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Sky
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| Joined: | Mon Sep 15th, 2008 |
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| Posts: | 14 |
| First Name: | Sky | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Calvary Chapel and other such non-denominational churches. Methodist. |
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Posted: Thu Sep 25th, 2008 12:21 am |
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On television it seems like the priests always wear the traditional black with a white "backward collar". Is this the required dress that a priest must always wear? Or what might be the exceptions?
I was wondering because there is one program on our local Catholic television station in which the priest always wears regular street clothes. The setting doesn't appear to be a church, but he is teaching - or doing a Bible study. It seemed strange to me that he is the only priest I've ever seen on TV who dresses this way. (I'm assuming he is a priest because the title "Fr." appears before his name.)
Just curious.
Sky
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mrsbmoo
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| Joined: | Fri Sep 29th, 2006 |
| Location: | Virginia USA |
| Posts: | 344 |
| First Name: | Becky | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | former Methodist. RCA, Presbyterian, Holiness, Wesleyan... Catholic as of June ... |
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Posted: Thu Sep 25th, 2008 12:34 am |
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| I doubt it is a rule they have to wear the collar all the time, it would be ridiculous at the beach, for example. I have seen our priest wearing ordinary business casual clothes on weekdays. He seems to only wear his priest uniform for Sundays and official occasions.
____________________
Becky
Wife of Michael(called Moo) and stay at home mom to 5 daughters between 13 months and 17
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wmschrader
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| Joined: | Fri Dec 29th, 2006 |
| Location: | Fort Myers, Florida USA |
| Posts: | 100 |
| First Name: | Bill | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Methodist, Lutheran, Catholic |
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Posted: Thu Sep 25th, 2008 12:36 am |
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Our priests where their clerics all the time. I have never seen them not wearing them.
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Bill
Glory be to God for all things
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Steven Barrett
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| Joined: | Tue Nov 14th, 2006 |
| Location: | Hadley, Massachusetts USA |
| Posts: | 1398 |
| First Name: | Steven | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Catholic, Episcopal communicant, Baptist, Catholic |
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Posted: Thu Sep 25th, 2008 02:01 am |
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While the Augustinian priests and monks who taught at my college wore their clerics most of the time, I always marveled at those who'd wear their heavy black -- and this is in Miam -- black cassocks. Granted, the buildings were air-conditioned, but walking around the campus for them had to be a real sacrifice during the worst days of mid-April to Mid October.
We had a dress code too, yes a dress code back as far as 1974, wearing long pants to class, even night school. Looking back at then and seeing for what passes as "respectable" clothing by students, lay professors at public universities or private colleges today ... let's say I attended college during its waning years of respectability.
But if all we had to do was don khakis compared to what Fr. X or Br. Y was wearing on some hot and muggy Miami day ... well, uh, we really didn't have a case for complaining, did we?
That didn't stop some of us in the more learning challenged departments of life. (Boy, did I leave myself a wide opening.  )
____________________
James Michael Curley to a young Thomas “Tip” O’Neill -- “Son, it’s nice to be important, but it’s more important to be nice.”
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sewnsew
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| Joined: | Mon Oct 9th, 2006 |
| Location: | Arizona USA |
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| First Name: | Kim | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | cradle Anglican, Episcopal /Catholic-04/07/07 |
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Posted: Thu Sep 25th, 2008 04:03 am |
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One of our priests has worn a light blue shirt with denims ( and collar) during youth group events ( with hiking boots NOT laced up) but the older ones generally stick to the black shirt/white collar.
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Robert
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| Joined: | Mon Nov 12th, 2007 |
| Location: | Germany |
| Posts: | 146 |
| First Name: | Robert | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | The whole spectrum from black to white, now 100% Catholic! |
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Posted: Thu Sep 25th, 2008 09:17 am |
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The problem today is that most priests where I live do not dress in any way that could identify them as a priest. Our Dean for example runs around in street dress, not even a lapel cross.
What are they hiding from?
Odd thing is that every time a priest is charged with wrong doing, the press use pictures of priests in clerical dress. If priests stop dressing as such we will have no positive images of the priestly garb, but only the images of the negative press.
Here some info on what the Church says about this:
On November 18, 1998, the Latin Rite de iure members of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops approved complementary legislation for canon 284 of the Code of Canon Law for the Latin Rite dioceses of the United States.
The action was granted recognitio by the Congregation for Bishops in accord with article 82 of the Apostolic Constitution Pastor Bonus and issued by decree of the Congregation for Bishops signed by His Eminence Lucas Cardinal Moreira Neves, Prefect, and His Excellency Most Reverend Franciscus Monterisi, Secretary, and dated September 29, 1999.
Complementary Norm: The National Conference of Catholic Bishops, in accord with the prescriptions of canon 284, hereby decrees that without prejudice to the provisions of canon 288, clerics are to dress in conformity with their sacred calling.
In liturgical rites, clerics shall wear the vesture prescribed in the proper liturgical books. Outside liturgical functions, a black suit and Roman collar are the usual attire for priests. The use of the cassock is at the discretion of the cleric.
In the case of religious clerics, the determinations of their proper institutes or societies are to be observed with regard to wearing the religious habit.
The rather widespread practice of priests neglecting to wear their collar when they should is both a sign and a cause of malaise in the Church. Such casualness about being publicly identified as a priest of the Catholic Church may signify a desire to distance himself from his priestly vocation. The collar becomes "work clothes," which are put away when one is not "on duty." The functionalistic notion of the priesthood revealed by this attitude is in contradiction to the ontological configuration to Christ the High Priest conferred by priestly ordination.
BTW: Deacons here "never" dress as clerics, and if they do they will be ridiculed by their peers and the "Jeans and T-Shirt" Priests.
Last edited on Thu Sep 25th, 2008 09:19 am by Robert
____________________
Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect (1 Peter 3:15)
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Credo Catholic
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| Joined: | Sat May 5th, 2007 |
| Location: | Greenville, South Carolina USA |
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| First Name: | Marsha | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Baptist, Catholic |
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Posted: Thu Sep 25th, 2008 04:13 pm |
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| I know our priests have a day off each week, and have time during the year for vacation, if its called that for them. But I would think a priest who is really into his vocation, would want to be identified as a priest at all times in public. At a restaurant or airport, he never knows when someone will need the sacrament of anointing of the sick.
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ChildofGod
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| First Name: | Darlene | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Evangelical Christian |
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Posted: Thu Sep 25th, 2008 10:04 pm |
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So is it correct to say that according to Canon Law, priests should wear their formal dress in all public situations except on rare occasions when it would be a detriment? (Example: swimming, sports - playing basketball, tennis, etc.)
Darlene
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CajunRick
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Posted: Sat Sep 27th, 2008 05:38 pm |
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The Rights and Obligations of Clerics is covered in Canon Law beginning at Canon 273. Clerical dress is covered specifically in Canon 284:
Can. 284 Clerics are to wear suitable ecclesiastical garb according to the norms issued by the conference of bishops and according to legitimate local customs.
This is clarified a little further in subsequent canons. You'll find the entire chapter on the obligations and rights of clerics here.
BTW, permanent deacons are specifically exempted from many of these requirements by Canon 288.
So the document issued by the bishop's conference (referenced above) is the proper regulation under Canon 284.
At the same time, priests are human, too. They deserve some time "off the clock". In my opinion, clerical garb is less important at a parish casual function where everyone already knows who he is, than it would be where he is a stranger. He should wear a Roman collar (the "backwards collar") anywhere I would wear a tie. But he can also dress in jeans when watching a football game, pajamas when he goes to sleep, a swim suit at the pool, etc. (Speedos are out of the question, IMHO.) My diocese tends to be very hot in the summertime, so few priests wear coats, but the clerical short-sleeved shirts are quite common.
My own pastor tends to wear either clerical garb or sweat pants, but I don't think most of our parishioners have seen him in the latter. His dog Maggie is a blond Labrador retriever, and if he wore his clerical black when she leapt up on him, he'd be covered with beautiful long blond hair which would cause him a whole different kind of problem! (She puts her paws on my shoulders and looks down on me, and I've gone home covered with blonde hair more than once!)
Our former pastor was much more into fashion and he would wear a wider range of non-clerical clothing, even around the office. But he always wore his clerical clothing when representing the Church in public.
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mrsbmoo
Member
| Joined: | Fri Sep 29th, 2006 |
| Location: | Virginia USA |
| Posts: | 344 |
| First Name: | Becky | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | former Methodist. RCA, Presbyterian, Holiness, Wesleyan... Catholic as of June ... |
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Posted: Sun Sep 28th, 2008 03:03 am |
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IMHO speedos should be out of the question for most men 
Our priest did tell a funny story about being invited to a health spring while serving in Germany, that would have required him to soak in the mineral waters naked. He declined, of course.
____________________
Becky
Wife of Michael(called Moo) and stay at home mom to 5 daughters between 13 months and 17
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