Liturgical colours are specific colours used forvestments andhangings within the context ofChristianliturgy. The symbolism of violet, blue, white, green, red, gold, black, rose, and other colours may serve to underline moods appropriate to a season of theliturgical year or may highlight a special occasion.
There is a distinction between the colour of the vestments worn by the clergy and theirchoir dress, which with a few exceptions does not change with the seasons of theliturgical year.
In theRoman Rite, as reformed byPope Paul VI, the following colours are used, in accordance with the rubrics of theGeneral Instruction of the Roman Missal, Section 346.[1]
On more solemn days, i.e. festive, more precious, sacred vestments may be used, even if not of the colour of the day. Such vestments may, for instance, be made fromcloth of gold orcloth of silver. Moreover, the Conference of Bishops may determine and propose to the Apostolic See adaptations suited to the needs and culture of peoples.[4]
Ritual Masses are celebrated in their proper colour or in white or in a festive colour. Masses for Various Needs, on the other hand, are celebrated in the colour proper to the day or the season or in violet if they bear a penitential character. Votive Masses are celebrated in the colour suited to the Mass itself or even in the colour proper to the day or the season.[5]
Some particular variations:
The rules on liturgical colours in the 1960Code of Rubrics, whose observance is still permitted in the circumstances indicated in the 2007 documentSummorum Pontificum on use of the1962 Roman Missal, which incorporates them,[11] differ from the current rubrics in the following respects:
| Colour | 1920–1955 usage | 1956–1960 usage | 1961–1969 usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violet |
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| Rose |
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| White |
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| Red |
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| Black |
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Pope Pius X raised the rank of the Sundays after Epiphany and Pentecost, so that on those that fell within common octaves,green was used instead of the colour of the octave, as had previously been the rule;[12] on Sundays after Pentecost that fell within privileged octaves (i.e., the octaves of Corpus Christi and of the Sacred Heart), the liturgical color of the feast was retained.
The rules on liturgical colours before the time of Pope Pius X were essentially those indicated in the edition of the Roman Missal thatPope Pius V promulgated in 1570, except for the addition of feasts not included in his Missal. The scheme of colours in his Missal reflected usage that had become fixed in Rome by the twelfth century.
TheByzantine Rite, which is used by all the member churches of theEastern Orthodox Church, theByzantine Lutheran Churches and theEastern Catholic Churches of Byzantine Rite, does not have a universal system of colours, with the service-books of the Byzantine tradition only specifying "light" or "dark" vestments. In the Greek tradition,maroon orburgundy are common for solemn feast days, and a wide variety of colours are used at other times, the most common of which are gold and white.[13]
Slavic-use churches and others influenced by Western traditions have adopted a cycle of liturgical colours. The particulars may change from place to place, but generally:
| Colour | Common usage | Other usage |
|---|---|---|
| Gold |
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| Light blue |
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| Purple or wine-red |
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| Red |
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| Green |
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| Black |
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| White |
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The colours would be changed beforeVespers on the eve of the day being commemorated. During Great Feasts, the colour is changed before the vespers service that begins the first day of aforefeast, and remains until the apodosis (final day of theafterfeast).
Under Western influence, black is often used in the Slavic churches for funerals, weekdays of Great Lent, and Holy Week as a sign ofpenance and mourning, but in the second half of the 20th century, the ancient white became more common, as a sign of the hope of the Resurrection.
In the tradition of theRussian Orthodox Church, up to nine different liturgical colours may be used throughout the year.[14]Exact use of these colours varies, but the following are the most common uses:[13]
| Colour | Common use | Uncommon or other use |
|---|---|---|
| Gold orYellow (желтый) |
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| Lightblue (голубой) |
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| Purple or DarkRed (фиолетовый или темно-красный) |
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| DarkBlue,Indigo (синий, темно-синий) |
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| Red (красный) |
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| Green (зеленый) |
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| Black (черный) |
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| White (белый) |
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| Orange ortawny (оранжевый) |
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TheCoptic tradition, followed by theCoptic Orthodox Church and theCoptic Catholic Church, only uses white vestments, with gold and silver being considered variations of white.[13] The only exception is duringPassion Week when black is used. Nonetheless, trimmings of red, gold or blue may be found on some vestments.[citation needed]
The liturgical tradition of Ethiopia, followed by theEthiopian Orthodox Church and theEthiopian Catholic Church, embraces a wide variety of liturgical colours. InEritrea, similar traditions are followed.[15]
TheUnited Lutheran Church in America (ULCA), a predecessor of TheEvangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), prescribed the following colour scheme for its paraments in theCommon Service Book (CSB) of 1917:
White from and with Vespers of the Eve of the Nativity through the Epiphany season (except the Day of St. Stephen, Martyr), from Easter Day to the Vespers of the Saturday before Whitsunday, on the Festival of the Transfiguration, on the Presentation of our Lord, on the Festival of the Holy Trinity and its Octave, on the Days of the Annunciation and the Visitation, and on the Day of St. Michael and All Angels.
Red from and with Vespers on the Saturday before Whitsunday to the Vespers of the Saturday before the Festival of the Holy Trinity, on the Festival of the Reformation and the Sunday after, on the Apostles' Days and on all Evangelists' Days (excepting St. John, Apostle, Evangelist), on Martyrs' Days, on All Saints' Day, for the Dedication of a Church, for all Church Anniversaries, for the Harvest Festival, and on Thanksgiving Day.
Green from and with Vespers of the Saturday before Septuagesima to Vespers of the day before Ash Wednesday, beginning with the second Sunday after the Festival of the Holy Trinity and throughout the Trinity Season to Vespers of the Saturday before Advent Sunday (except on such Festivals and Days for which there is a special appointment).
Violet from and with Vespers of the Saturday before Advent to Vespers of the Eve of the Nativity, from and with Vespers of the day before Ash Wednesday and throughout Lent (excepting Good Friday) to Vespers of the Eve of Easter.
Black for Good Friday and any Day of Humiliation called for by ecclesiastical authority.[16]
This differs from the Roman and Anglican Uses in that it has white prescribed for the Epiphany Season, green for the period from Septuagesima until Lent, violet for Maundy Thursday, red for All Saints' Day, red for the Dedication of a Church and its annual anniversary, and red also for the Harvest Festival and Thanksgiving Day. One can presume that this is similar to the colour scheme historically used in theProtestant Church in Germany due to the heavy German influence in the ULCA.
| Colour | Common usage | Other usage |
|---|---|---|
| White |
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| Red |
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| Scarlet |
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| Green |
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| Violet |
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| Black |
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| Gold |
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| Blue |
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The ELCA presently uses a similar colour scheme as that of their Scandinavian Lutheran counterparts, with the use of gold only for the Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday services and Holy Week using scarlet rather than crimson. Blue is used for Advent. White is used for Christmas, Epiphany, Sundays of Easter, Holy Trinity, and Christ the King. For Lent, purple is used. During the time after Pentecost and the Epiphany, green is used.[17]
Both theLutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS) and theWisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) use a similar system, but with purple being the primary colour for both Advent and Lent (with blue being the alternate colour for Advent only), and the use of gold in place of white for both Christmas and Easter (in similar practice to the Catholic Church). In the WELS, the use of red is also done during thePeriod of End Times, a period of the Church regarding the teachings of the Book of Revelation, culminating in the creation of the New Jerusalem (corresponding to Christ the King in the ELCA). In all three churches, including the ELCA, red is also worn on the last Sunday of October, in celebration of theReformation on October 31, whenMartin Luther nailed the95 Theses onto the door of Wittenberg Castle Church.
MostAnglican churches use the colours appointed in the Lutheran Churches and those of the Roman Rite, usually in its post-1969 form, with the exception of Sarum Blue replacing violet for Advent, but some use the earlier form, with, for instance, black in place of red onGood Friday.[18] Some churches use black at Masses for the dead, but more commonly white or purple is used. For historical reasons much of the worldwide Anglican Communion takes a noticeable lead from the practice of theChurch of England. Since the 1980Alternative Service Book, liturgical colours have been recommended for seasons, with more detailed advice offered as part of theCommon Worship series of liturgies, including colours for all Sundays and festivals printed in the 'core volume' next to collects.
The Church's published Lectionary now makes detailed suggestions for liturgical colour throughout the year, which corresponds almost exactly with the above table of Roman Rite (post-1969 usage) usage with five minor exceptions, and one more significant one:
The colour scheme suggested by theChurch of England also indicates where gold vestments should be used in those churches that possess gold and white as distinct colours. The use of rose-pink vestments, as in the Roman Rite table above, was mentioned as an option in early editions of Common Worship,[19] and is a listed option in the annual published lectionary; however, later Common Worship publications have begun to refer to this practice as "traditional" reflecting its resurgence.[20]
TheSarum Rite was a medieval liturgical rite used inEngland before theReformation which had a distinct set of liturgical colours. After theAnglo-Catholic Revival of the 19th century, certainChurch of England churches began adopting Sarum liturgical colours as an attempt to produce something that was an English expression ofCatholicism rather than a Roman expression. One of the chief advocates behind this wasPercy Dearmer. The exact colours used by the mediaeval Sarum rite are a matter of dispute, but colours adopted by contemporary churches claiming to use the Sarum scheme include in particular deep blue forAdvent, which may be popularly referred to as "Sarum blue", and unbleached linen forLent.
Methodists use a colour scheme similar to those used by Lutherans and Roman Catholics.The United Methodist Church, prior to the early 1990s, used red solely for Pentecost, even including the Sundays after Pentecost Sunday, with the use of green being reserved for the season ofKingdomtide, which usually lasted from late August/early September until Christ the King (the last Sunday in Kingdomtide). Since the publication of the1992 Book of Worship, the UMC has followed the ELCA practice of wearing red only for Pentecost, Holy Week andReformation Sunday and green for the rest of the Pentecost season.[21]
ThePresbyterian Church (USA), or its predecessor denominations, has sanctioned the use of liturgical colours and promoted their use inThe Worshipbook of 1970, the 1993 Book of Common Worship and the 2018 Book of Common Worship. Advent and Lent are periods of preparation and repentance and are represented by the colour purple. Blue can be used for Advent instead of purple. The feasts of Christmas Day and Christmastide, Epiphany Sunday, Baptism of the Lord Sunday, Transfiguration Sunday, Easter Season, Trinity Sunday, and Christ the King Sunday are represented by white. Green is the colour for periods of Ordinary Time. Red is for Pentecost Sunday, but may also be used for ordinations, church anniversaries, and memorial services for ordained clergy. Red or purple are appropriate for Palm Sunday. During Holy Week, purple is used until the church is stripped bare on Maundy Thursday; the church remains stripped bare on Good Friday and Holy Saturday, though in some places black might be used on those days.
Similarly, theUnited Church of Christ includes indications of which liturgical colour to use for each Sunday in its annual calendar. The general Western pattern is followed, with either purple or blue recommended for Advent.[22]
n.1
editorial
1920 typical edition of the Roman Missal omitted the phrase "exceptis Dominicis infra octavas occurrentibus, in quibus color octavarum servatur" found in earlier editions beginning with Pope Pius V's edition of 1570 (page 21 of the facsimile published by Libreria Editrice Vaticana in 1998
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)The color scale of the liturgical vestments consists of the following basic colors: white, red, orange, yellow, green, light blue (голубой), dark blue (синий), violet/purple (фиолетовый), black.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)Cranmer's personal journey of faith left its mark on the Church of England in the form of a Liturgy that remains to this day more closely allied to Lutheran practice, but that liturgy is coupled to a doctrinal stance that is broadly, but decidedly Reformed. ... The 42 Articles of 1552 and the 39 Articles of 1563, both commit the Church of England to the fundamentals of the Reformed Faith. Both sets of Articles affirm the centrality of Scripture, and take a monergist position on Justification. Both sets of Articles affirm that the Church of England accepts the doctrine of predestination and election as a 'comfort to the faithful' but warn against over much speculation concerning that doctrine. Indeed a casual reading of the Wurttemburg Confession of 1551, the Second Helvetic Confession, the Scots Confession of 1560, and the XXXIX Articles of Religion reveal them to be cut from the same bolt of cloth.
added to the Common Worship series in 2006, page 50, paragraph 1: "rose-pink vestments are traditionally worn"
Third Typical Edition
Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913)."Liturgical colours".Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
