Post intelligent and civil comments. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the NLM
I'm glad to see someone else picking up this ball and running with it. I've argued for years that black should be brought back and, concomitantly, the typical funeral "homily" one hears today, which almost invariably amounts to an instant canonization of the most vulgar kind ("So, my brothers and sisters, we know that Uncle Joe is having a big Guiness with the Big Guy in heaven and having a good laugh as he looks down on us here today!"), should be banned. "Happy-faced" funerals I call them: they are a spiritual and emotional blight and do a disservice to the grieving. Black vestments starkly and powerfully acknowledge the reality of death and do not run from it, as so many in, and so much of, our culture do and does. I saw some photos just yesterday on another blog (Dappled Things) of Christoph Cardinal Schonborn wearing black vestments for a requiem he celebrated for Pope John Paul II of blessed memory. I hope others take note and follow suit--and this applies to my own Byzantine tradition as well, where some subscribe to the stark crazy notion that red is a colour of penitence and mourning: hence, eg., Ukrainian Catholics wear it during the Great Fast. If you can't bring yourself to wear black, then at least go with purple. In so doing, one must underscore for people that we do not grieve as those who have no hope, but neither do we gloss over the grief. It should be "bright sadness" as Schmemann so memorably put it. A good black phelon with silver galloon will do the trick.
I hadn't seen a black chasuble at Mass in almost four decades until All Souls day in 2002, when I happened to be visiting Mother Angelica's Shrine in Alabama -- from which EWTN cannot (yet) telecast the Mass because it's celebrated ad orientem there (and with even more Latin than the EWTN studio Mass).
The principal celebrant for the first of the three consecutive All Souls Masses -- another "from of the past" -- wore a magnificent black velour chasuble flecked with a gorgeous pattern in gold, and the two concelebrants had matching black chasubles that were a bet less conspicuous. Seeing all three ad orientem, it looked almost like an old solemn high funeral Mass.
Then this past All Souls Day, I understand (wasn't there myself) that the young chaplain at a local Catholic high school wore black vestments for two of the three Masses; the third was celebrated by an older visiting priest who chose the more usual white.
Then just recently, a local priest (knowing that I'd recently been in contact with some vestment suppliers) inquired about the availability of black vestments nowadays.
I wonder whether something's in the air, and if so, why.
Adam,
Do you know whether black was ever used in a similar way to the Latin rite within the Byzantine rite?
My understanding is that liturgical colours in the East as far less regulated than they are in the West.
E.g. vestments are classified by "bright" or "dark" -- which is why you might see Green and Gold vestments used simultaneously.
I am one of those recently ordained priest who makes use of black vestments at funerals. I also use cassock, surplice and black stole when I attend wakes (on average about two a week). The local clergy (for the most part many years older than me) think I’m nuts for doing so. My bishop on the other hand is supportive of a renewed interest in the liturgy, and has publicly stated that there is nothing wrong with making use of black vestments. I find, with rare exceptions, that the faithful accept and respect the use of not only black vestments, but any liturgical custom that promotes a sense of sacredness with respect to the liturgy.
the greatest obstacle I find in promoting the reform of the liturgy is first, the older clergy (priests and especially deacons), and secondly, the human respect and timidity of the more recently ordained. What is the saying--no pain no gain.
Adam,
I notice your blog address is the webpage of St. Elias Greek Catholic church. Are you a priest or deacon at that parish?
Heh.
Getting priests to wear black will be only HALF the challenge of getting them to accomodate the Dies Irae again--which is ALSO a perfectly legitimate and allowed Chant/reading for a funeral Mass.
Actually, we did have the Dies Irae here at the university. I nearly fell out of my seat, but I got permission to read it on All Souls (too short on time to get the chant down); we did, however, sing the Stabat Mater on Our Lady of Sorrows. I've been very adamant about convincing our priest here to integrate the sequence into the liturgy, and he has been quite obliging, really! Whether he'd do it at a funeral, that's another story.
DN, I was crowned in marriage at St. Elias, in Brampton, near Toronto, and am a subdeacon of the Ukrainian Greco-Catholic Church (UGCC). It is my "home away from home" and widely acknowledged to be the most superlative Eastern Church in North America, both architecturally and liturgically. (That is not gratuitous bragging, but has been acknowledged even by Orthodox liturgists and theologians.) I am currently stationed in Ottawa at the Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Institute of Eastern Christian Studies, the academic flagship of the UGCC.
Shawn, Yes, the Byzantine tradition only prescribes "bright" or "dark" vestments, though more detailed schemas have been worked out, chiefly by the Russians--although even there nothing is cast in stone and much legitimate local variety exists. The Russians, in fact, were the first to introduce black vestments (which no Greeks use, to my knowledge, and which use is confined largely to the East-Slavs) in the early 19th century for the funeral of Tsar Peter II. For more on the typical Russian colour scheme, see http://aggreen.net/vestment/
litu...cal_colors.html
Just wanted to point out that Black vestments were especially important to the 'colour scheme' of York minster and its use of the Roman rite (along with White and Red.) Black was the York equivalent of Sarum's Blue.
Adam DeVille,
Your 'home away from home' is indeed a liturgical gem--I have listened to their singing often by accessing their web page. When I visited the church, what struck me immediately was the aroma of bees wax. I think there is a lot to say about the absence of artificial light during Vespers. Can anyone visit that church and not wish they were Ukrainian Catholic? It's a rhetorical question, and I think you will understand what I mean.
I would be happy to correspond with you via email about the possibilities that exist in the Greek Catholic Church for someone who intends to marry, but is also interested in orthopraxis of liturgical worship. My email is enclosed.
-DN
koinonia2004@hotmail.com
I've seen black vestments at the ONLY Tridentine funeral I ever played. In Novus Ordo circuits, I did work for a parish where both priests there wore black vestments on All Souls, but they wore white for funerals.
The pastor of my current parish wears purple for funerals. Not exactly black, but a little more penitential than white at least. And, you are right - all three (white, purple, and black) are allowed options.
BMP
I was under the impression that the most recent edition of the (Novus Ordo) missal no longer permits black vestments, except in those places where the custom of wearing black vestments has already been established.
Francis,
By most recent, are you referring to the new GIRM?
Can anyone specify in what Church document white vestments are permitted for funerals? Is it GIRM or the 2002 missal, or in Bishop's conference documents?
Black is so much more symbolic. White really is inadequate and wrong in that situation of mourning. Even the congregation are in black. To even suggest celebration seems inappropriate amid such sadness. There should be hope, yes, even a spiritual joy, but not open celebration. White is for canonized saints, and we are all nothing but sinners at our funerals, placed before the mercy of God, with our Great Advocate and Redeemer present in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, our judge as well as our saviour. People forget that these days.
current girm
Chapter VI
The Requisites for the Celebration of Mass
IV. Sacred Vestments
346. As to the color of sacred vestments, the traditional usage is to be retained: namely,
d) Violet or purple is used in Advent and of Lent. It may also be worn in Offices and Masses for the Dead (cf. below).
e) Besides violet, white or black vestments may be worn at funeral services and at other Offices and Masses for the Dead in the Dioceses of the United States of America.
I may have misunderstood, but I thought the post suggested black is an option for Good Friday. I haven't seen that in the GIRM, and I haven't an Ordo handy. Or was the point that it used to be?
I have always found it strange that at Funerals the whole congregation is in Black and the Priest in is White ?
I think the people of God are telling us something........
Thomas - good point - at every funeral I have been to the people wear black - the men in black suits and ties and the women in black dresses/suits and hats. Those that don't wear black clothes usually wear a black armband. In this context the priest wearing purple or white really does look out of place. One priest I spoke to said that he didn't use black vestments because he thought that black signified a lack of hope. I don't really find that argument valid since black is the widely accepted colour of mourning. Respect for the deceased should take precedence over anything else.
A couple of things..
Fr. Fox: I am not certain if the present rubrics allow for the use of black at a time like Good Friday or not. I do believe, if memory serves, that it formerly was the colour, though I could be wrong about this point. Perhaps someone else could clarify that.
Regarding the wearing of black at funerals by the congregation. This is precisely what I am referring to when I speak about the strong cultural association between the wearing of black and masses for the dead.
If one were to be wearing bright colours to a funeral (imagine a flowery, cheery summer dress) -- or a black dress to a wedding for that matter -- this would be jarring to most people and considered inappropriate. Here is a place where the principle of inculturation can be applied I believe. Since black is considered appropriate and bright colours inappropriate, it would make sense, particularly so when this has been the tradition already in the Church and is still an option, for black vestments to be opted for as the norm (in this culturally Western world at least).
Let me give another historical example. Apparently, in some part of the orient, it was considered innappropriate or uncouth to not wear some form of headdress/hat -- almost like being barefoot might be here. Therefore, the rubric which instructed the priest as to when to take his biretta off in the liturgy was removed -- thus having him wear it even during the consecration. This was done of course under the idea of inculturation so as to not present a stumbling block, or prevent the sense of the sacred. The one difference in this case is that this was an exception given to the normative rubrics. In the case of black vestments, no exception is needed.
I believe that given that it seems better representative of Catholic theology re: the necessity of prayers for the dead, and, second, that it has a strong cultural association which could easily fall under the principle of inculturation, that this makes a strong case for black vestments being the normative colour for Masses for the Dead in the Latin rite.
Shawn -- I understand about using black for funerals and All Souls. I haven't any black vestments, but I am planning to get some.
Given that red is the color of papal funerals, the argument based on what color the congregation wears may not be as strong as some hope.
I cannot find any documentation presently, but, if my memory serves me, the use of white for Masses for the Dead was granted after the Council in those places which already had this tradition.
In the United States, this custom of using white for this purpose had not yet existed, but somehow it came into use anyway. Anyone know what the exact sequence of events was with respect to this?
Also, the present GIRM allowing the use of black in those places in which this is already a custom is rather a disappointing phrase. I remember an article in The Latin Mass magazine which discussed the less-than-conservative aspects of this document which was heralded by many as a return to various traditions. But I suppose that's another subject.
My apologies if any of this has been treated in previous comments; I read them quite quickly.
Correction: The present GIRM allowing the use of black seemingly ONLY in those places in which this is already a custom is disappointing.
There are a number of examples of where something was only allowed where it was already a custom, which then resulted in those places which haven't made it custom to do so.
I haven't heard the inverse said of black vestments. I'd like to see confirmation of that.
However, even if it were so, the question is, since in the Western world black has been a custom for so long (and in ecclesial terms, only less so in a very short number of decades -- and that not universally), would that validly constitute it falling under such a stipulation? This would make it a different scenario than the introduction of a foreign custom which up until that point had never seen the light of day in that part of the world.
I suppose you could also make the argument that it has never comopletely fallen into disuse, particularly so now with younger generation of clergy, and therefore is still a living custom -- albeit only in a small number of cases.
This is a point the CDW could ultimately clarify.
I think black offers such wonderful possibilities in vestment design. Please take a look at the recent black chasuble I made recently.
http://timotheosprologizes.blogs...w-
chasuble.html
I am not certain, but I believe the use of black vestments, in the U.S., is not an issue; the language mentioned above, talking about "where the custom exists," would certainly include the U.S.; besides, in this sort of situation, I think Rome's approach would be to allow what had not been either specifically abrogated, or was never really well-grounded in the tradition to begin with. Black vestments were not abrogated for funerals and All Souls; and they certainly are well-attested. A brief period of minimal use hardly justifies setting them aside.
I mean, to be honest, I think Rome won't care; or would be delighted if its "to-do" list gets such that this moves to the top!
Sorry, my last post was muddled.
What I meant to say was that Rome would be inclined to allow something -- like black vestments -- because it's not in the same category as certain practices that are not well grounded in the tradition. I had in mind blue vestments, crimson during Holy Week, etc. Black vestments are well attested, and really never ceased to be used; they merely haven't been used very much lately.
Re: Vestment colors for Good Friday
pre-1955: black stole, maniple and chasuble for the celebrant; black stole, maniple and 'folded chasuble' (planeta plicatae) for the deacon; black folded chasuble for the subdeacon.
1955 to 1970: black stole for celebrant and deacon up until the intercessions, for which the celebrant put on a black cope, the deacon and subdeacon black dalmatics and tunicles. These were again removed for the veneration of the cross. Prior to the Pater noster, celebrant and ministers put on VIOLET Mass vestments.
post 1970: Red Mass vestments for all.
Black vestments are commonly used in traditionalist Russian Orthodox church during Lent and on Good Friday.
Liturgical vestment colors are regulated within the Orthodox church, just as they had been within the RC church.
Some of the comments here have been quite insightful in terms of how this issue would be handled. Thanks to all.
Shawn, I think you were looking for more specific citation with respect to what I was quoting. GIRM paragraph 346e states, "Black may be used, where it is the custom, in Masses for the dead." This is from the study translation, which is the only one I have. Perhaps the more recent translation is different.
Thanks, Episema. Again, I think it is arguable that it is the custom in pretty much all of Western society, so I don't think anyone need worry that rubric excludes black as a legitimate option.
I have to disagree to a point on black vestments, and just to set the record straight, I am post V2, born in 79. So I never experienced the beauty that was the tridentine right, along with black vestments.
However, is it not more important to be rejoicing for those that have gone before us? Yes we all spend time in Purgatory, but we still know the end result of that, that being Faith in Jesus Christ, and the "Resurrection of the Body, and Life everlasting". Where it is true an emotional response is dictated by the Use of Black vestments, I think its counter productive, because we are mourning something that shouldnt be mourned.
I could almost see a reason on Good Friday, because of the penitent nature of the day. And I think if they only used it on Good Friday, it would be profoundly powerful in demonstrating the price paid. But I think funerals should be white. Especially in a Catholic Church. We believe the person has moved on, as the phrase goes "Well Done good and Faithful servant, now enter into the joy of your Master's kingdom". The word that strikes me there is Joy. Would it not be better evangelization for Joy to be expressed in White. Black for a funeral to me almost gives into the Culture of death notion of there being no Church, No God, nothing to rejoice in except yourself. Black caters to that in many ways.
Certainly one can say that this in itself sets us a part. But unless we start rejoicing in our faith, and showing that by our thoughts, deeds, actions, even the clothing one wears wether they are ordained or now, we have missed our calling. Even on His way to the Cross, Jesus almost rebuked the women, telling them not to weap for him. When I look on the Cross, I do in fact weep. But it is a weeping of pure joy, in such a beautiful gift given for me, an unworthy servant. I think if people started coming to that conclusion, and realizing that, we wouldnt have a need for the focus on our mortality so much. This life is just one journey that God puts us through, to bring about his Glory. To end this journey, and be one step closer to him, is both an honor, and something that should be rejoiced in
To be honest, after reading your article I do not see any benefit to wearing a black vestment. I find it uplifting at a funeral to see white. White represents resurrection with Christ. We are all aware of sin and you can still promote praying for the dead without having black vestments or black drapes. As Catholics we are prayerful people.
We should learn more about Christ's love for us. In reading the Gospels Jesus many times critizes the Pharisees for being concerned about outward appearances instead of what really matters. The Lord said he is concerned about the heart.
I believe this is a step back not forward. Let's spend more time reading scripture to learn who Jesus REALLY is!!
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