The Significance of Rosaries in the Anglican Church

Around the time my Confirmation was coming up in the Anglican Catholic church, I had found there was a devotion thought I had always found fascinating, yet never tried.

The Rosary.

I came upon a youtube video (which I can no longer find) of an Episcopal priest praying with an Anglican Rosary.

I didn't even know there was such thing.

He explained it's purpose and the different prayers he used for it and I found the devotion beautiful.

Naturally, I went on Etsy and purchased one right in time for my confirmation.

You may be wondering "What's the different between an Anglican Rosary and a Catholic Rosary?"

I'm glad you asked.

There are two Rosaries. The Anglican (Or Chaplet for my Roman Catholic friends) and the Dominican (Also known as the Catholic Rosary).

Here is a picture of the two I own:

The small one with the Peach colored beads is my Anglican. The large red and gold one is my Dominican.

What's the difference between the two besides their sizes?

Anglican prayer bead sets consist of thirty-three beads divided into groups. There are four groups consisting of seven beads with additional separate and larger beads separating the groups. 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. The four beads that spate the four groups are in a cross formation.

The Dominican or The five decade rosary as it's also known, is the one most people picture when they hear the word rosary. It consists of a crucifix, then a short set of 5 beads, for praying the Our Father, 3 Hail Marys, and a Glory Be, and then a rosary center, followed by a loop of 5 decades (sets of ten beads) to count the Hail Marys prayed as one meditates on the mysteries of the rosary, with a bead for praying the Our Father between each decade.

Another big difference between the two is that where as you say Hail Marys on the Dominican, there are no set prayers for the Anglican rosary.

"Then why have an Anglican Rosary if those no prayers set to it?" you may be wondering.

Well, it's simple. The Anglican, just like the Dominican, is meant as a tool for focus and meditation on God.

The best times to recite or pray with a rosary is in the morning for morning prayers, anytime right before you read your Bible, and in those few minutes before mass.

Now I have had some people say:

"The word Rosary is not in the Bible".

These are usually my dispensationalists, so I usually reply back:

"Well, neither is The Rapture or the Sinner's Prayer."

A little snarky, but it gets the point across.

Is the word Rosary in the Bible? No. But many of the prayers are.

Let's take some examples of the Dominican.

Some People have issues with Hail Mary.

It goes:
"Hail Mary! Full of Grace! The Lord is with thee! Blessed art Thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus."

Guess what! That is from the Bible.

Luke 1:28 and Luke 1:42.

And to answer a question that comes up a lot: NO! WE ARE NOT PRAYING TO MARY!

Roman Catholics also do not pray to Mary or any other saint. The hail Mary continues by saying:

Holy Mary, Mother of God (Which she is. She is mother of God the son. Not God the Father or Holy Spirit. But Jesus is God and she's his mother). Pray for us sinners now and at the time of our death.

We are asking Mary (and at times the other canon saints) to pray for us. Typically, the saints are called out for prayer by Anglicans if you are struggling with a particular sin. The same way as you'll go to a church member or family member and say "Please Pray for me".

Is it Biblical? Actually, you maybe surprised, but yes.
As Lazarus dying, he called out to The Prophet Abraham to intercede on his behalf. And that is where the custom comes from.

Not every Anglican asks for a Saint to intercede for them, and that is alright. However every Anglican still prays directly to God all the time.  It's just a matter of personal preference.


Now back to the scriptures used in the Dominican.

Before your Hail Marys, you pray the Lord's prayer, which can be found in Matthew 6:9-13.

Even The Magnificant (Also known as Mary's Song of Praise) can be found in Luke 1: 46-55.


With the Anglican Rosary, many of the prayers from the 1928 Book of Common Prayer comes from Scripture. Our you can use it to pray some of the Psalms.

One I personally like is my own take on the Hail marys style to wear I call it "Lord, I am not worthy".

With my Anglican Rosary, I first like to start of making the sign of the cross and saying

"In the Name of the father, Son, and Holy Spirit."

Then I do The Lord's prayer, and then The apostles creed.

Then with my seven Peach colored Beads I pray "Lord I am not worthy that thou shouldst come under my roof, but speak the word only and my should shall be healed."

That comes from Matthew 8:8.

That repetition is a great way to get my mind cleared out and focus solely on God's word alone and not on anything else that might distract me.

Then with the four beads that separate the 4 groups of 7, I pray

"As it was in the Beginning, is now and shall be, world without end".

Coming from Revelation 22:21

I hope to upload a video of me explaining that particular rosary on Youtube sometime this week.


So, as you see, though the beads themselves might not come straight from scripture, the prayers and devotions do.

It's not about the beads, it's about what they are and what they represent.

The Rosaries are tools for devotions to God and his gospel.

Don't knock em till you try them.

May the Lord be with you.