Eastern Catholic Episcopal Headwear

  • Thread starter Thread starter Thomas48
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
T

Thomas48

Guest
This was a very good read I found on our dear friend, Shlomo3Amrooh’s blog “Qadishat”. I took the liberty to share it on our Eastern Catholicism thread.

Original Source: qadishat.com/2013/10/episcopal-headwear.html

Just as the biretta is worn in the Latin Church and the kamilavkion in the Greek Church, so too, do the Oriental Churches have distinct clerical headwear. Today, we’re looking at non-liturgical headwear for bishops.

The reader will notice in the following photos that many of those of Middle Eastern origin are rather similar, yet remain quite distinct. Both the similarity and distinction come from the dress codes imposed by the Arab and Ottoman overlords. The Arabs and Ottomans maintained a rule that each sect’s clerical clothing had to have its own distinguishing characteristics. Hence we have the slight variations among the Maronite tobiyye, Syriac Orthodox koub’ono, Coptic Orthodox 'emmeh, Assyrian Church of the East kosita, and the Chaldean shash. In regard to the shash, it’s very much a shame that the current Catholicos-Patriarch, Mar Louis-Raphael, refuses to wear it.

Both the Syriac Catholic Church and Coptic Catholic Church each have slightly different variations of the Greek kamilavkion, the Syriacs without a veil, and the Copts with a veil. In keeping with the imposed Ottoman rules, neither is identical to the Greek style. The adoption of a variant of the Greek kamilavkion, rather than a variant of either the koub’ono or 'emmeh, appears to have come about along with their union with Rome.

It’s interesting to note that the only ones who seem to have escaped the Ottoman restrictions were the Melkites, and it’s likely that the historical circumstances of their own union with Rome explain why.

The churches in India were, of course, never affected by the Ottomans, but the Syro-Malabar Church was for some 400 years directly affected by Rome. For many years, the Latin biretta was used in the Syro-Malabar Church, but recently, under the guidance of Major-Archbishop Mar George Allencherry, things have changed a bit. While it’s still essentially a biretta, at least it’s now of a uniquely Syro-Malabar style. The Syro-Malankara hold the distinction of being the only Oriental Church in union with Rome to have maintained the same episcopal headwear as their Orthodox brethren.

http://www.texansforpeace.org/endth...photosofIraqis/CardinalDellyVatican112407.jpg
Chaldean Patriarch-emeritus Mar Emmanuel III in red shash

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/...5D7l99aEGdGG3FmfenwxoWZEm8cB0dYAF28_wpCBEFm-0
Maronite Patriarch-Emeritus Mor Nasrallah in black tobiyye

http://www.tajaddod-youth.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Patriarch-Rai.jpg
Maronite Patriarch Mor Bichara in red tobiyye

http://i.picresize.com/images/2014/09/20/PoBKI.jpg
Syro-Malabar Major-Archbishop Mar George in red Syro-Malabar biretta

http://www.caedm.ca/Portals/0/pastoral scene/Baselios_Cardinal_Cleemis.jpg
Syro-Malankara Castholicos Mor Basilios Cleemis in red-topped koub’ono

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...20px-Moran_Mor_Ignatius_Joseph_III_Younan.jpg
Syriac Catholic Patriarch Moran Mor Ignatios Yowsef III in kamilavkion (without veil)


Coptic Catholic Patriarch Ibrahim Isaac Sidrak in kamilavkion (with veil)
 
questions:

difference between koubono and emmeh?

what is a sash?

what are syro malabar bishops supposed to wear, i mean historically…
 
difference between koubono and emmeh?
The koub’ono has an onion-point on top.
what is a sash?
Shash is the flatten-circle looking hat that the Chaldean bishops wear.
what are syro malabar bishops supposed to wear, i mean historically…
Good question. So technically nothing, since these hats are all late Ottoman impositions. Clothing was a way of identifying different groups so Christian [clergy] were essentially assigned different turbans to be distinguished. Because this was an exclusively Middle Eastern imposition, this did not effect the subcontinent - although the Malankara adopted the koub’ono probably out of solidarity with the SO bishops. The Maronite patriarch was the only patriarch to argue that priests are extensions of the bishops with the Ottomans, so they also wear the toubiyyeh (which is technically episcopal like the koub’ono and emmeh).
 
I beleive that since the Syro Malabar Church is of the East Syriac Rite it would be proper for our hierarchs to follow the Chaldean/Assyrian wear but of course because of Latinization our bishops simply wear Latin wear. Though I can only say that I am extremely happy that Mar George Alencherry has made the change to wearing a some-what East Syriac wear. The headgear especially is a change, its takes on the fashion of the Syro Malabar Miter.
 
I beleive that since the Syro Malabar Church is of the East Syriac Rite it would be proper for our hierarchs to follow the Chaldean/Assyrian wear but of course because of Latinization our bishops simply wear Latin wear. Though I can only say that I am extremely happy that Mar George Alencherry has made the change to wearing a some-what East Syriac wear. The headgear especially is a change, its takes on the fashion of the Syro Malabar Miter.
Even during the time that the ACoE was in decline and disarray, and essentially neglected its daughter Church in Kerala, it’s more than likely that bishops in Kerala would have worn the kosita.
 
More distressing than the lack of wearing optional secular headgear of the priests, is the lack of wearing the not-optional headgear of priests (phiro) by some of the above mentioned churches. No adequate explanation has been given to me, the only reason given is solidarity with Latins (who don’t care for the most part, one way or the other)
 
The koub’ono has an onion-point on top.

Shash is the flatten-circle looking hat that the Chaldean bishops wear.

Good question. So technically nothing, since these hats are all late Ottoman impositions. Clothing was a way of identifying different groups so Christian [clergy] were essentially assigned different turbans to be distinguished. Because this was an exclusively Middle Eastern imposition, this did not effect the subcontinent - although the Malankara adopted the koub’ono probably out of solidarity with the SO bishops. The Maronite patriarch was the only patriarch to argue that priests are extensions of the bishops with the Ottomans, so they also wear the toubiyyeh (which is technically episcopal like the koub’ono and emmeh).
thank you
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top