Different Types Of Clergy Shirts

A clergy shirt is one of those pieces of clothing that every man or woman of the cloth must have

. Every priest or clergy woman should actually have several. The clergy wear different colors for different occasions. They are called upon for all sorts of occasions all the time. Having a number of clergy shirts means that they are ready to fulfill their duties whenever they are needed.

A clergy shirt is the most visible way to distinguish a man of the cloth from the general public. Though the clergy shirt is associated more with the Catholic Church, the first clergy shirts were worn by Protestants. In the late 1800s, Reverend Doctor Donald McLeod of a Presbyterian church in Scotland came up with the shirt. However, since its inception it has been adopted by many other groups as well.

There are two types of clergy shirts. The clergy shirt McLeod invented is the neckband shirt. This type of clergy shirt has a band of cloth instead of a collar. These were and are still used as street wear by the Protestant clergy.

The Catholic Church adopted this form of street wear in the 19th century. However, it made a few changes that have made it distinct. That type of clergy shirt is called a tab-collar shirt. A tab-collar shirt does have a collar but it is folded down and has a rectangular opening over the throat. It comes with a white tab that goes into the collar. When put on well, there will be a white rectangle at the collar of the shirt. A wide white rectangle is called an Anglican collar while a narrow white rectangle is a Roman collar.

Both types of shirts have a fly front to cover the buttons down the front of the shirt. Clergy shirts that are most identifiable to the public are black in color. This color is used for everyday wear. Members of the clergy who hold certain positions wear red or purple clergy shirts. Bishops in the Catholic and Methodist churches wear red shirts with white collars. Cardinals wear maroon shirts. Bishops in the Methodist church sometimes wear purple shirts as well. The different colors help to distinguish between members of the clergy who hold different positions.

Sometimes red or purple are worn for specific types of occasions. For instance, priests wear purple during repentance services. Priests wear white clergy shirts for special occasions such as weddings or baptisms. The color of the collar changes depending on the specific types of occasion.

Clergy shirts are must-haves for every member of the clergy, be they male or female. They set the clergy apart from everyone else. The general public easily recognizes the black clergy shirt. However, there are other colors that the clergy wears.

by: Matthew Sheehan

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