"The Holy Spirit prepared Mary by his grace. It was fitting that the mother of him in whom "the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily" should herself be "full of grace." She was, by sheer grace, conceived without sin as the most humble of creatures, the most capable of welcoming the inexpressible gift of the Almighty. It was quite correct for the angel Gabriel to greet her as the "Daughter of Zion": "Rejoice." It is the thanksgiving of the whole People of God, and thus of the Church, which Mary in her canticle lifts up to the Father in the Holy Spirit while carrying within her the eternal Son." (CCC # 722).
The clearest description that we get about Mary from Scripture is that she is "the Lord's servant" (Luke 1:38). Nothing much else is said of her elsewhere. Further, it is an unrealistic jump to go from describing Mary as being an instrument used by God to being a woman who was conceived without sin, ascended into heaven without physical death, and being exalted as the queen of heaven. The context of Luke 1 contains no clear evidence that Mary holds a mediatory role between humanity and God or was intended to be venerated in the way that Catholics have done with her.
The angel Gabriel’s greeting, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you" (Luke 1:28, NRSV), underscores God's favor upon Mary as the chosen vessel for Jesus' incarnation. However, there is no indication that this favor confers an ongoing role for Mary beyond being the mother of Jesus. Moreover, the Magnificat (Luke 1:46–55) emphasizes Mary's acknowledgment of her own humility and God's greatness. While she praises God for the honor given to her, the prayer's central focus is on God's mercy, justice, and faithfulness to His covenant. There is no suggestion that Mary sought or should receive adoration from others.
The context of Luke 1 reveals important sayings of Elizabeth, Mary, and the Angel Gabriel. However, nothing is said about Mary being without sin. Further, we need to ask why Gabriel would announce the important message of Mary's birth so many years after the occasion took place (i.e. when she was already a fully grown woman)? Both the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and John the Baptist were proclaimed before their birth dates. It would be highly unusual to make a prophecy of an event after the fact that it has already happened. Luke chapter one centers around the conception of Jesus.
The Greek word in Luke 1:28, kecharitōmenē, does not require the translation “full of grace,” since its basic meaning points to someone who has been shown favor rather than someone possessing a unique or permanent fullness of grace. Jerome’s Vulgate rendering, gratia plena, reflects an interpretive choice rather than a literal translation of the Greek, and building doctrine on that phrasing places more weight on the Latin wording than the original text itself supports. Modern Catholic translations such as the New American Bible and the New Jerusalem Bible avoid “full of grace” and instead use “favored one,” indicating that the Greek text does not exactly convey the stronger Marian meaning traditionally associated with the Vulgate. Consider this excerpt from the New Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume VII, Page 378:
"The words of Gabriel, “Hail, full of grace” (Lk. 1.28), have also been appealed to as a revelation of the Immaculate Conception, on the grounds that to be truly full of grace, Mary must have had it always. This interpretation, however, overlooks the fact that the Greek term κεχαριτωμένη [kecharitomene] is not nearly so explicit as the translation “full of grace” might suggest. It implies only that God’s favor has been lavished on Mary, without defining the degree of grace."
Gabriel’s greeting in Luke 1:28 does not establish an eternal state of sinlessness, because Luke’s use of the perfect participle follows his normal pattern of describing a past divine action with present relevance, not a lifelong or prenatal condition. In Acts 15:8-9, for instance, Luke uses a perfective construction to say that God “cleansed” Gentile hearts, an action with ongoing effect, yet clearly not implying pre‑existing purity. Within Luke’s narrative, exalted descriptions consistently signal divine commissioning rather than intrinsic moral status: Mary is called “blessed among women” (1:42), echoing the same formula applied to Jael in Judges 5:24; Simeon is “righteous and devout” (2:25); Stephen is “full of grace and power” (Acts 6:8). None of these titles function as claims of lifelong impeccability. The immediate context reinforces this pattern. Gabriel’s greeting parallels biblical scenes where divine favor marks a chosen role: Noah “found favor” (Gen 6:8) and Gideon is hailed “mighty warrior” (Judg 6:12). These do not imply sinlessness or an ontological transformation.
Consider this excerpt from The Augsburg Confession: A Commentary, by Leif Grane, p. 209, which is suitable to add here:
"She [Mary] does not seek her own enjoyment in the honor which God has permitted her to share, but keeps her spirit pure. In this way the Magnificat becomes a proclamation of God's own goodness toward poor and lowly mortals. It is God's grace toward Mary, who is unworthy, that we should praise. Mary does not desire that praise be directed toward her, for thereby God's grace is diminished. If one would honor her, one should regard her low estate and marvel at God's exceedingly abundant grace toward her. Thereupon one should praise God, who acts this way toward poor and wretched human beings, and so learn to depend of God oneself, when one is despised and degraded. By elevating Mary into a sublime being, one destroys the comfort which Mary's words can bring."
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