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 Prayer in the Catholic Church In the Catholic Church, prayer is "the raising of one's mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things from God." It is an act of the moral virtue of religion, which Catholic theologians identify as a part of the cardinal virtue of justice. Prayer may be expressed vocally or mentally. Vocal prayer may be spoken or sung. Mental prayer can be either meditation or contemplation. The basic forms of prayer are praise, petition (supplication), intercession, and thanksgiving. Roman Catholic teachings on the subject of prayer are contained in the "Catechism", where quoting