The Papal Tiara

[William_II]

Are you partial to the papal tiara? Do you have a favorite one?

I like papal tiaras. They are a great symbol of papal authority to me. My favorite is the one that Hungary presented to Pope John Paul II in 1981. He has never worn it publicly.
No Pope has worn a tiara since Paul VI in 1963. I hope to see a return to them in the future.

 

[Dempsey1919]

I love the beauty of the Papal Tiaras but they are a remnant of past and I would be pleasantly suprised if Pope Benedict wore one.

Many feel that the tiara symbolises the political power of the Papacy, and as the papacy no longer yields political power, modern Popes have not worn the triple crown.

Also, the modern popes have not worn the tiara in an attempt to be more humble.

 

[William_II]

Many feel that the tiara symbolises the political power of the Papacy, and as the papacy no longer yields political power, modern Popes have not worn the triple crown.

Then let many feel that way. Can’t the tiara simply symbolize the primacy of the Pope over other bishops? I’d love to see the tiara return. It’s never been worn during my lifetime.

 

[Dempsey1919]

Then let many feel that way. Can’t the tiara simply symbolize the primacy of the Pope over other bishops? I’d love to see the tiara return. It’s never been worn during my lifetime.

If the current shift towards traditional Catholic practice continues, then I would say that there is a strong possibility that the Tiara will make a return in the future, possibly when Pope Benedict celebrates his first pontifical High Mass.

 

[William_II]

If the current shift towards traditional Catholic practice continues, then I would say that there is a strong possibility that the Tiara will make a return in the future, possibly when Pope Benedict celebrates his first pontifical High Mass.

It’d be nice if this all came to fruition. How often do Popes celebrate a pontifical High Mass? How often did Pope John Paul II? And if Benedict XVI intends to do so, then what is he waiting for at eighty-one years of age?

 

[Dempsey1919]

It’d be nice if this all came to fruition. How often do Popes celebrate a pontifical High Mass? How often did Pope John Paul II? And if Benedict XVI intends to do so, then what is he waiting for at eighty-one years of age?

As far as I’m aware, none of the recent Popes have celebrated a Pontifical High Mass in the Gregorian/Tridentine tradition since the inauguration of the Pauline Missal.

It would be great to see Pope Benedict celebrate this type of Mass, but these developments take time. There would be some who would see this as a signal that the new Mass is being left aside; but this wouldn’t be the case.

 

[JaMc]

If the current shift towards traditional Catholic practice continues, then I would say that there is a strong possibility that the Tiara will make a return in the future, possibly when Pope Benedict celebrates his first pontifical High Mass.

While the shift back toward tradition is certainly encouraging, Pope Benedict’s choice to omit the Tiara from his coat of arms, even when John Paul I and II did not go that far, seems to show that he has no interest at all in restoring its use.

 

[bpbasilphx]

While the shift back toward tradition is certainly encouraging, Pope Benedict’s choice to omit the Tiara from his coat of arms,

There are three bars on the miter that ensigns his arms, suggestive of the triple tiara.

 

[Dempsey1919]

While the shift back toward tradition is certainly encouraging, Pope Benedict’s choice to omit the Tiara from his coat of arms, even when John Paul I and II did not go that far, seems to show that he has no interest at all in restoring its use.

If the time comes when Pope Benedict celebrates a Solemn High Mass according to the Missal of Bl. John XXIII, then he will wear the Papal tiara, not while celebrating the Mass, but during specific moments of the Mass.

We will never see him wear the tiara on a regular basis, but I would not be suprised to see him do so on special occasions in the future. Although he chose to remove this from his Coat of Arms, I think this had more to do with the lessening of political power weilded by the Papacy, and less to do with his dislike of crown itself.

 

[William_II]

Although he chose to remove this from his Coat of Arms, I think this had more to do with the lessening of political power weilded by the Papacy, and less to do with his dislike of crown itself.

I recall reading that he included the mitre on his personal coat of arms as a tribute to Pope Paul VI. The mitre is apparently designed after one that Paul VI had worn and given to Cardinal Ratzinger.

 

[Dempsey1919]

I recall reading that he included the mitre on his personal coat of arms as a tribute to Pope Paul VI. The mitre is apparently designed after one that Paul VI had worn and given to Cardinal Ratzinger.

Thanks for sharing. I didn’t know this. Pope Paul VI seems to be getting more respect these days, which I think is a great thing.

 

[William_II]

Pope Paul VI seems to be getting more respect these days, which I think is a great thing.

I prefer Pope John XXIII, myself. I don’t like that Paul VI discontinued the papal regalia, abolished the galero of the cardinals, etc. I miss all of the vestments and accessories that were once available to the Church.

 

[redrosetea]

I wonder if those crowns are heavy? They might be glad not to have to wear it

 

[Dempsey1919]

I prefer Pope John XXIII, myself. I don’t like that Paul VI discontinued the papal regalia, abolished the galero of the cardinals, etc. I miss all of the vestments and accessories that were once available to the Church.

I agree. I also prefer the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Mass. However, despite this, I believe Pope Paul VI did a good job in leading the Church through very difficult times. His stance on artificial birth control as outlined in Humane Vitae was truly courageous.

Although he is not one of my favourite Popes, I do respect Paul VI and I appreciate how difficult it must have been for him during those turbulent times.

 

[muffinmojo]

It’d be nice if this all came to fruition. How often do Popes celebrate a pontifical High Mass? How often did Pope John Paul II? And if Benedict XVI intends to do so, then what is he waiting for at eighty-one years of age?

He can’t. The Solemn High Papal Mass in the EF involves Vatican military units which don’t exist anymore, so a celebration of it is impossible. His Holiness celebrated a Pontifical High Mass when merely a cardinal, but now that he’s Pope, I believe if he celebrates, it must be a Papal Mass(someone correct me if I’m wrong).

 

[Dempsey1919]

He can’t. The Solemn High Papal Mass in the EF involves Vatican military units which don’t exist anymore, so a celebration of it is impossible. His Holiness celebrated a Pontifical High Mass when merely a cardinal, but now that he’s Pope, I believe if he celebrates, it must be a Papal Mass(someone correct me if I’m wrong).

I’m sure they would be able to adapt the Mass to make it’s celebration possible. Maybe they could change it so that the Swiss Guard can perform the roles of the supressed Military Units.

 

[Mattapoisett64]

He can’t. The Solemn High Papal Mass in the EF involves Vatican military units which don’t exist anymore, so a celebration of it is impossible. His Holiness celebrated a Pontifical High Mass when merely a cardinal, but now that he’s Pope, I believe if he celebrates, it must be a Papal Mass(someone correct me if I’m wrong).

That’s an amazing bit of knowledge. However, what possible relationship did “military units” have to the Mass? And, should they? Surely the Mass is not about temporal power.

 

[JaMc]

I’m sure they would be able to adapt the Mass to make it’s celebration possible. Maybe they could change it so that the Swiss Guard can perform the roles of the supressed Military Units.

I agree. I believe the Swiss Guard has assumed all of the other ceremonial duties of the Palatine Guard and the Noble Guard, so I do not think it would be impossible to have the Swiss Guard take their place at the Mass as well. After all, the Noble Guard was created in 1801 by Pius VII (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noble_Guard_(Vatican)), while the Palatine Guard wasn’t created until 1850 by Pius IX (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palatine_Guard), whereas the Tridentine Mass was instituted in the mid-1500’s - I doubt they refrained from celebrating Papal High Masses for about 250 years until the appropriate military units could be organized in the 19th century

As an aside, the two former units appeared to have distinguished themselves admirably during WWII - it’s a shame they were disbanded.

 

[JaMc]

That’s an amazing bit of knowledge. However, what possible relationship did “military units” have to the Mass? And, should they? Surely the Mass is not about temporal power.

While I am not fortunate enough to have seen a Papal High Mass, from the Wikipedia articles I posted above, it appears that the Noble Guard were the standard bearers, while the Palatine Guard presented arms and served as an “honour guard.”

 

[JaMc]

I wonder if those crowns are heavy? They might be glad not to have to wear it

I believe they had a papier mache tiara for precisely that purpose - they were usually used by elderly popes (there are pictures of it on the internet somewhere - it is really quite impressive).