The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1921-10-29
LITURGlcAL coLoRs.

The various liturgical colors are not
merely beautiful, but expressive as
well, writes Monsignor Henry. The
Church is the Bride of Christ. 1.-The
Violet robes of penitence become her."
| says a modern writer, las do the
White OF joy; while no less fitting is
| the Red of sacrifice and the Green of
hope. Even the Black of sympathy
with the sorrows of her bereaved chill
| dren-beginning from the mourning
OF the Mother of the Crucified-can be
variously in taste''
All the colOrs used in the Roman
Rite, as we perceive them at Mass and
Vespers, are mentioned here and their
symbolisms illustrated, except the
colors of gold, old rose, azure, silver.
Gold may replace white, red, green;
silver may replace white; old rose may
be used on the third Sunday of Ad-
vent, called "Gaudete" (from the first
word of the Introit, meaning Ere
joice') Sunday, and on the fourth Sun
day OF Lent, called "Laetare" (from the
| opening word of the Introit, also mean
ing "Rejoice') Sunday On Laetare
Sunday, by the way, the Pope blesses
the famous Golden Rose" AS for
azure, it is used by papal authoriza-
| ton in certain parts of Spain on the
Feast of the Immaculate Conception
and its octave days and also in votive
Masses of the Immaculate Conception.
The rubrics governing the use of
these colors are complicated and need
not be rehearsed here. 1t is sufficient
for us to recognize the symbolism of
the colors when we see them. White
is appropriate for Christmas, Epiph-
any, Easter, Ascension, Corpus Chris
ii, feasts of Our Lady, the Angels, such
saints as are not martyrs, and the
like. Violet suits such seasons as Adj
vent and Lent, the ember days, vigils,
rogation days. Red belongs to the
Passion, feasts of martyrs, and also
to Pentecost (because of the tongues
of fire'). Black is appropriate for Good
Friday and for Requiem Masses.
Varied colors were prescribed by
God, in the Old Testament, for the
priestly vestments-gold and violet
and purple and scarlet twice dyed, and
fine linen Exodus, 2S 4-6). The
Church, however, adopted and regular
lied her present colors only gradually.
only white was used at the beginning
OF the fourth century, perhaps by
suggestion caught from st. Johns vi
sion (Apoc. 7:13, 15). BY the seventh
century, the white vestments had red
borders. By the close of the twelfth,
white, red, black, green were gener-
ally used, while purple was assigned
to the feast of the Holy Innocents and
to Laetare Sunday. Shortly after this,
violet was introduced, while rose was
used for Gaudete and Laetare Sun
days. Greek and other oriental church
es use the colors differently. In
France, yellow and ash colors are
occasionally used.
In the Roman Rite, as has already
been pointed out, the colors are pre-
scribed and defined by many rubrics.
They have their appropriate symbolic
for us by tradition and usage.
These meanings do not, perhaps, al
ways shine out for us naturally and
instinctively and it is proper for us
to have had the symbolism clearly
stated. Green, for instance, may not
Immediately suggest to us peace and
refreshment. While the symbolism of
colors is employed in civic and secular
and social ways, the Interpretation is
not always clear. Thus it is told of
certain minister that he was explain.
ing once to class of Sunday school
children the symbolism of white. It
expresses joy and happiness, he said. |
and the bride at a wedding is thus
clothed because her wedding-day is the
happiest of her life. ''Why," asked a |
small boy, "do all the men at a we'd
ding wear black?'