Mary and evangelization, the first evangelizer

Mary occupies a unique place in the history of evangelization: she is at once evangelized (she received the Gospel from the angel) and evangelizer (she proclaimed it to the world with her whole life). The apostolic exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi (Paul VI, 1975) and Marialis Cultus present Mary as the model of the evangelizing Church, the one who “received the word of God with faith” and translated it into concrete work in the service of mankind.

Mary the evangelizer in Scripture

Mary’s evangelizing action runs through the whole Gospel of the infancy. At the Annunciation, Mary receives the Gospel of the prophecies handed down from generation to generation and responds with responsible faith: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38). At the Visitation, Mary carries the incarnate Word to Elizabeth; the first, John the Baptist, exults in his mother’s womb; salvation reaches the house of Zechariah. The Magnificat is the canticle of the herald of mercy: it proclaims what God accomplishes in the man who opens himself to His action. At Bethlehem, Mary gives to the world the Savior awaited for centuries. In Acts (1:14), Mary remains with the apostolic community at prayer, preparing with them the mission of Pentecost.

Characteristics of Mary’s evangelization

Mary’s evangelization has three fundamental characteristics. Centrality in Christ: Mary’s whole life is centered on the Word made flesh; she does not evangelize in her own name, but carries and presents Christ. Incarnation of the message: Mary does not transmit words alone, but makes the Savior present through her concrete motherhood. Service: her evangelization is service, in the Visitation, in the three months with Elizabeth, in her presence on Calvary, in the prayer in the Upper Room. Marialis Cultus describes Mary as the “virgin who listens, prays, offers, and gives to the world” (MC 17-20): four attitudes that define the Christian evangelizer.

Mary, model of the evangelizing Church

The Second Vatican Council (LG 65) affirms that the Church, contemplating the holiness of Mary, recognizes “her own mystery” and learns to walk in faith toward the fulfillment of her mission. Evangelii Nuntiandi (EN 82) describes Mary as the “Star of evangelization”: “She was the most humble and the most capable of welcoming the gift of God in herself. She was the first and the most perfect disciple of Christ”. For the new evangelizers of our own day, Mary continues to be the model of the “active and responsible consent to the Incarnation of the Word” (MC 37), the one who listened, believed, and made the Savior present in the world.

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Magisterium of the Church

Maria est stella evangelizationis: ipsa enim prima et perfectissima discipula Christi fuit, quae verbum Dei accepit et in mundo annuntiavit.

Paulus VI, Exh. Ap. Evangelii Nuntiandi, n. 82 (8 decembris 1975)

📚 Literal translation: Mary is the star of evangelization: she was the first and most perfect disciple of Christ, who received the word of God and announced it to the world.

Quodcumque dixerit vobis, facite.

John 2:5 (Clementine Vulgate)

📚 Literal translation: Do whatever he tells you.

See our complete guide to Catholic Angelology.

Learn what the Church teaches about Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces.