The amice was originally a cape that the priest wore over his head known as the “helmet of salvation” (Ephesians 6:17).

There is documentation from the eighth and ninth centuries giving witness of its use which would suggest that it was in common use before those dates. The use of the amice has a very early tradition in the Church. The amice, the first part of the liturgical attire worn under the alb (now optional) during the liturgy is a rectangular cloth placed over the shoulders, tucked in around the neck over the priest’s street clothing and secured around the waist with two cloth ribbons. Distinctive, meaning their symbolism flowed from the garment, not the garment from the symbolism.įor the Latin Rite priest, the current traditional attire to wear when celebrating the Mass is the amice, alb, cincture, stole, and the chasuble. The vestments became distinctive when their form was not changed to match changes in popular style. The defining elements regarding the vesture of the Church lies in the secular clothing of the Greek and Roman culture which can be traced to the 4th century. In the early Church, vestments worn for liturgies were the same as the clothes in ordinary popular use.

This is true regarding the vestments the priest wore at the dawn of Christianity. Regarding the many symbols/garments, the original significance may have been forgotten over time, or quite possibly, there was no significance to begin with. Questions that I have often fielded from parishioners in the past go something like this, “Father, what is the significance/meaning of the vestments you wear during Mass? Do you have to wear all those clothes?”įor Christianity, in the case of its many symbols, it is difficult to know for certain the what, the why, and the when.

National and Universal Church Collections.Cor Christi Institute, University of Mary.Catholic Youth Advisory Council (C.Y.A.C.).Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Training Classes.

Make a rope belt for an alb