The Angelus

The Angelus is a Marian devotion centred on the Incarnation of the Word — the moment the Angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would conceive the Son of God. It is traditionally prayed three times a day, at six in the morning, at noon, and at six in the evening, at the sound of the bell. It takes its name from its first Latin word, Angelus — "The Angel."

What is the Angelus prayer?

The Angelus is a short devotion in honour of the Incarnation, made up of three Gospel versicles, three Hail Marys, and a closing prayer (collect). Each versicle recalls a moment of the Annunciation — the Angel's message, Our Lady's consent, and the Word made flesh — so that, three times a day, the faithful turn from their work to adore the mystery of God become man. It is not a long or complicated prayer: it takes about a minute, and its words are fixed and easily learned. The devotion took its present shape gradually through the Middle Ages, growing from the evening Ave rung at the curfew bell into the threefold form the Church has kept ever since.

The Angelus prayer (full text)

The Angelus is prayed kneeling (on Sundays and on Saturday evening, standing). It is made of three versicles, each followed by a Hail Mary, and a closing prayer.

V. The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
R. And she conceived of the Holy Ghost.
Hail Mary…

V. Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
R. Be it done unto me according to thy word.
Hail Mary…

V. And the Word was made Flesh.
R. And dwelt among us.
Hail Mary…

V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray: Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts; that we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ Thy Son was made known by the message of an Angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Angelus in Latin

The Angelus has been prayed for centuries in the Church's own tongue. This is the traditional Latin text:

V. Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariæ.
R. Et concepit de Spiritu Sancto.
Ave Maria…

V. Ecce ancilla Domini.
R. Fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum.
Ave Maria…

V. Et Verbum caro factum est.
R. Et habitavit in nobis.
Ave Maria…

V. Ora pro nobis, sancta Dei Genetrix.
R. Ut digni efficiamur promissionibus Christi.

Oremus: Gratiam tuam, quæsumus, Domine, mentibus nostris infunde; ut qui, Angelo nuntiante, Christi Filii tui incarnationem cognovimus, per passionem ejus et crucem, ad resurrectionis gloriam perducamur. Per eumdem Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.

How and when to pray the Angelus

The Angelus is said three times a day — morning (around 6 a.m.), noon, and evening (around 6 p.m.) — traditionally at the ringing of the Angelus bell, which itself sounds in three groups of three strokes followed by a peal.

To pray it: one person (or the one leading) says each versicle, and the others answer with the response, then all say the Hail Mary together. After the third Hail Mary come the final versicle and the closing prayer. It need take only a minute, and it turns the day three times toward the mystery of the Incarnation: God made man for our salvation. So the morning Angelus may follow the Morning Offering, by which the whole day is given to God at its first hour, and the noon Angelus may join the grace before meals said at the midday table. By long custom one kneels — except on Sundays and on Saturday evening, when it is prayed standing in honour of the Resurrection.

In Eastertide: the Regina Caeli

From Easter Sunday to Pentecost, the Angelus gives way to the Regina Caeli, the joyful Easter antiphon to Our Lady — Queen of Heaven, rejoice (Regina caeli, laetare) — in keeping with the season of the Resurrection. It is likewise prayed three times a day, standing, throughout Paschaltide. Through the rest of the year, the Angelus is prayed.

The meaning of the Angelus

The Angelus fixes the day on the central event of the Faith. Its three versicles trace the Annunciation as the Gospel records it: the Angel's greeting, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee" (Luke 1:28, Douay-Rheims); Our Lady's fiat, "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy word" (Luke 1:38); and the fruit of her consent, "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us" (John 1:14).

At these last words — "And the Word was made Flesh" — it is the ancient and pious custom to bow the head, or even to genuflect, for here the whole of the Gospel turns: the eternal God takes our nature in the womb of the Virgin. To pray the Angelus is to keep that wonder before our eyes morning, noon, and night.

Like the Rosary and the Hail Mary on which it rests, the Angelus is a daily Marian devotion centred on the Incarnation; and like the Memorare or the ancient hymn Ave Maris Stella, it places our day under the protection of the Mother of God. It belongs to that treasury of short traditional prayers by which the faithful sanctify the passing hours — among them the Anima Christi, prayed in thanksgiving after Holy Communion, an act of spiritual communion when one cannot receive the Sacrament, and the Divine Praises said in reparation before the Blessed Sacrament.

Our Lady of the Angelus

Through the Angelus the faithful have long honoured the Mother of God under the title drawn from this very prayer — Our Lady of the Angelus. The name belongs to no single apparition but to the devotion itself: it is Mary as she is met in the Annunciation, the Virgin who answered the Angel with her fiat and so gave the Word a place among us. To call her Our Lady of the Angelus is simply to greet her morning, noon, and night with the words the Angel first brought her, and to ask her, holy Mother of God, to pray for us "that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ."

The Angelus prayer in English (and in Latin)

The Angelus is given above in both forms — the English text and the Church's traditional Latin. The two are not rivals: many pray the Latin versicles and responses while keeping the Hail Mary and collect in their own tongue, and either may be prayed aloud or in a group with one voice leading the versicle and the rest answering. The English here follows the wording long used in the Catholic devotional tradition; the Latin is the text printed in the older manuals and breviaries. Whichever you use, the words of the Angelus prayer are the same three Gospel scenes set to prayer.

The Angelus prayer (PDF and printable card)

Because the Angelus is meant to be prayed at fixed hours, it helps to have the text ready to hand — pinned near a desk, kept in a missal, or carried as a small card. The full text above (English and Latin) can be copied or printed for that purpose: a single page holding the three versicles, their responses, and the closing prayer is enough to pray it anywhere when the noon hour comes. A printable Angelus card is a simple way to keep the devotion through a working day, and to teach it to children, who learn its short fixed lines quickly.

The Angelus painting by Jean-François Millet

The most famous picture of this devotion is The Angelus (L'Angélus, 1857–1859) by the French painter Jean-François Millet, which shows two peasants in a field pausing at evening, heads bowed, as the bell of a distant church tower calls them to prayer. The basket of potatoes between them and the spire on the horizon tell the whole story: ordinary work stopped, for a moment, to honour the Incarnation. The painting is a witness to how deeply the Angelus was woven into Catholic life — that a labourer in a field would lay down his fork at the sound of the bell.

The much-discussed x-ray of Millet's Angelus refers to a technical examination of the canvas which is said to show an earlier form beneath the visible paint. Whatever the art-historical details, the picture as Millet left it is plainly a scene of the Angelus: two figures at prayer in the fields at the ringing of the bell. It hangs in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.

Praying along: bells and recordings

In many places the Angelus bell still rings at noon, and some churches and Catholic broadcasters lead the prayer at the fixed hours, so that those at home or at work can answer the versicles and pray along. A recording can help one learn the cadence of the versicles and responses, or keep the devotion when no bell is near; but the Angelus needs nothing more than the few fixed words and a moment's pause. Whether prayed with a community, with a recording, or alone, it remains the same short turning of the day toward the mystery of the Word made flesh.

Frequently Asked Questions

When do you pray the Angelus?

Three times a day, by tradition at 6 a.m., noon, and 6 p.m., at the sound of the Angelus bell. Many keep the noon Angelus even when the morning and evening ones are not possible.

How do you pray the Angelus?

Say each of the three versicles with its response, praying a Hail Mary after each; then the concluding versicle and the closing prayer. It is prayed kneeling, except on Sundays and Saturday evenings, when it is said standing.

Why is the Angelus prayed three times a day?

To sanctify the whole day — morning, midday, and evening — by recalling the Incarnation, the moment God became man. The threefold pattern echoes the ancient practice of praying at fixed hours.

What replaces the Angelus during Easter?

From Easter to Pentecost the Angelus is replaced by the Regina Caeli, the Easter antiphon to Our Lady, prayed standing in honour of the Resurrection.

Why do we bow at "And the Word was made Flesh"?

Because at those words we confess the very heart of the Faith — the Incarnation. Bowing the head (or genuflecting) is an act of reverence before the mystery of God made man.

What is the Angelus prayer in a few words?

A short Marian devotion to the Incarnation: three Gospel versicles on the Annunciation, each followed by a Hail Mary, and a closing prayer — prayed three times a day at the bell.

What are the words of the Angelus prayer?

The full English and Latin words are given above: the three versicles ("The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary…," "Behold the handmaid of the Lord…," "And the Word was made Flesh…"), each with its response and a Hail Mary, then "Pray for us, O holy Mother of God…" and the collect "Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts…"

Who is Our Lady of the Angelus?

It is a title for the Blessed Virgin Mary drawn from this prayer — Mary as honoured in the Annunciation, greeted morning, noon, and night with the words the Angel first brought her. It refers to the devotion itself, not to a particular apparition.

Who painted The Angelus?

The famous painting The Angelus (1857–1859) is by the French artist Jean-François Millet. It shows two peasants pausing to pray in a field at the evening bell, and now hangs in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.

(Iter Fidei serves the Angelus and the Regina Caeli, in Latin and English with audio and the proper posture for each day, in the app.) Download it here.

Sources. The Angelus and the Regina Caeli of the Roman tradition; the Gospel of the Annunciation (Luke 1:26-38) and the Prologue of St John (John 1:14), Douay-Rheims.