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Sometimes known as Anglican
"rosaries", "Christian prayer beads", or ecumenical prayer beads, Anglican
Prayer Beads are a loop of strung beads which Anglicans and other Christians use
as a focus for prayer. They were developed in the mid-1980s by an Episcopal
priest, the Rev. Lynn Bauman.
Anglican Prayer Bead sets consist of
thirty-three beads divided into four groups of seven with five additional single
beads. The number thirty-three signifies the number of years that Christ lived
on the Earth, while the number seven signifies wholeness or completion in the
faith, the days of creation, and the seasons of the Church year.
Turquoise
Hearts - Rosary & Necklace
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 Face of Jesus
Necklace/Anglican Rosary
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The groupings are called "weeks," in contrast
to the Catholic rosary which uses five groups of ten beads called "decades." The
four beads between and usually larger than the "weeks" beads are called
"cruciform" beads. When the loop of beads is opened into a circular shape, these
particular beads form the points of a cross within the circle of the rosary,
hence the term "cruciform." Next after the cross on Anglican Prayer Bead sets is
a single bead termed the "invitatory" bead, giving the total of thirty-three.
Prayer may begin on either the cross itself or on the "invitatory" bead.
Anglican Prayer Bead sets usually feature a
cross instead of a crucifix (cross with "corpus"). Some users, however, prefer
theirs to have a small crucifix instead.
The purpose and use of the Anglican set are
different from those of the Catholic rosary. While both types of rosaries are
intended as aids to contemplative prayer, the most common prayers used with the
Catholic rosary focus on the seminal events in the life, death, and resurrection
of Christ and venerate Mary.
In contrast, Anglican Prayer Beads are
considered a tactile aid used to focus one's attention, but what one will attend
to can vary widely. There is no set format of prayers. Those prayed are, in
effect, disciplined personal prayers. The words "I" and "we" figure prominently
(unlike the Catholic Hail Mary, for example), and God is addressed directly
rather than through intercession.
There are many sources and inspirations for the
prayers used with Anglican Prayer Beads. These include the traditional hours of
daily prayer, the church seasons, the mystery of God's nature, and personal
intentions (for healing, for members of the armed forces, for family life, for
challenges of specific professions, etc.)
Source:
Wikipedia.com
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