The Salve Regina (Hail, Holy Queen) has been prayed by Catholics for nearly a thousand years. Hermann of Reichenau, a Benedictine monk, composed it in the 11th century. Pray it when you feel distant from God, when the world feels harsh, or when you need a mother’s intercession.
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 valley 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.
Hermann of Reichenau, 11th century
How this prayer works
The Salve Regina names Mary as our advocate before God. We call ourselves “banished children of Eve” because Adam and Eve lost paradise, and we inherit that exile. The prayer asks Mary to turn her merciful gaze toward us and show us Christ after our earthly exile ends.
Hermann of Reichenau was born with severe physical disabilities and lived his entire life in a monastery. He knew what it meant to cry out from limitation and pain. His prayer does not ask Mary to remove suffering, but to intercede so that we endure it with hope fixed on Jesus.
Pray it at the end of the day, after Compline, or when you feel the weight of this world. Many religious communities pray it every evening before bed. You can also pray it slowly during the Rosary, after the final decade.
Carry it through this evening.
