What are Protestant Prayer Beads?

The Anglican rosary, also known as protestant prayer beads, was created in the 1980s by Episcopalians in Texas who wanted their own devotional practice. As Christians across the world have embraced ancient practices of the Early Church, this devotion spread across all of Mainline Christianity. Today, Anglican rosaries are used by Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians, and Disciples of Christ.

While there is an ecumenical version of the Holy Rosary (replacing each Hail Mary with a Lord Jesus prayer), the main difference between the Catholic rosary and the Anglican rosary is that there is no fixed prayer for the Anglican rosary; each person is free to pray how they want. Additionally, the Catholic rosary usually includes meditation on events within the life of Christ, whereas the Anglican rosary is typically used as a counting device.

The original Anglican rosary has 33 beads to symbolize the
years that Jesus was on the Earth. However, many people want-
ed an additional bead to break up the first cruciform bead and
the invitatory bead.

The Charm– The Anglican rosary’s charm can be anything the
individual wants. It is most often a Latin cross, Celtic cross, crucifix, or dove.

The Invitatory Bead– This bead is used to open your prayer.

The Resurrection Bead– Some people make these different than the other beads to set it apart from the other beads and preserve their symbolism.

The Cruciform Beads– Hold the rosary out like a circle. Notice that the four beads form a cross.

The Weeks Beads– Four sets of seven beads. Seven is the number of completion and deeply rooted in the Christian tradition.

There are a variety of ways to use the Anglican rosary.
My cousin Karen, simply holds them in her hands every
morning to help her focus. Other people pray combinations
of prewritten prayers. If you pray around the beads three
times, you will have said 100 prayers. However, I usually pray
around them just once.
One recommendation is to use them to pray the ACTS
prayer. On the first set of weeks beads, pray for seven prayers
of adoration to God. On the next, confess seven ways you
have fallen short since the last time you asked for forgiveness.
On the next, think of seven things you are thankful for. And
on the final set, pray for seven things you need help with.