What is the difference between a Catholic Rosary and an Anglican Rosary?

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between a Catholic  Rosary and an Anglican rosary?  Read on, and all will become clear.

The name Rosary comes from the Latin ''rosarium' meaning ''Crown of Roses.''  Rosaries are used primarily by Roman Catholics to assist them when saying special prayers.  The rosary is used to count the prayers.  The standard Catholic rosary usually contains five sets of ten small beads (a decade) separated by a larger bead.   The  traditional rosary used by Roman Catholics, focuses on the seminal events in the life of Christ and asks the Virgin Mary to pray for their intentions. 

The Anglican Rosary is also known as Anglican prayer beads, and it is used by Anglicans, as well as other dominations of Christians as a focus for prayer.   It was created by the Rev. Lynn Bauman in the mid-1980s, to help bring about contemplative, meditative prayer.  The touching of the fingers on each successive bead aids in keeping the mind from wandering. 

The Anglican rosary is made up of thirty-three beads divided into groups. There are four groups consisting of seven beads with additional separate and larger beads separating the groups. These groups are called “weeks”.  There are 4 "cruciform" beads, in between the “weeks” – these are usually larger beads than the “weeks” 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 set, hence the term "cruciform."  Next, after the cross, is a single bead termed the "invitatory" bead, giving the total of thirty-three.   

In a future post I will discuss the different prayers that are said while using both types of these rosaries.

You will find in holyroses.com a selection of rosaries including olive wood, hematite and rose petals.