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A riassa made out of uncomfortable fabric will be uncomfortable. I've seen some polyester doubleknit horrors that would be about as comfortable as a Hefty bag.

Contrariwise, a riassa made of a breathable, garment weight fabric can be quite comfortable, and it covers a multitude of sins, too, LOL!


Behind on my stitching as usual,


Sharon


Sharon Mech, SFO
Cantor & sinner
sharon@cmhc.com

Well, when I was 'coming up' in seminary (Latin mainly, but enough Easterns to make the Goths nervous), we were trained that the cassock/riason was a 'consecrated garment', we made the sign of the cross over it when we put it on, we recited a special prayer "indue me, o bone Jesu, per hanc vestem novum hominem quem requiret sancta vocatio mea,....." (=grant in me o good Jesus, through this garb, the new man which my holy vocation requires....). While it was our daily garb, we were taught to treat it with respect. Old cassocks/riasas were not simply discarded, but were burned (or given to novices) when they were beyond wear.

Maybe I'm nuts, but this is what I was taught, and this was the absolute practice, not just for Jesuits, but also for my Dominican, Carmelite and Franciscan classmates. Halloween? No way.

PS: I remember the nuns doing the "saints costumes" thing when I was a little kid. But in those days, there were no "evil" images (like executioners, Darth Vaders, etc.) just ghosts, pirates, soldiers and sailors, the ever popular cowboys, and princesses and ballerinas and cowgirls (with the occasional witch) for the girls. Some of the new Halloween costumes and images are too gruesome and 'dark-side' for a holiday that was originally a celebration of the Saints. But a 'procession of saints-look-alikes' seems to me to be a bit hokey.

And once again, Sister Sharon hits the nail on the head. Most religious-order garb was made of wool serge material. It lasted for ages (although the tushie oftentimes got shiny if one was a classroom teacher). It was quite warm in winter, and was respectable enough for spring and fall. In summer, if one was in a 'liberal' house, one could obtain a 'bengaline silk' cassock which was much more lightweight. But the 'silk' (artificial fabric) would rustle when one was walking, and this made it difficult to sneak up upon student malefactors undetected.

As for the "tight collar", the old rabats used starched cotton; later that was transformed into celluloid, which could indeed make "hangman's" marks around the neck. The solution: get one a half size bigger. The most recent development, the black drip-dry shirt with the tab insert, is very comfortable. And when appropriate, the tab could come out, the button undone, and one had the 'sport-shirt' feeling, while still remaining clerically attired and presentable.

Among the Orthodox, there was no 'celluloid' collar. The inner-riason just buttoned around the neck and there was a string-belt to keep the garb fastened. The Exo-riason (the so called "angel wing") was originally a raincoat made of tightly woven fabric that could be 'water-resistant' (yeah, right), but the tight weave did serve as a type of pre-Eddie Bauer windbreaker. The same with the veil on the kamelavkion. The two front strips were originally tied together to protect the kamelavkion and to serve as a scarf against cold winds.

Just a bit of history.

Blessings!

Oooops! Neglected to mention the title thing.

In Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the current practice is to address a diocesan priest as "Herr Pfarrer", literally Mr. Pastor. (Perhaps a post-Lutheran influence).

Religious order clergy are known as "Frater" (=brother) for the non-ordained, and "Pater" (=father) for the ordained.

In Catholic areas, the priest would oftentimes be seen in the "talar" (=cassock) when around the church or the grounds (or bringing the Eucharist to the shut ins). But off the grounds, it was/is black (or grey suit), white shirt and black tie. The older Jesuit brothers in these lands oftentimes wore a black/grey suit with an ordinary white pointy-collar shirt, but with a black 'rabat' covering the chest, but with the collar points over it. Churchy, but not weird. (AND, not expensive. For religious order folks, the KEY criterion: "modesty in all things".)

Blessings, y'all!

Dr. John,

I can undestand your desire to respect the garments. Rules are good, but we were at a good celebration of All Hallow's Eve (no gruesome characters, etc), and the community was representing its faith in the Gospelites of the past. So while the purists might object to my having worn an old riassa to portray that wonderful saint, the faithful at that party were impressed at the length to which I went to get those materials. In the end, Christ was glorified, and a lot of children were kept away from monsters, demons, and pregnant nun costumes!

In Christ,

anastasios

I can see your perspective. But, for me (and for many 'old school' folks) the use of a consecrated garment outside of a liturgical function is just not in the cards. The garb parallels the 'sacramental' perspective that we apply to holy water, palms, etc. We Easterns don't have a whole mess of "blessings" and "consecrations" for objects; for us, an object is sanctified by its use. And we don't use it outside of its intended religious use, no matter the intention. Guess I'm just an old fuddy-duddy.

Blessings!

Speaking of vestments, I have had good luck with Nikita Borisov of near Johnson City, New York, who made several podryasniki and a wide-sleeved riasa for me which fit well. I also recommend Yaroslava Trentchev of Brampton, Ontario who made me a very nice winter-weight wool podryasnik.
the subdeacon Randolph, a sinner

Geez Dr. John, you are such a traditionalist! ;-)

anastasios

If you want to be super trendy (Yes, that's super trendy), then get yourselves a denim riassa. My uncle had one and then gave it my father when he realized it was odd. Also, for winter there is something called a "riassa palto" -- basically a really haeavy riassa. Definately a must have for priests in northern or cold areas.

Daniil