Rosary

The Rosary (from Latin rosarium, "crown of roses"), an important and traditional devotion of the Catholic Church consisting of a set of prayer beads and a system of set prayers. The Rosary is sometimes used by High Church Protestants including, but not limited to, Episcopalians, Lutherans and Methodists. It combines prayer and meditation centered around sequences of ten recitations of the "Hail Mary" prayer; one such sequence is known as a decade. A complete Rosary traditionally involves the completion of twenty (formerly fifteen) decades, as well as other prefatory and final prayers.

Related Topics:
Latin - Catholic Church - Prayer beads - High Church - Protestants - Episcopalians - Lutherans - Methodists - Prayer - Meditation - Hail Mary

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Eastern Christians also use similar strings of beads to pray, although among the Orthodox their use is mainly restricted to monks and bishops, not being common among laity or secular clergy. Many Eastern Christians use a prayer rope instead; its use is much more prevalent, and it is typically associated with the Jesus Prayer.

Related Topics:
Eastern Christians - Prayer rope - Jesus Prayer

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Another form of prayer beads is popular among Anglicans/ Episcopalians. Originally called Anglican prayer beads, this bead set is also known as the "Anglican Rosary" or as "Christian prayer beads" because of the popularity it has found among Protestants generally. Anglican bead sets contain 28 beads in groups of seven (the "weeks"), with an additional large bead before each. In total, there are thirty-three beads representing the years of Jesus' life on Earth. The most common prayer used is the Jesus Prayer, but there are no appointed prayers or meditations.

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