www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Faith & Theology How do you use your Chotki?

I'm just curious to hear from Eastern Catholics and Orthodox how they use their Chotkis, as in how they integrate it into their prayer life, what they pray with it, what it means to them, ect.

Feel free to share any stories or something relevant that isn't mentioned above!

Dear Tom,

I pray my chotki before sleep, or sometimes until sleep, saying: "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, sinner". And I repeet it everytime I clearly need the God's mercy - on difficulty or temptation - or I remember I have to pray "without cease".

It have been helping me to pray when I don't know what pray...

I do the same. I fall asleep saying it, then at times wake up and say it until I fall asleep again. Although I must admit, my mind tends to wander a bit during any type of prayer.

Today I also prayed the "prayer of Jesus" to thank God, as we are never capable to thank Him worthily.

I pray it as I go to sleep to, and I have to say, I think the devils hate the prayer very much, as I always fall asleep very quick when I pray it...

What is the Chotki? Do you pray the Rosary to?

The chotki is a set of prayer beads used as Philippe Gebara described - at home not in church. It was invented by Byzantine Rite monks and is still part of their practice. The beads are part of the monk's habit in that rite, worn on the monk's or nun's left wrist.

The Rosary is not native to the Byzantine Rite and thus shouldn't be used in church in that rite. However, over the years many Byzantine Catholics have adopted Roman Catholic practices including this one. I think many use it. At home that's fine.

Here is a good article about it.

http://www.svots.edu/Faculty/Albert-Rossi/Articles/Saying-the-Jesus-Prayer.html

the Prayer Rope refered to towards the end is the chotki.
I do pray the Rosary sometimes, although I really like to pray it with one of those scriptural Rosary books that give a scripture for every Hail Mary, taking you through the mysterys, as other wise I have too much trouble meditating on the mystery throughout the decade.

I pray the Jesus pray during tests to help me calm down and focus and also in the car when I am in a traffic jam. Once, someone told me to think of each car in your way to your destination as a bead on the prayer rope.

I also think important to say that the "prayer of Jesus" includes a prayer to the Holy Spirit, to pray for us, as we don't know how to pray. By that prayer, we ask the mercy of God, in which dwells the intercession of the Spirit ("the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express" Rm 8,26).

I pray the Jesus prayer before bed.

It is a 50-knotter, sometimes I will make an effort to go through the knots offering a prayer of thanksgiving for something different on each knot as an excercise in (1) thanking God and (2) realizing how blessed I am. Sometimes I will use each knot to beg a different saint to pray for me.