Dei in popular Spanish devotion, but Escrivá made it the small Marian seal of every member's day — short, hidden, and never to be omitted.

How to pray it

At the end of the day, before sleep, recall briefly that you are a child of God and that Our Lady guards your purity. Pray three Hail Marys slowly, asking her for purity of body, of mind, and of heart. Close with the aspiration *Mater purissima, ora pro nobis*, and — if it is your custom — the old décima *Blessed be your purity*, which St. Josemaría loved. Then bless yourself with holy water as you get into bed.

St. Josemaría Escrivá, *The Way* (Camino) §514 — *My son, every day pray three Hail Marys to Our Lady for your purity*; cf. §§ 174, 282. Closing aspiration *Mater purissima* from the Litany of Loreto. *Blessed be your purity* is the décima *Bendita sea tu pureza*, attributed to Fray Antonio Panes OFM (1621-1676) and carried in the *Pocket Prayer Book*; the vernacular texts here render the Spanish original.

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