Chotki (Prayer Rope)

What is a Chotki?

While Roman/Latin Rite Catholics are most likely to turn to the rosary for deep, meditative prayer, our Eastern Rite brothers and sisters are likely to pick up their chotki, or prayer rope.

The tradition of the chotki dates back to the fourth century; it is said that the Desert Fathers were the first to use the prayer rope, making it an older devotion than the rosary by around 900 years. The most common type of chotki today has 33 knots or beads symbolizing the 33 years of Jesus’ life on Earth (though others can have 50, 100, 150, or even 500 knots).

Similar to a rosary, the knots or beads are used to keep track of the repetitive nature of the prayers said in this devotion. The most common prayer said on the chotki is the Jesus Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

As Eastern Rite Catholics are part of the universal Catholic Church, those of us who are among the West’s Latin Rite Catholics are more than permitted to take on the devotion of the chotki. Covenant Co.’s rosaries are fully hand made.

• 8mm olive wood prayer beads imported directly from Bethlehem & Jerusalem, produced by the Bethlehem Christian community. Vintage olive wood beads are treated with a natural base sealer to protect the timber from humidity and sweat. The beads are not made by cutting down trees; these olive wood beads are made with great respect to the environment and tradition. Since these beads are handmade, some will have minor dimples that do not impact the integrity of the beads.

• Spacer glass beads imported directly from the Czech Republic. Size and shape may vary slightly and color may vary from dye lot to dye lot. Items are made with solid color glass, which means the base color of the glass is saturated throughout the object and will not fade or rub off over time.

• Flex wire consists of 49 smaller wires stranded together and nylon-coated for the best flexibility. Unlike standard cotton cord, this wire is near-indestructible to last the life of your prayer rope.

• 1.25″ x 0.75″ silver-plated crucifix made in Italy, purchased from St. Paul Street Evangelization, “a grassroots, non-profit organization, dedicated to responding to the mandate of Jesus to preach the Gospel to all nations by taking the Catholic Faith to the streets.”

In 2022, $563.45 was raised and donated to the Knights of Columbus from the sale of these chotki. Even though Ukraine has fallen out of the media, Covenant Co. is still accepting donations. Select the “donation” option from the chotki option below and the funds will be sent right to the Knights of Columbus. Click here to learn more.

Questions or comments? I’d love to chat! Shout out at: love@covenantco.org.