Veneration of Mary in the Catholic Church "Salutation of the Blessed Virgin" in 1273. By the fourteenth century it was not uncommon to conclude with an appeal for sinners and especially for help at the hour of death. Official recognition of the Ave Maria in its complete form was finally given in the Roman Breviary of 1568. Three Hail Marys is a traditional Roman Catholic devotional practice of reciting three Hail Marys as a petition for purity and other virtues. The practice of saying three Hail Marys in the evening somewhere about sunset had become general throughout Europe in the first half of the fourteenth century and
Prayer in the Catholic Church can still meditate, but our attention is fixed on the Lord himself. Contemplation, like all prayer, is pure gift, and not anything one can achieve. The tradition of the Roman Catholic Church highlights four basic elements of prayer: Prayer of Blessing and Adoration, Prayer of Petition, Prayer of Intercession, and Prayer of Thanksgiving. In its widest applications the word "blessing" has a variety of meanings in sacred writings. It can be taken in a sense that is synonymous with praise; thus the Psalmist, "I will bless the Lord at all times; praise shall be always in my mouth." The prayer