![](\"https:\/\/3.bp.blogspot.com\/__dQCWErAY9c\/TJldvTaO5SI\/AAAAAAAAAfg\/HFups_0muLM\/s1600\/060305_priests_3_pc.JPG\")
<\/a>On Sunday, I heard an interesting perspective on the Roman Collar. Monthly in our parish, we parents of CCD students are required to sit in on the class. This Sunday, the parish catechetical leader, in reviewing elements of the Mass, asked parents and their children why priests wear black clothes and a Roman collar.<\/p>\nOne parent suggested priests were in mourning over Christ\u2019s death. A child said maybe priests wore black clothes because don\u2019t show dirt as easily. Another thought priests were depressed. Obviously, we were all stumped. I did a little research on clerical collars and discovered for most of the Church\u2019s history, priests did not wear special collars of any sort. At the end of the 16th Century, priests started wearing white collars, following the fashion of the day. The collar didn\u2019t start out having any special spiritual meaning. Today that collar is a signal to all that a priest is ready to administer sacraments \u2013 including Anointing of the Sick \u2013 at all times. By wearing these collars, Catholic priests offer visible symbols to the world that Christ is among us. <\/p>\n The Directory for the Ministry and Life of Priests, prepared by the
<\/a>
Her answer? The black represents penance for humanity\u2019s sinful condition and that little white square the hope of salvation. I had never considered clerical garb in this way. I found her explanation comforting: we\u2019re all sinners on journeys, traveling with hope to our destinies.<\/p>\n
Congregation for the Clergy and approved by Pope John Paul II on
January 31, 1994, lists 23 reasons why priests should wear Roman collars. Reason #23 includes a point all of us \u2013 lay, consecrated and religious \u2013 should take to heart.<\/p>\n