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Anglican Prayer Beads are a relatively new form of prayer, blending the Orthodox Jesus Prayer Rope and the Roman Catholic Rosary. The thirty-three bead design was created by the Rev. Lynn Bauman in the mid-1980s.
The use of the rosary helps us move into contemplative, or meditative prayer. In other words, being mindful of praying and of being in the presence of God through the use of our mind, body, and spirit. The touching of the fingers on the beads helps to keep our mind focused and the rhythmic nature of the prayers also helps us move into stillness.
The prayer beads are made up of twenty-eight beads divided into four groups of seven called weeks. In the Judeo-Christian tradition the number seven represents spiritual perfection and completion. Between each week is a single bead, called a cruciform bead as the four beads form a cross. The invitatory bead between the cross and the wheel of beads brings the total to thirty-three, the number of years in Jesus’ earthly life.
Praying with the beads
Unlike the definitive way in which a Catholic Rosary is prayerd, the Anglican rosary can be adapted and prayed in a manner suiting the individual. In other words, the prayers assigned to each bead may be different for each individual.
Find a quiet spot and allow your body and mind to become restful and still. To begin, hold the Cross and say the prayer you have assigned to it, then move to the Invitatory Bead. Then enter the circle of the prayer with the first Cruciform Bead, moving to the right, go through the first set of seven beads to the next Cruciform bead, continuing around the circle, saying the prayers for each bead.
Pray around the circle of the beads three times, signifying the Trinity, in an unhurried pace, allowing the repetition to enable your mind to rest and your heart to become quiet and still.
When you have completed the round of the prayer beads, you should end with a period of silence. This silence allows you to center your being in an extended period of silence. It also invites reflection and listening after you have invoked the Name and Presence of God.
Click here to view an Anglican Rosary diagram and a sample prayer.
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