Popular piety refers to religious practices that arose and occur outside of the official Church. Typically the term is used within the context of the Catholic church, the practices are generally accepted and allowed. Forms of popular piety

Piety

In spiritual terminology, piety is a virtue that can mean religious devotion, spirituality, or a combination of both. A common element in most conceptions of piety is humility.- Etymology :...

 can be seen from the earliest Christian communities through the Middle Ages

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

 and into the present day.

External links

• Directory of Popular Piety and the Liturgy, Vatican City, 2001. Contains a history and examples of popular piety.

• Boyle, Leonard E.
  Leonard Boyle
  Father Leonard Eugene Boyle was an Irish and Canadian scholar in medieval studies and palaeography and was the first Irish and North American Prefect of the Vatican Library in Rome from 1984 to 1997....
  
  "Popular Piety in the Middle Ages: What is Popular?" Florilegium 4 (1982), 184-193.