Sartorial Splendor- Cool Colors
I thought a brief stopover in the land of liturgical colors was a good idea before continuing on with the meat of the series, so, here it is.
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Cool Colors
Or: How I learned to stop worrying and love the color pin-rose, not pink, rose.
Humans are, in many ways, creatures that need external signs and symbols. We need them for a variety of reasons- to underscore the importance of something, to remind us of something and so on. The Catholic Church recognizes this need and provides us with these things in many different forms- oil at confirmation, water at baptism, candles, statues, incense and so on. They serve to elevate the mind, to distinguish the ecclesiastical from the secular.
At Mass, we are provided with an array of different colors which are symbolic of different things and which seek to remind us of something in particular. The priest's chasuble is the primary vehicle through which the symbolism of color is conveyed to us being, as it is, the most visible of his vestments. The stole (and maniple) should also match in color, but as these are not visible (or not used, in the case of the latter), they are less important for this function. Altar linens may also be changed to reflect the different color of the day- the Oxford Oratory changed the altar linen and the ambo hangings everyday (although this is uncommon, both because many parishes may not have that many different kinds of altar linens and because it's a hassle).
There are six main colors which are permitted for liturgical use: red, green, white, purple, rose and black. These colors must be the dominant color of the vestment. In the atrocious example above, you may see that rose (yes, yes, we all know it's pink, but rose is a much manlier color... sort of) is not the only color of the vestment. Other colors are permitted on the vestment, of course, to serve as decoration and whatnot, it's just that the main color has to be of the particular liturgical day.
Red- Red is symbolic of both blood and fire, for obvious reasons. It is used on Feasts of the Lord's Passion, Blood and Cross. It is also used on Palm Sunday (recall that the Passion account is read that day). Red is also used on Pentecost and other Masses of the Holy Spirit, evoking the tongues of fire that came down on the first Pentecost. Finally, red is used on feasts of saints who were martyred- again, denoting the blood that was shed.
White- White is symbolic of innocence and triumph (recall the thousands of saints in the Book of Revelation, all clothed in white). It is used in the Seasons of Christmas and Easter, on All Saints Day and Feasts of Jesus other than those of His Passion. Additionally, feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary, angels, the Apostles and saints who were not martyrs also use white. Finally, Nuptial Masses use white, as can funeral Masses.
Green- Green is symbolic of life and hope (think Springtime and budding plants). It is used during Ordinary Time, that is, in the Time after the Epiphany and after Pentecost.
Purple- Purple is symbolic of penance and "expiation," or cleansing. It is used during Advent and Lent, as well as on fast days and vigils.
Rose- Rose is used on Laetare Sunday, the Fourth Sunday of Lent, and Gaudete Sunday, the Third Sunday of Advent, as a brief "lifting" of the penetential nature of the season. It tempers the sadness of the season with this foray into rejoicing, as we celebrate the goodness of the Lord.
Black- Black is symbolic of death and mourning. Black, though not suppressed, is nevertheless a very rare color to see employed anymore. This is unfortunate, I think, for a number of reasons, but I shan't get into that here. At any rate, it may be used on All Souls Day and Good Friday, as well as at Requiem Masses (Masses for the dead). Black has been largely replaced by white in modern times.
Those are the six main liturgical colors. Here are three more:
Blue- Blue is the color of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is not permitted as a liturgical color, although it is sometimes erroneously used, especially on Marian feasts and during Advent. Certain dioceses in Spain have permission to use blue on Marian feasts, as do a select few Marian shrines around the world, but these are very specific exceptions to a general rule.
Silver and Gold- When a vestment's predominant color is silver or gold (i.e. it's made of cloth of gold, etc.), that vestment is understood to be one of particular richness. That is to say, it's a very special vestment by virtue of the expense undertaken in its making and is to be used on very special feasts. These are not very common, although you may see the pope in these with some regularity. Silver vestments may be used when the day's color is white and gold vestments may be used to replace white, red or green, but not rose, purple or black.
Well, I think that's all for now. Possibly something of substance later, although there's a scheduled blogspot outage later tonight, so perhaps not.
Saint Paul Miki and Companions, pray for us!
Saint Scholastica, pray for us!
Our Lady, Queen of Peace, pray for us!
Or: How I learned to stop worrying and love the color pin-rose, not pink, rose.
Humans are, in many ways, creatures that need external signs and symbols. We need them for a variety of reasons- to underscore the importance of something, to remind us of something and so on. The Catholic Church recognizes this need and provides us with these things in many different forms- oil at confirmation, water at baptism, candles, statues, incense and so on. They serve to elevate the mind, to distinguish the ecclesiastical from the secular.
At Mass, we are provided with an array of different colors which are symbolic of different things and which seek to remind us of something in particular. The priest's chasuble is the primary vehicle through which the symbolism of color is conveyed to us being, as it is, the most visible of his vestments. The stole (and maniple) should also match in color, but as these are not visible (or not used, in the case of the latter), they are less important for this function. Altar linens may also be changed to reflect the different color of the day- the Oxford Oratory changed the altar linen and the ambo hangings everyday (although this is uncommon, both because many parishes may not have that many different kinds of altar linens and because it's a hassle).
There are six main colors which are permitted for liturgical use: red, green, white, purple, rose and black. These colors must be the dominant color of the vestment. In the atrocious example above, you may see that rose (yes, yes, we all know it's pink, but rose is a much manlier color... sort of) is not the only color of the vestment. Other colors are permitted on the vestment, of course, to serve as decoration and whatnot, it's just that the main color has to be of the particular liturgical day.
Red- Red is symbolic of both blood and fire, for obvious reasons. It is used on Feasts of the Lord's Passion, Blood and Cross. It is also used on Palm Sunday (recall that the Passion account is read that day). Red is also used on Pentecost and other Masses of the Holy Spirit, evoking the tongues of fire that came down on the first Pentecost. Finally, red is used on feasts of saints who were martyred- again, denoting the blood that was shed.
White- White is symbolic of innocence and triumph (recall the thousands of saints in the Book of Revelation, all clothed in white). It is used in the Seasons of Christmas and Easter, on All Saints Day and Feasts of Jesus other than those of His Passion. Additionally, feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary, angels, the Apostles and saints who were not martyrs also use white. Finally, Nuptial Masses use white, as can funeral Masses.
Green- Green is symbolic of life and hope (think Springtime and budding plants). It is used during Ordinary Time, that is, in the Time after the Epiphany and after Pentecost.
Purple- Purple is symbolic of penance and "expiation," or cleansing. It is used during Advent and Lent, as well as on fast days and vigils.
Rose- Rose is used on Laetare Sunday, the Fourth Sunday of Lent, and Gaudete Sunday, the Third Sunday of Advent, as a brief "lifting" of the penetential nature of the season. It tempers the sadness of the season with this foray into rejoicing, as we celebrate the goodness of the Lord.
Black- Black is symbolic of death and mourning. Black, though not suppressed, is nevertheless a very rare color to see employed anymore. This is unfortunate, I think, for a number of reasons, but I shan't get into that here. At any rate, it may be used on All Souls Day and Good Friday, as well as at Requiem Masses (Masses for the dead). Black has been largely replaced by white in modern times.
Those are the six main liturgical colors. Here are three more:
Blue- Blue is the color of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is not permitted as a liturgical color, although it is sometimes erroneously used, especially on Marian feasts and during Advent. Certain dioceses in Spain have permission to use blue on Marian feasts, as do a select few Marian shrines around the world, but these are very specific exceptions to a general rule.
Silver and Gold- When a vestment's predominant color is silver or gold (i.e. it's made of cloth of gold, etc.), that vestment is understood to be one of particular richness. That is to say, it's a very special vestment by virtue of the expense undertaken in its making and is to be used on very special feasts. These are not very common, although you may see the pope in these with some regularity. Silver vestments may be used when the day's color is white and gold vestments may be used to replace white, red or green, but not rose, purple or black.
Well, I think that's all for now. Possibly something of substance later, although there's a scheduled blogspot outage later tonight, so perhaps not.
Saint Paul Miki and Companions, pray for us!
Saint Scholastica, pray for us!
Our Lady, Queen of Peace, pray for us!
posted by Jason | Monday, February 06, 2006
1 Comments:
It's very definitely rose and not pink. The Church hates pink. Read your Chesterton. (It's really just symbolic of the way the Church brings opposites together not by blending and weakening them, but by keeping each in full strength. Therefore, Jesus is not a man who became a god, or a man taken over by God, nor is he God in the appearance of man. He is true God and true man.) I think rose was supposed to be a weave with red in one direction and white in the other, but I have no reason other than a vague feeling to think that way.
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