The Hermeneutic of Continuity

Yesterday was, of course, Laetare Sunday and therefore the occasion for the wearing of Rose vestments. Since we have a full set at Blackfen, I try to make sure that we have High Mass on this day. Dr Alcuin Reid assisted as Deacon, and Rev John Harrison from St Mary's Chislehurst was Subdeacon. I think we managed to avoid any serious liturgical abuses. Many thanks as ever to Damian Thompson and Fr John Zuhlsdorf who kindly enabled Blackfen to unite in Christian joy with these vestments by encouraging their readers to fund them - and many thanks to all our benefactors. Photo credit Mulier Fortis (more photos there).

Recently there was an article at Zenit by Fr Mauro Gagliardi, a consultor of the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, called Liturgical Vestments and the Vesting Prayers . The article is a fine exposition of the vesting prayers that may be said by the priest before Mass. As many bloggers picked up, Fr Gagliardi affirmed that although the maniple fell into disuse, it was never abrogated. At the NLM, Matthew Alderman introduces a piece about this by saying: Perhaps as news this is a bit of a stretch, but a few years ago the idea that the manipulum fletus et doloris would be discussed in a remotely mainstream venue, at least complimentarily, would have seemed both outrageous and unthinkable. This reminds me of a few years ago when I served for a short time as a delegate for the National Conference of Priests (NCP). At a lunch after a Mass in the old rite (all a bit clandestine in those pre- Summorum Pontificum days) I asked the clergy whether they felt there ...

H/T In Hoc Signo Vinces for news of the Bad vestments blog . Here is the Vision Statement: This site is dedicated to subjecting particularly awful Christian liturgical vestments to the ridicule they so richly deserve. Submissions are welcomed and can be e-mailed to websterglobe at juno dot com.

The National Catholic Reporter, which Americans sometimes portray as their equivalent of the Tablet, comes out this week with an astonishing attack on Cardinal Rodé which covers a sideswipe at the Pontificate of Pope Benedict. Fr Z has a fisk on the article , describing it as a "nutty" - which seems fair. It's actually quite funny as well. Here's the purple passage: Or is he upset that most do not prefer, as he does, dressing up in the trappings of royalty, the yards of silk in the cappa magna, the canopies and throne chairs and all the rest -- being attended by his minions, younger priests in lacy surplices, birettas and old-fashioned vestments encrusted with gold thread and jewels -- all the while speaking in a dead language, facing a wall, his back to the people? This asinine description of Mass celebrated ad orientem in the timeless language of the Church, with dignified vestments, will doubtless be quoted by young traddies over pints of beer and guffaws of laug...

In the hotel where I am staying, there is a engraving with a guide to the various religious habits. Since it was made, many have disappeared and many new ones have been invented. I don't know either the above congregation or the one below but I am sure someone will. Lourdes is always like a "New Pentecost" with people from every nation, race and language. These two ladies have applied a custom of their own which will ensure that they do not have aching arms from carrying large containers of Lourdes water. Last year in Rome, I posted a couple of photos showing how the shop windows of liturgical suppliers can show changes in popularity of vestments. So I had to take this photo of the Notre Dame du Perpetuel Secours shop in the Avenue Mgr Schoepfer: Here is a close-up of the chasuble:

This is the chasuble that we used for the feast of Corpus Christi on Thursday and for our usus antiquior Mass today. They are kindly loaned by the parish of Our Lady Help of Christians in Folkestone. The chasuble has a representation of the Last Supper and of the four evangelists. (Sorry for the differences in colour. The top photo better conveys the colour of the chasuble.)

The Westminster diocese website's Archbishop Vincent Nichols - Installation Blog has some interesting news. New vestments have been commissioned by the friends of Westminster Cathedral for the Installation Mass. They will be made by the respected firm Watts & Co . Here is the description: The vestments are inspired by the Neo-Byzantine architecture of the Cathedral and in accordance with Francis Bentley's ideas.The main fabric is Cloth of Gold, woven in the UK, with a design of Griffins, emblems of the dual nature of Our Lord, enriched with plain gold fabric. All the vestments will be entirely hand made in the great tradition of sacred vestment making. Some photos of the new vestments being made should be up on the blog early next week. They are to be used for Christmas, Easter and other major feasts. To pre-empt the usual stuff, shall we run through some salient points? The Catholic Church is the largest healthcare provider in the world, the largest education provider etc...

Never mind the other news today. The real story is: Blackfen unites in Christian joy with rose vestments funded by donations on page 10 of the print edition of this week's Catholic Herald . Many thanks to Andrew Brown for this article. What a wonderful headline! Fr Briggs was particularly pleased that the Revd John Harrison, Deacon at St Mary's Chislehurst, who assisted at the Laetare Sunday Mass as subdeacon, was included in both the photo and the text. Fr Briggs and I partook of a light lunch of scampi and chips today at the Tigers Head in Chislehurst. The guest beer was a very pleasant golden coloured ale from Harviestoun called "Bitter and Twisted." Having read today's Catholic Herald, the name did not match our mood but I do recommend the hoppy character of this light (3.8%) session beer.

The servers who come on Saturday morning for Mass and Benediction had some fun today opening up the new rose vestments and putting them so that I could show you a photo. Above is the shot where the servers didn't quite manage to be solemn. Mass was offered this morning for all the benefactors who have paid for these vestments in response to kind appeals by Damian Thompson on Holy Smoke and Fr Zuhlsdorf on What Does The Prayer Really Say . I will write to everyone who has contacted me but it will take me a little time. Thank you all very much indeed. Next Sunday's Mass will be a High Mass so I'll make sure there are some photos of the vestments in use. This morning, I blessed them.

Many thanks to all of you who have sent in contributions for vestments for the Sacred Liturgy via Damian Thompson's Holy Smoke blog, and Fr Zuhlsdorf's "pound Fr Finigan" campaign on his blog What Does the Prayer Really Say? . Tomorrow morning's Mass (EF) will be offered for your intentions. Unfortunately, the current centralised banking system in my diocese does not allow for internet access to the current transactions so I will have to ask for a printed statement to ascertain the total of donations received. There are also pledges of further donations so we will easily reach the total required to pay for a fine set of rose vestments to be used for Mass on Laetare Sunday. I have now managed to secure sacred ministers for the EF Mass that Sunday, so we will be able to celebrate High Mass in the fullest expression of the Roman Liturgy in a normal parish setting. Thank you all for your generosity and God bless you. We will be blessing the vestments tomorrow and t...

Many thanks to the New Liturgical Movement for translating an interview given by Mgr Guido Marini , Papal Master of Ceremonies, to the March issue of the periodical Radici Cristiane . the original Italian text of the interview is carried on the Vatican Website . The whole interview is well worth reading but let me pick out a couple of items that struck me particularly. First of all in regard to vestments: Pope Benedict XVI recently said in an address that "society speaks with the clothes that it wears." Do you think this could apply to the liturgy? In effect, we all speak by the clothes that we wear. Dress is a language, as is every form of external expression. The liturgy also speaks with the clothes it wears, and with all its expressive forms, which are many and rich, ever ancient and ever new. In this sense, "liturgical dress", to stay with the terminology you have used, must always be true, that is, in full harmony with the truth of the mystery celebrated. The e...

My friends in the Netherlands have been quick to refer me to the statue of Our Lady of Sorrows at Warfhuizen ( above ) where I stayed this August for the catechetical bootcamp. (See various posts in late August .) Brother Hugo points out that the custom is originally Spanish and that in Spain, the Madonna is traditionally dressed in black for the whole of November. Here is a link to various pictures of Maria Vestida de Luto . Mgr Stephen di Giovanni, the Pastor of St John the Evangelist Church in Stamford, Connecticut has sent me this picture of "Mama" (as Fr. Faber referred to her). She appears so each Good Friday, Our Lady of Sorrows and All Souls'. Mgr gratefully acknowledges the good influence of the London Oratory.

Like myself, many bloggers have posted photos of Mass celebrated in black vestments for the Commemoration of All Souls. Fr Z particularly encourages us to Show us your black vestments . I think I can trump some of those with this photo I took today at the Church of the London Oratory:

Near the Church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva , there are several shops selling vestments and Church plate. Meeting priest friends there is almost inevitable and the other day was no exception. In addition, I made the acquaintance of a most affable priest from the Society of St Pius X, working in County Dublin, who kindly told me that he reads this blog. (Very good to meet you Father!) Shop windows in Rome, like those in Oxford Street, tell something of changing fashions. For some time, Gammarelli has had Roman vestments displayed; but Barbiconi is now catching up fast with no fewer than three such vestments in one window: Here is a closer view of that purple vestment: Even De Ritis (which Fr Guy Nicholls and I used to refer to jokingly as " De Ritibus ") has a roman vestment alongside the cowled polyester garments. Notice that the Roman vestments are always arranged to display the back of the vestment whereas the modern ones are "facing the people" ;-) BTW - in r...

Barbiconi's were more than happy to measure me up for a ferraiuolo. They commented that most of their orders for these things come from England. A ferraiuolo is a cape worn over the cassock on formal non-liturgical occasions. It is appropriate for clergy to wear one at an occasion where lay people dress formally for dinner. Mgr Gilbey proposed a set of more detailed rules. I also bought a couple of tabbed clerical shirts - I know the younger clergy tell me to wear stiff collars all the time but I am from that sloppy generation ;-) At Gammarelli's, I chose a set of green vestments. At 475 euro, this works out at just under £370 on the current exchange rate. This is really very good for a fine five piece set (chasuble, stole, maniple, veil, and burse). It should arrive in England early next week.

Fr Anthony Symondson recently wrote an article on NLM , questioning the revival of what has been called the "Borromean" style of chasuble. Shawn Tribe invited "serene" consideration and discussion of the issue. One very helpful (and duly "serene") response comes from Michael Sternbeck of The Saint Bede Studio in Australia, whose vestments the Holy Father wore for his Mass at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney. See Styles and Tradition in the chasuble of the Roman Rite . There are further observations at the Rorate Caeli blog. I don't know much about the history of chasubles (and am grateful to all contributors to the current discussion for sharing their own knowledge). However I do know of one of the saddest incidents in the history of chasubles and chasublemen. At the Venerable English College in Rome, there is a beautiful Pugin High Mass set. During the time when Roman chasubles were de rigeur , the chasuble was cut into a Roman shape under orders o...