History of the Rosary of Blessed Alanus, some 300 years later. During the middle ages, evidence suggests that both the Our Father and the Hail Mary were recited with prayer beads. In 13th century Paris, four trade guilds existed of prayer bead makers, who were referred to as "paternosterers", and the beads were referred to as "paternosters", suggesting a continued link between the Our Father ("Pater noster" in Latin) and the prayer beads. In the 12th century, the rule of the English anchorites, the "Ancrene Wisse", specified how groups of 50 Hail Marys were to be broken into five decades of ten Hail Marys
Prayer in the Catholic Church "The Way to Christ" Pope John Paul II warned against "mechanical prayer" and pointed out the need for self-reflection before prayer. And in his message for the 42nd "World Day of Prayer" he said: In Catholic tradition, there are many legends about the power of persistent prayer. In the fourth century, Saint Monica of Hippo is said to have prayed for the conversion of her son Augustine for fourteen years and he eventually became an influential figure in Christian thought. Prayer in the Catholic Church In the Catholic Church, prayer is "the raising of one's mind and heart to God