Angelus (Latin for “angel”) is a Christian devotion in memory of the Incarnation. As with many Catholic prayers, the name Angelus is derived from its incipit: Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariæ (“… the Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary …”).
The Angelus is prayed 6:00 in the morning at 12:00noon and at 6:00pm. During Eastertide we replace the Angelus with another traditional Catholic prayer, the Regina Coeli.
The history of the Angelus is a combination of what is certain and that which has been handed down in story. The practice of reciting the Hail Mary three times in a row dates at least to the 12th century, and St Anthony of Padua (1195-1231) strongly recommended it.
This devout practice was a great favourite also of St. Mechtilde of Helfta (1241-1298) in her Revelations, and St. Bonaventure, in a Chapter of the Order of the Friars Minor in 1269 proposed they recite these three Hail Mary’s in the evening after Compline, meditating on the mystery of Christ’s Incarnation, urging at the same time that the recitation be preceded always by the ringing of a bell so that the brothers and all the faithful nearby would know that it was time for the Hail Mary.
During Chrism Mass at the Holy Spirit Cathedral at Adabraka on March 27, 2024, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Accra, the Most Rev. John Bonaventure Kwofie, CSSp encouraged Catholics to make time and pray the Angelus.
According to him, the Church bell becomes “useless” if the Angelus is not prayed and encouraged groups and societies to make time and pray the Angelus during their meetings.
At our schools, the example set by the teachers shows the students how to make space for God and prayer amidst daily life.
Praying the Angelus interrupts whatever task you are in, just as the arrival of Christ in the Incarnation interrupts the world.
The welcome interruption of the Angelus teaches a life-long lesson: no activity is more important than prayer—not work, not study, not conversation, not even recess.
The injunction to pray also reminds us of the meaning of our work, that we have been invited to a service of love by the God who first loved us.
Finally, every invitation to pray the Angelus is an opportunity to speak our own “yes” to God because every invitation to pray the Angelus is a moment of choice. Will I allow God to interrupt and enter this moment of my life? Or, will I favor the task at hand?
For adults and children alike, the practice of saying “yes” in the Angelus is a two-fold practice of saying “yes” to God.
First, by accepting the invitation to pray and, second, by repeating the words of Mary, “Be it done unto me according to thy word.” The hope and wisdom of the prayer is that day after day the “yes” to God becomes easier and the “yes” of Mary becomes our own.
