Friday, January 23, 2009

Asking for the "ferraiolone" again...


Brightly draped prelates in the ferraiolone look absolutely gorgeous, and this is something that layfolk can agree upon, too.

Some things in the Church we say "trancend" the power of human understanding, but this does not. It is a simple matter of beauty and the Church has given us such beauty through Her bounty and beneficence.

Meanwhile, as the story goes, along came the chiseled rhetoric of the sixties and the ferrialone got the chop as everybody betook themselves in the "new" direction of making everything "modern."

Funny thing is that we of today are much more modern then they of forty years ago ever were.

Continuing with the drama, until 1967 clergy were ordinarily required to wear the ferraiolone when in the presence of the Popes. Then they did away with this. Now we're asking for a return.

Beauty is to be duly observed and not done away with in the silly name of modernity.

Archbishop Harvey, we look to you, ti prego!

5 comments:

Gregor said...

Exactly! As I said over at Leo's, it really looks rather ridiculous today, especially when the Holy Father is wearing choir dress, as he will for important addresses, while the attending prelates are lounging about in there plain old zimarra. So, get that petition going!

Anonymous said...

It's still worn in the USA by most USA bishops at formal occasions.
It should be re-instated in the Vatican..
Along with:
The cappa magna, saturno, mantellata, mantelleone,winter capes for Cardinals, bishops, and abbots etc. working in the Vatican, soutanes or habits for all priests and friars working in the Vatican (not slumming around in open collar clerical shirts)


Big generation gap in the Vatican.
I had a friend who visited at Christmas. He saw some young priests (below 40), all in soutanes.
He also saw some older priests (65+) walking around either in layclothes, or with mismatched clergy shirts (blue shirt, black slacks...or grey shirt and black slacks).
One group looked like real priests (the young priests)
The others looked like street people.

Anonymous said...

who are the ones in white?

Anonymous said...

All hail Cardinal Krol!

Anonymous said...

They are certainly NOT abolished. Paul VI merely limited the use of the PURPLE ferraiolone to Bishops/Archbishops. Previously, most monsignori had enjoyed the privilege of the PURPLE ferraiolone.