Yes, in the Middle Ages, therewereorganizations very similar to guilds that focused primarily (or exclusively) onprayer, spirituality, devotion, and related religious activities. These were most commonly known asreligious guilds,parish guilds, orconfraternities(also called brotherhoods or fraternities).

While craft and merchant guilds (for trades like blacksmithing, weaving, or commerce) often included strong religious elements—such as having a patron saint, funding Masses, maintaining altars, attending processions, and arranging prayers for deceased members—their main purpose was economic and professional regulation.

In contrast, purelyreligious guildsorconfraternitiesexisted specifically for spiritual and devotional purposes, without a trade or craft focus. They functioned much like guilds in structure (voluntary membership, rules, fees, mutual support, feasts, and collective activities) but centered on collective prayer, piety, charity, and securing salvation for members’ souls.

Key features of these spiritual-focused groups included:

• Collective devotional life— Members gathered for regular prayers, attended Masses together, and performed devotional acts.
• Praying for the dead— A huge emphasis, especially under the Catholic doctrine of Purgatory; guilds funded Masses, candles, and priests (sometimes hiring chaplains or maintaining chantries) to pray for deceased members’ souls and shorten their time in Purgatory. They were sometimes called “the poor man’s chantry.”
• Mutual spiritual and practical aid— Support in illness, funerals, almsgiving, and charity, all framed in a religious context.
• Patron saints and rituals— Often dedicated to a saint, with feasts, processions, and altars in churches.

These were widespread in medieval Europe, especially in England, Germany, France, and Italy, from roughly the 8th–9th centuries onward, peaking in the late Middle Ages (13th–15th centuries). They were lay-led (not clerical), voluntary, and open to men and women (though often segregated or with different roles). Many were attached to parishes or specific churches.

Examples include:

• Guilds of the Blessed Virgin Mary or other saints in English towns.
• Confraternities devoted to the Eucharist, the Rosary, or specific devotions in Italy and Spain.
• Early forms trace back to Carolingian times, with lay associations building chapels and organizing prayer.

Many such groups were suppressed during the Reformation in Protestant regions (e.g., England in the 1540s), seen as “superstitious,” but some traditions continued or revived later.

So, just as there were guilds for trades and industries, there absolutely were “guilds for prayer” or spirituality—often called religious guilds or confraternities—dedicated to fostering communal devotion, prayer, and the spiritual welfare of members in medieval Christian Europe.