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Significance of vestments and the various options

By Adam Schwend
Liturgy & Ritual

Q.   What is the significance of the vestments of the deacon, priest, and bishop?

A.   The vestments we see at Mass are not just pretty robes that are put on in order to impress people.  They serve an important purpose and each vestment has a meaning.  Man’s nature is such that he needs external help fixing his attention on that which is sacred.  In today’s post-modern society, some may think that we are beyond such things, but that simply is not the case.  I have said time and time again that we are a sensory people.  Tastes, smells, sights, sounds, etc. all help point us towards concrete realities.  The vestments worn at Mass all help point us, consciously and sub-consciously, toward certain attitudes on certain days.

The first thing you will notice about vestments is usually their color.  There are four primary colors used in the Roman Mass today and they have four distinct meanings:  White, red, violet, and green.  When the Church wishes to denote purity, innocence or celebration, the vestments will be white (or on the most solemn of days, sometimes gold).  Such days are major feasts of the Lord, such as Christmas, Easter, and Ascension; Feasts of Our Lady, and Feasts of Saints that are not martyrs.  Red is the color of fire and blood.  It is used in Masses of the Holy Spirit, such as Pentecost or Confirmation, Masses of the martyrs, and on the days where we commemorate the Passion of the Lord:  Passion (Palm) Sunday and Good Friday.  Violet is the color of penance.  It is used during the seasons of Advent and Lent.   Green is the color of growth and life.  It is used to denote the growth and life of the Church and is worn during Ordinary Time.  Black, although rarely used, is also an acceptable option on All Souls Day and for funerals.  Twice a year, on the Third Sunday of Advent (Gaudete Sunday) and the Fourth Sunday of Lent (Laetare Sunday), Rose-colored vestments are an option that may be used.  On these days, the readings take on a more hopeful and joyful tone than the other Sundays of Advent and Lent, so a more joyful color may be used.  For a time, the color blue was used in some places during Advent and on feasts of Our Lady.  Except in a very few places in Spain which have permission to use blue on feasts of Our Lady, blue is not a liturgical color and is not permitted.

The first vestment that a deacon, priest, or bishop will put on is the alb.  The alb is the oldest of all liturgical garments and is proper to all the baptized faithful who fulfill a liturgical function as it is the baptismal garment.  Just as a white garment was given to us at baptism to represent our new-found purity, so this garment represents purity of body and soul of those who wear it.  The alb should cover all street clothes.  If the alb does not cover the collar, the minister puts on an amice, which is a white kerchief with two ribbons to attach it.  Often, to put it on, the minister will put it over his head and slide it down to his neck.  It came, then, to represent the “helmet of salvation”.

The next vestment for Mass is the stole.  Priests and bishops wear the stole over both shoulders.  The deacon wears the stole over his left shoulder and has it fastened on the right side.  As deacons are ordained to assist and serve, this was to make sure that the deacon’s right arm was available for service.  The stole is sign of the minister’s authority.  It was worn by Roman judges when exercising their office.

The chasuble is the large, sleeveless robe that priests and bishop’s wear when celebrating Mass and which is placed over the other vestments.  The name comes from that Latin word casual, or “little house”, as it “houses” the priest and all his other vestments.  The chasuble represents love and unselfishness that the priest puts on at his ordination.

During Mass, the deacon wears a dalmatic over his other vestments.  The dalmatic often resembles a chasuble, but has built in sleeves.  It gets its name from a Roman garment that was made from wool from the province of Dalmatia.  It represents the joy of dedication and service to God.

The bishop has several garments or symbols that are specific to him.  First is the zucchetto, or skull cap.  In theory, all clerics are permitted to use the zucchetto, although priests rarely do.  A priest’s zucchetto is black, a bishop’s is purple, a cardinal’s is red, and the pope’s is white.  The zucchetto was originally meant to cover the tonsure (the piece of hair cut off when a man entered the clerical state), but has grown to remind those in the clerical state of the time when they received the laying on of hands.

The bishop (and abbots in monasteries) wears a mitre during liturgical functions.  This is the tall, two-horned,  pointy headdress.  The two horns on the mitre represent the Old Testament and the New Testament, both of which the bishop is to teach his people.  The mitre can be simple (such as for Lent, Advent, Good Friday, or Funerals) or ornate (such as for major feasts and solemnities).  However, all bishops wear simple mitres in the presence of the pope.

Although not a vestment, the crosier is one of the most well-known of the bishop’s possessions.  This is the large staff with the shepherd’s crook on the top.  The end with the shepherd’s crook signifies the bishop’s responsibility to bring back into the fold those sheep that are wandering or erring.  The other end is pointy and symbolizes the bishop’s responsibility to “prod” those who he feels should take action.

We Catholics have such rich symbolism and history in our worship.  Let’s take a moment to thank God for a faith that allows us to make use of all our senses and all the gifts that he has given us.

Questions for Liturgy and Ritual, as well as comments, can be sent to Adam Schwend at adams@scdiocese.org, or at 1821 Jackson St. Sioux City, IA 51102.