Can a Priest wear a stole over the chausible?

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Spirithound

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I’ve noticed that the priests in St. Catharines wear their stoles over top of the chasuble, but the priests in Ottawa wear the stole under the chasuble. Are there guidelines about this? Anybody else notice different priests wearing different layers?
 
The GIRM clearly addresses this matter in paragraph 337:

“Unless otherwise indicated, the chasuble, worn over the alb and stole, is the vestment proper to the priest celebrant at Mass and other rites directly connected with Mass.”

Hope that helps.
 
It’s another personal touch. That is, it lets the celebrant standout from the routine of the mass.
 
Can you explain what you meant? Are you saying that wearing of the stole is a personal touch? As in not necessary, but something he can chose to wear if it pleases him on that particular day? Because if that’s what’s you are saying, that is incorrect.
Joe_Kelley said:
It’s another personal touch. That is, it lets the celebrant standout from the routine of the mass.
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slewi said:
Can you explain what you meant? Are you saying that wearing of the stole is a personal touch? As in not necessary, but something he can chose to wear if it pleases him on that particular day? Because if that’s what’s you are saying, that is incorrect.
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I took it to be ironic. Another unnecessary, illegitimate personalization of the liturgy.

The correct way is to wear the stole under the chasuble. But there are vestments that are designed to be worn with the stole on the outside. Sadly, I suppose some priests find it difficult to go against the designer’s intent.

Betsy
 
My pastor told me it has to be on the inside of the chasuble. He said it would be like wearing your underwear on the outside! :eek:

(on a side note)
I have gone to a First Communion a couple of Sundays ago and that pastor from another parish has female altar servers. I told my director, and he said what would it matter in the big scale of things. I replied: in the big scheme of things, it is all diosbedience. And the priests wonder why the lay people do not listen to them!😦
 
Shoshana said:
I have gone to a First Communion a couple of Sundays ago and that pastor from another parish has female altar servers. I told my director, and he said what would it matter in the big scale of things. I replied: in the big scheme of things, it is all diosbedience. And the priests wonder why the lay people do not listen to them!😦
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Can you explain this? Having female servers is not disobedient.
 
Some dissident priests (on this topic ONLY) told me that the reason they wear their stole over their chasuble is because the stole is the symbol of their priestly power.

As I understand it, prior to the current GIRM, this practice was acceptable, so these dissident priests are upset about the change.

Minor abuse? Yep. Bigger battles than this one to fight, in my mind.
 
MusicMan said:
Some dissident priests (on this topic ONLY) told me that the reason they wear their stole over their chasuble is because the stole is the symbol of their priestly power.
. . …
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I have read that the stole is the symbol of authority; the chasuble the symbol of mercy. While they are demonstrating their power, they forget that authority should always be contained by mercy.
 
Joe_Kelley said:
I have read that the stole is the symbol of authority; the chasuble the symbol of mercy. While they are demonstrating their power, they forget that authority should always be contained by mercy.
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Hence the reason for the stole to be on the inside of the chasuble.

My very orthodox priest always vests properly, except for one week, when he stuck to white chasubles with the stole on the outside. Of course, this was highly irregular, so I asked him why. He said the other vestments had to be washed and so happened that these were all that was left (white chasubles and large stoles; probably donated by unwitting donors), so he didn’t have much of a choice.

I told him that I understood; it was just that he’s such a stickler for liturgical propriety this would have been unthinkable, and that I never saw him dress otherwise. He thanked me for noticing.
 
MusicMan said:
As I understand it, prior to the current GIRM, this practice was acceptable, so these dissident priests are upset about the change.
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That must be the explanation, since the priest who I can most clearly remember wearing the stole over the chasuble is a monsignor with 45+ years in the priesthood, although hardly one I would classify as dissident.
 
The priest who I know who wears his stole over his chasuble is hardly someone I would classify as a dissident either, but he is on this topic. He also holds the title of Monsignor.
 
Shoshana said:
It’s not?:confused:
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No, and it’s not sad either as the other poster said. Girls can and do minister in this role, especially given falling numbers of boys. Would I prefer an all-boy cadre? Yes. But I’d rather have lots of people in a mixed cadre than a tiny boy only one.
 
MusicMan said:
The priest who I know who wears his stole over his chasuble is hardly someone I would classify as a dissident either, but he is on this topic. He also holds the title of Monsignor.
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😊 Thank you for that gentle rebuke.
 
No rebuke intended. My priest friend is a wonderful person, a good and holy man, and an incredibly orthodox priest (or, based on his Icon collection is that Orthodox priest? – a pun!). This issue is just a sticking point with him, and I suspect it is rooted in deeper issues related to diocesesan politics.

For all he has done for me, my family, and our spiritual growth and development, I will forgive him this one violation of the rubrics.
 
MusicMan said:
No rebuke intended. My priest friend is a wonderful person, a good and holy man, and an incredibly orthodox priest (or, based on his Icon collection is that Orthodox priest? – a pun!). This issue is just a sticking point with him, and I suspect it is rooted in deeper issues related to diocesesan politics.

For all he has done for me, my family, and our spiritual growth and development, I will forgive him this one violation of the rubrics.
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Your last post reminded me that even good and holy priests can be disobedient on occasion. I don’t know the politics behind it, I’ve never asked, and in fact I was brought up seeing priests wear the stole on the outside, and it took me actually several months after I moved to Ottawa to figure out what was different, and then I wondered why they were different!
 
There are many priests in the St Catherine’s Diocese that are quite disobedient. I know, I live here…They need our prayers.
 
GENERAL REMINDER

Post 4 - Banned Topics #18:
Identifying individual parishes, clergy, or hierarchs as “unfaithful to the Magisterium”, guilty of “liturgical abuse”, or otherwise engaged in unacceptable or unpopular practices, based on personal “knowledge” or opinion
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