Question first
appeared on September 2, 2001
Why
do clergy wear clerical collars?
At
times they can be so uncomfortable, I have often said, AI truly hope that the
inventor is wearing asbestos underwear in eternity!
All
joking aside, the clerical collar is the result of clerical fashion evolution
in western Europe. By the time of
the settling of North America, Protestant and Roman Catholic clergy alike wore
the collar as a sign of their vocation.
This
is not the clerical fashion standard of the Orthodox Church, however.
Orthodox clergy wear the Arason (Greek).
It is first mentioned in the 9th century and is described as
a black full length overcoat. The
common English term would be Acassock. Orthodox
clergy would ordinarily wear a cassock, long black robe with tight long black
sleeves, while indoors. When
going outside, they would put on an Aexo-rason,@ an outer long black robe with
wide sleeves, which is worn over the cassock (rason). The Arabic term for this outer garment is Ajibbee.@
Commonly,
in the United States, Orthodox clergy wear their traditional dress of cassock
and jibbee only in church. When
going in public they have adopted the style of the Awestern tradition found
in the United States, and they wear a clerical collar with a black suit.
İVery
Rev. Fr. Olof Scott, Sunday Bulletin, September 2, 2001
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