Intro to vesture

I mentioned a while back that on one of the Confidential Mailing Lists I’m On the question of clericals and vestments came up. I offered this.

Practical points

• The “coverall”/uniform effect shouldn’t be overlooked. It puts the minister in a state of dignified neutrality. As in “this is appropriate to wear for your funeral whether you’re a pauper or monarch.”
• Bad tailoring is a bad bargain. Vesture can cover your civies, though.
• “Clever” vesture ages badly and is the worst value of all.
• Commercially available North American vesture is geared to the semi-portly man of middling height. If you’re not one of these, view gifts with a hairy eye, and consider biting the bullet and getting custom-made.
• Live with the fact it’ll all be 100% polyester, unless you have a Martha-esque view towards ironing. Any washable vesture is a godsend, but don’t buy anything black that isn’t mostly polyester. Black cotton cloth greys very fast.
• Don’t plan on getting your gear cleaned; plan on keeping it all clean. (After 11 years, I’ve never had my gowns cleaned; I do spot-clean.) A lint roller and steamer are your friends.

The selection

• Despite “academic gown” references and Dissenter history, English priest and ecclesiologist Percy Dearmer places the black gown in the line of (medieval) ecclesiastic garb. Don’t apologize for it.
• As a sign of being a learned cleric, I wear bands. Under a Moravian (all-around) collar in my case; this is the “lowest” of the collars. A tall collar “scans” low church, too, btw; mine are 4 cm high.
• I’m convinced albs propagate a form of doecetism. (What’s under that shapeless thing, anyway? Pure pneuma?)
• That said, if I had it to all over again, I would wear the black gown for “preaching services” and a white garment with stole for the sacraments. The usual white garments options are the cassock-alb (ugh); cotta over cassock (tres Roman, prone to frilliness); or surplice over cassock the one I’d go with, even though it reads Anglican. (But worn by Charles Travis, the minister of the Mill Hill Unitarian Chapel, Leeds.) I suppose the white version of the black gown is an option, but I’ve always though they make a person look the Michelin Man.



• Unless you intend to finish your ensemble with a tonsure, sandals, and a sparrow, any white garments you wear should be white, not off-white or oatmeal.