Priest Wearing Gray

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PazzoGrande said:
The book The Church Visible, which is supposed to be the definitive book on clerical clothes, says that with clerical shirts, black is the only proper colour, even though that isn’t always followed…
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It’s a tome written by a layman. It has no authority.
 
joanofarc2008 said:
Here’s a question does it also differ from Rite to Rite which no one seems to have mentioned?
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In the Byzantine rite the dress would be a Greek or Russian Cassock. Neither has a roman collar. In the slavic churches the priest is presented with a pectoral cross at his ordination that he wears, the deacon wears no pectoral cross, this is how you can tell them apart. In the Melkite Church the priest is not presented a pectoral cross at his ordination but his bishop may give one later. When Archbishop Cyril took over the Eparchy of Newton the awarded all his priests the pectoral cross.

Here is what they look like.

Greek Cassock


Russian Cassock
 
ByzCath said:
In the Byzantine rite the dress would be a Greek or Russian Cassock. Neither has a roman collar. In the slavic churches the priest is presented with a pectoral cross at his ordination that he wears, the deacon wears no pectoral cross, this is how you can tell them apart. In the Melkite Church the priest is not presented a pectoral cross at his ordination but his bishop may give one later. When Archbishop Cyril took over the Eparchy of Newton the awarded all his priests the pectoral cross.

Here is what they look like.

Greek Cassock
http://www.istok.net/images/cache/b058c946179df007554046a3a8a48d71.jpg

Russian Cassock
http://www.istok.net/images/P/ve-941-s-russian-cassock-01.jpg
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Thank you!
 
Joannm said:
I have seen priests wear differnt color clerical shirts, especially in the summer. I have mostly seen gray and white, although I have also seen light blue.
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My parish priest and another one I know nearly always wear light blue.
 
Episcopalians and Methodists and Anglicans buy some of those other colors. They get to wear a veritable rainbow.
 
I have seen our priest in gray and pictures of other priest in Rome for the year of the priest in gray as well:shrug:
 
Our priest wears grey, black or white. With his white he also wears khakis 🙂

I have also seen a monsignor here (Florida) wear light blue.

I have two uncles who are priests (one in Ireland one in South Africa) and they wear grey or black.

I had no idea it was considered unorthodox not to wear black all the time?
 
catholicmomx5 said:
my only question is was the Priest wearing a purple stole?
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That is the important part. A priest can hear confession in regular street clothes, but the purple stole is the sign to look for. Most priests have a “travel kit” with a narrow short stole. But in their parish confessionals they can keep a regular one on a hanger.
 
chickenhawk1022 said:
Our priest wears grey, black or white. With his white he also wears khakis 🙂

I have also seen a monsignor here (Florida) wear light blue.

I have two uncles who are priests (one in Ireland one in South Africa) and they wear grey or black.

I had no idea it was considered unorthodox not to wear black all the time?
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You had no idea because it is not unorthodox.
 
Mrs_Sally said:
That is the important part. A priest can hear confession in regular street clothes, but the purple stole is the sign to look for. Most priests have a “travel kit” with a narrow short stole. But in their parish confessionals they can keep a regular one on a hanger.
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Are there rules about wearing streetclothes, or when clerical clothes absolutely have to be worn? As I understand it, Vatican II wanted religious and clergy to wear “distinctive clothing” but of course priests wear regular clothes too. And do the rules for religious priests differ from secular? I was surprised when I saw a Franciscan I know wear regular clothes. Also, can religious priests wear regular clerical clothes, or are they limited to their habits?
 
This is decided by the bishop and/or superior, so it varies all over the place.
 
The preferred color is black. If priests wear another color, it is not “wrong”, but it is - or should be - discouraged. I had the Sacrament of the Sick administered to me by a priest wearing chocolate brown. His pants and jacket were also of the same color. The only colors which maybe should be forbidden are red, purple and white due to their associations with the various ranks within the Church. Nevertheless, I would rather see a collar on a priest (of any color) rather than one of the “shirt and tie” guys.

Street cloths are required in some countries, such as Turkey (and maybe Mexico) where clerical garb in public is illegal. In this case, regular clothes are OK.
 
Barry_Gabriel said:
. The only colors which maybe should be forbidden are red, purple and white due to their associations with the various ranks within the Church. .
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On my mission trips to Tanzania, most of the local priests wore white shirts, even a few white cassocks.

White is one of the more common colors for clergy and religious in the warmer climates. And also among certain orders, such as the Dominicans.

In fact, the entire reason that the Pope wears a white cassock as normative clerical garb is that Pope St. Pius V was a Dominican who simply continued to wear his normal Domincan cassock.
 
Barry_Gabriel said:
The preferred color is black. If priests wear another color, it is not “wrong”, but it is - or should be - discouraged.
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I don’t think the Church has made any such statement on this. It is “tradition” that the clerical shirt be black but it is not required.
Brendan said:
On my mission trips to Tanzania, most of the local priests wore white shirts, even a few white cassocks.

White is one of the more common colors for clergy and religious in the warmer climates. And also among certain orders, such as the Dominicans.

In fact, the entire reason that the Pope wears a white cassock as normative clerical garb is that Pope St. Pius V was a Dominican who simply continued to wear his normal Domincan cassock.
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Just a note, the Dominican habit is called a tunic, not a cassock. Same for us Carmelites.
 
Barry_Gabriel said:
The preferred color is black. If priests wear another color, it is not “wrong”, but it is - or should be - discouraged. I had the Sacrament of the Sick administered to me by a priest wearing chocolate brown. His pants and jacket were also of the same color. The only colors which maybe should be forbidden are red, purple and white due to their associations with the various ranks within the Church. Nevertheless, I would rather see a collar on a priest (of any color) rather than one of the “shirt and tie” guys.

Street cloths are required in some countries, such as Turkey (and maybe Mexico) where clerical garb in public is illegal. In this case, regular clothes are OK.
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You might want to re-think this. Your suggestion to forbid white would come as a shock to members of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts (St. Damien of Molokai’s order) whose habit is white. And there are others. Cardinal O’Malley of Boston, whose preferred dress is his Franciscan brown habit, might also be concerned.
 
I have seen a Hispanic priest wear a grey cleric shirt, but I think he might be from a Hispanic country. I see no reason why they shouldn’t be allowed really, we have priests wear sweaters, and all kinds of shirts that aren’t clerics (which I have no problem with personally). I don’t see where weAring a different color cleric shirt would be a problem.
 
Tarpeian_Rock said:
You might want to re-think this. Your suggestion to forbid white would come as a shock to members of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts (St. Damien of Molokai’s order) whose habit is white. And there are others. Cardinal O’Malley of Boston, whose preferred dress is his Franciscan brown habit, might also be concerned.
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I’m curious, in those pictures where Saint Damien is in black, is that just a regular cassock and not his habit? Seems that in most pics, he’s wearing black (I’m from Hawaii and went to the prepschool named after him, and I go to the Cathedral where he was ordained; in all the pics I’ve seen, he’s in black, save for the one I see online of him in white).

BTW about wearing habits, in the past, wasn’t it custom to put purple or red piping? I wonder why that custom never seems to have followed. It sure is nice to see a Prince of the Church wear the robe of a poor Franciscan. Admittedly it looks odd (because it’s so rare to see bright red on anyone in a habit) but it’s a beautifully encouraging sight.
 
A priest once did a talk at our ladies circle and told us about the varied colours they can wear. That opened my eyes very much so because up till then they had like as you said all worn black so I felt sorry for them in the heat of summer. Not anymore because they can choose their own colours and our new priest does wear grey shirts more and I like him for it. Well I like him anyway but he went up a notch for not always being in black. Its refreshing when a priest can get a way from black.

👍
 
Tarpeian_Rock said:
You might want to re-think this. Your suggestion to forbid white would come as a shock to members of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts (St. Damien of Molokai’s order) whose habit is white. And there are others. Cardinal O’Malley of Boston, whose preferred dress is his Franciscan brown habit, might also be concerned.
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You might want to re-read my post: The preferred color is black. If priests wear another color, it is not “wrong”, but it is - or should be - discouraged. I had the Sacrament of the Sick administered to me by a priest wearing chocolate brown. His pants and jacket were also of the same color. The only colors which maybe should be forbidden are red, purple and white due to their associations with the various ranks within the Church. Nevertheless, I would rather see a collar on a priest (of any color) rather than one of the “shirt and tie” guys
 
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