![Biret](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Biret.JPG)
The biretta ( la, biretum, birretum) is a square
cap
A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...
with three or four peaks or horns, sometimes surmounted by a tuft. Traditionally the three-peaked biretta is worn by
Catholic clergy
The sacrament of holy orders in the Catholic Church includes three orders: bishops, priests, and deacons, in decreasing order of rank, collectively comprising the clergy. In the phrase "holy orders", the word "holy" means "set apart for a sa ...
and some
Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
and
Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...
clergy. A four-peaked biretta is worn as
academic dress
Academic dress is a traditional form of clothing for academic settings, mainly tertiary (and sometimes secondary) education, worn mainly by those who have obtained a university degree (or similar), or hold a status that entitles them to assum ...
(but not liturgically) by those holding a doctoral degree from a pontifical faculty or
pontifical university
A pontifical university is an ecclesiastical university established or approved directly by the Holy See, composed of three main ecclesiastical faculties (Theology, Philosophy and canon law (Catholic Church), Canon Law) and at least one other facu ...
or faculty. Occasionally the biretta is worn by advocates in law courts, for instance the
advocates
An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...
in the
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
.
Origins
![Bonete Sammlung Philippi](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Bonete_Sammlung_Philippi.JPG)
The origins of the biretta are uncertain. It is mentioned as early as the tenth century. One possible origin is the academic cap of the high Middle Ages, which was soft and square. This is also the ancestor of the modern
mortarboard
The square academic cap, graduate cap, cap, mortarboard (because of its similarity in appearance to the mortarboard used by brickmasons to hold mortar) or Oxford cap is an item of academic dress consisting of a horizontal square board fixed upo ...
used today in secular universities. The biretta seems to have become a more widely used as an ecclesiastical vestment after the synod of Bergamo, 1311, ordered the clergy to wear the "bireta on their heads after the manner of laymen." The tuft or
pom sometimes seen on the biretta was added later; the earliest forms of the biretta (the
cap
A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...
) did not bear the device.
Liturgical biretta
Catholic use
The biretta may be used by all ranks of the
Latin Church
, native_name_lang = la
, image = San Giovanni in Laterano - Rome.jpg
, imagewidth = 250px
, alt = Façade of the Archbasilica of St. John in Lateran
, caption = Archbasilica of Saint Joh ...
clergy, including
cardinals
Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to:
Animals
* Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds
**''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae
**''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...
and other
bishops
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
to
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...
s,
deacon
A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...
s, and even seminarians (who are not clergy, since they are not ordained). Those worn by cardinals are scarlet red and made of silk. After the Second Vatican Council the ceremony of giving the
galero
A (plural: ; from la, galērum, originally connotating a helmet made of skins; cf. '' galea'') is a broad-brimmed hat with tasselated strings which was worn by clergy in the Catholic Church. Over the centuries, the red ''galero'' was restricte ...
to cardinals was replaced with giving the biretta. The biretta of a
bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
is
amaranth
''Amaranthus'' is a cosmopolitan genus of annual or short-lived perennial plants collectively known as amaranths. Some amaranth species are cultivated as leaf vegetables, pseudocereals, and ornamental plants. Catkin-like cymes of densely pack ...
in color, while those worn by priests, deacons, and seminarians are black. The
pope
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
does not make use of the biretta.
The
Tridentine Roman Missal
The Roman Missal ( la, Missale Romanum) is the title of several missals used in the celebration of the Roman Rite. Along with other liturgical books of the Roman Rite, the Roman Missal contains the texts and rubrics for the celebration of the m ...
rubrics on
low Mass
Low Mass (Latin ''Missa lecta'', "read Mass") is a Tridentine Mass defined officially in the Code of Rubrics included in the 1962 edition of the Roman Missal as a Mass in which the priest does not chant the parts that the rubrics assign to him. A ...
require the priest to wear the biretta while proceeding to the altar, to hand it to the
server
Server may refer to:
Computing
*Server (computing), a computer program or a device that provides functionality for other programs or devices, called clients
Role
* Waiting staff, those who work at a restaurant or a bar attending customers and su ...
on arrival and to resume it when leaving. At
solemn Mass
Solemn Mass ( la, missa solemnis) is the full ceremonial form of a Mass, predominantly associated with the Tridentine Mass where it is celebrated by a priest with a deacon and a subdeacon,"The essence of high Mass is not the music but the deacon ...
the sacred ministers wear it also when seated.
Appearance
Cardinals bear no tuft or "pom" (they are given their birettas and
zucchetto
The zucchetto (, also ,["zucchetto"](_blank)
(US) and , s by the Pope who elevated them in a ceremony named a
consistory
Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to:
*A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church
*Consistory ...
– they will form a line, and kneel before him when receiving them), bishops bear a purple pom, priests who have been appointed as
prelate
A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...
s to certain positions within the Vatican wear a black biretta with red pom, diocesan priests and deacons wear a black biretta with or without a black pom. It is often asserted that seminarians are only entitled to wear a biretta without a pom-pom, but there would seem to be no formal ruling on this point. Priests in monastic and mendicant religious orders that have their own habits (Benedictines, Franciscans, Dominicans, etc.) do not generally wear birettas: in most circumstances, even liturgical, the monastic hood took the place of the biretta.
Canons Regular
Canons regular are priests who live in community under a rule ( and canon in greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular, designated by a ...
generally do—for instance the canons of the
Order of Prémontré wear a white biretta.
Clerks Regular
Clerics regular are clerics (mostly priests) who are members of a religious order under a rule of life (regular). Clerics regular differ from canons regular in that they devote themselves more to pastoral care, in place of an obligation to the p ...
(that is, post-Renaissance religious orders primarily dedicated to priestly ministry, for instance the
Jesuits
The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
and
Redemptorists
The Redemptorists officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer ( la, links=no, Congregatio Sanctissimi Redemptoris), abbreviated CSsR,is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brother ...
) generally wear a black biretta with no tuft. Other priests who belong to various forms of community life, as the
Congregation of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri for instance, generally also wear birettas, but without a pom. The
Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest
The Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest (ICKSP; la, Institutum Christi Regis Summi Sacerdotis []; french: Institut du Christ Roi Souverain Prêtre []) is a Roman Catholic society of apostolic life of pontifical right in communion with ...
uses black birettas with a blue pom.
The liturgical biretta has three peaks (four peaks however are the norm in Germany and the Netherlands), with the "peak-less" corner worn on the left side of the head. According to the 1913 ''
Catholic Encyclopedia
The ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'' (also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedia'') i ...
'', "It was formerly the rule that a priest should always wear it in giving absolution in confession, and it is probable that the ancient usage which requires an English judge assume the 'black cap' in pronouncing sentence of death is of identical origin."
The use of the biretta has not been abolished as a result of changes in the regulation of clerical dress and vesture following the
Second Vatican Council
The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...
and still remains the correct liturgical headgear for those in Holy Orders whilst "in choir", but its use has been made optional. Its use is prevalent among
bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
s and cardinals, and less so among other clergy. Some priests wear it during outdoor services such as burials or processions and, as is intended, during the celebration of Mass and other liturgical services. The biretta is also worn by a priest, deacon, subdeacon, and bishop in attendance at a Mass offered according to the rubrics for the
Roman Missal of 1962.
AngeloScola.22-03-2009.jpg, Cardinal Angelo Scola
Angelo Scola (; born 7 November 1941) is an Italian Cardinal of the Catholic Church, philosopher and theologian. He was Archbishop of Milan from 2011 to 2017. He had served as Patriarch of Venice from 2002 to 2011. He has been a cardinal since 20 ...
wearing a scarlet watered silk biretta
Procession of the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ-Bruges; nederlandse Bisschop 50.JPG, Then-Archbishop Willem Jacobus Eijk (Utrecht) wearing an amaranth
''Amaranthus'' is a cosmopolitan genus of annual or short-lived perennial plants collectively known as amaranths. Some amaranth species are cultivated as leaf vegetables, pseudocereals, and ornamental plants. Catkin-like cymes of densely pack ...
biretta
Biretta of a Roman Catholic Monsignor.jpg, The Biretta of a Monsignor
Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...
Giuseppe Benedetto Cottolengo.jpg, Saint Giuseppe Benedetto Cottolengo
Giuseppe Benedetto Cottolengo or Joseph Benedict Cottolengo (3 May 1786 – 30 April 1842) was the Entrepreneur, founder of the and is a saint of the Roman Catholic Church.
Early life
Joseph Benedict Cottolengo was born on May 3, 1786, int ...
wearing the black biretta of a priest in a mid-19th century painting
Use by Anglicans
Birettas are also occasionally worn by
Anglo-Catholic
Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches.
The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglican ...
Anglican clergy, though it is generally considered a
Romanism.
Canons and deans could wear a black biretta with a red pom.
The
Canterbury cap
The Canterbury cap is a square cloth hat with sharp corners. It originated in the Middle Ages, and is commonly found in the Anglican Communion, as well as in the Catholic Church where it is used by Ordinariate clergy. It is also soft and foldable, ...
, which like the biretta, evolved from the medieval cap, although seldom used since the early 20th century, has been considered a more authentically Anglican alternative to the biretta. The Canterbury cap has a soft, square top rather than the rigid horns that developed on the biretta.
Academic biretta
Doctoral degrees
Use in medieval universities
In the medieval university, the ceremony by which a new master or doctor received his degree included the birretatio, or imposition of the biretta. This was often given with a token book in recognition of the person's scholarship. The academic biretta developed into various styles of academic headgear on the European continent and in the British Isles. Today some secular universities still use the term, if not the actual biretta, to name their academic cap.
Use by pontifical universities
For those holding doctoral degrees from a pontifical university or faculty, whether ordained or lay, "the principal mark of a Doctor's dignity is the four horned biretta." In
commencement ceremonies and other academic settings, doctors of the four ecclesiastical disciplines (Philosophy, Theology, Canon Law, and Sacred Scriptures) from pontifical faculties and universities have a canonical right to wear the doctoral biretta as stated in the
Codex Iuris Canonici, 1917, can. 1378, and explained in commentary 262 of the Commentarium Codicis Iuris Canonici as follows:
"262. Doctoratus ac Scentiae effectus canonici sic recensentur can. 1378...doctoribus seu gradum academicum in una ex quatuor supradictis facultatibus <> supremum obtinentibus, rite creatis, seu promotis regulariter post examen, iuxta "statuta a Sede Apostolica probata" (can. 1376, § 2) saltem quoad usum validum "facultatis ab eadem Aplca. Sede concessae" (can. 1377, § 1), deferendi, extra sacras functiones, (quarum nomine ad hunc eflectum non-venit ex usu sacra praedicatio), nisi aliunde amplietur eis hoc ius quoad a) annulum etiam cum gemma "ipsis a iure huius canonis concessum" (can. 136, § 2), b) et biretum doctorale, (idest: cum quatuor apicibus) utpote insigne huius gradus ac diverso colore ornatum pro Facultate.:
The sections concerning the 1917 edition of Canon Law in relation to the academic biretta were abrogated by the updated edition in the
1983 Code of Canon Law
The 1983 ''Code of Canon Law'' (abbreviated 1983 CIC from its Latin title ''Codex Iuris Canonici''), also called the Johanno-Pauline Code, is the "fundamental body of ecclesiastical laws for the Latin Church". It is the second and current comp ...
. Nevertheless, the use of the academic biretta has continued to this day despite official recognition in the 1983 Code on the grounds that the new code did not intend to suppress its use but simply to divest itself of concern for academic regalia. Moreover, as it became socially acceptable for Catholic priests to study for post-ordination degrees at Protestant seminaries or secular universities, the four horned academic biretta with appropriately colored piping has similarly been employed by such priests earning doctoral degrees from even non-pontifical institutions.
Colors of doctoral birettas
The color of the doctoral biretta given by ecclesiastical universities and faculties is normally black, with colored piping corresponding to the faculty of study in which the degree was granted:
* Theology (S.T.D., D.Min.): Red
* Canon Law (J.C.D.): Green
* Philosophy (Ph.D.): Blue
*Social Sciences (H.E.D., S.I.C.D, etc.): Orange
At one time, different universities had different practices concerning the color and style of the biretta itself. One author, nearly a century ago, reports that in his day the Roman universities gave a doctoral biretta in black silk, Louvain gave a biretta with a colored tuft according to the academic discipline in which the doctorate was awarded, and the Catholic University of America gave a velvet biretta with red tuft and trim to doctors of theology. The 'traditional' biretta at the
Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, ''Angelicum'', is white, to correspond to the white Dominican habit. Also, the academic senate of the ''Angelicum'' in its May 2011 meeting indicated that the black biretta may be used with trim and pom in the color of the particular faculty.
A three-peaked black biretta with appropriately colored piping may be similarly used by those receiving the licentiate degree (S.T.L., Ph.L.).
Depictions in art in Catholicism
The doctoral biretta is sometimes seen in depictions of St.
Teresa of Ávila
Teresa of Ávila, OCD (born Teresa Sánchez de Cepeda y Ahumada; 28 March 15154 or 15 October 1582), also called Saint Teresa of Jesus, was a Spanish Carmelite nun and prominent Spanish mystic and religious reformer.
Active during th ...
, because she was declared a doctor by the
University of Salamanca
The University of Salamanca ( es, Universidad de Salamanca) is a Spanish higher education institution, located in the city of Salamanca, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It was founded in 1218 by King Alfonso IX. It is th ...
. This recognition is distinct from her status as a
Doctor of the Church
Doctor of the Church (Latin: ''doctor'' "teacher"), also referred to as Doctor of the Universal Church (Latin: ''Doctor Ecclesiae Universalis''), is a title given by the Catholic Church to saints recognized as having made a significant contribu ...
. The doctoral biretta has been borrowed for depictions of another doctor of the Church, St.
Thérèse de Lisieux
Therese or Thérèse is a variant of the feminine given name Teresa. It may refer to:
Persons
Therese
*Duchess Therese of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1773–1839), member of the House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and a Duchess of Mecklenburg
*Therese of Br ...
.
Portraits/Chicago Inc
Accessed 2006-11-26.
Use by women
The biretta was considered as possible headwear for female barristers in England and Wales. In 1922, immediately prior to the first lady being called to the Bar, there was discussion among the senior judges about what she should wear on her head. Darling J and Horridge J suggested the biretta, but were outvoted by the other nine judges present. As a result, female barristers wear the same unpowdered men's wig as male barristers, which completely covers the hair.
See also
* The Philippi Collection
The Philippi Collection is a German private collection of clerical, religious and spiritual headdresses. The collection demonstrates the history, shared roots and diversity of religious-clerical head coverings.
Description
The Philippi Collecti ...
* Roman Catholic (term)
"Roman Catholic" is sometimes used to differentiate members of the Catholic Church in full communion with the pope in Rome from other Christians who also self-identify as "Catholic". It is also sometimes used to differentiate adherents to the ...
* Cappello Romano
A cappello romano (pl. ''cappelli romani''; Italian: "") or saturno (pl. ''saturni''; because its appearance is reminiscent of the ringed planet Saturn) is a prelate's hat with a wide, circular brim and a rounded crown worn outdoors in some cou ...
* Galero
A (plural: ; from la, galērum, originally connotating a helmet made of skins; cf. '' galea'') is a broad-brimmed hat with tasselated strings which was worn by clergy in the Catholic Church. Over the centuries, the red ''galero'' was restricte ...
* Zucchetto
The zucchetto (, also ,["zucchetto"](_blank)
(US) and ,
* Four Winds hat
* Skufia
A (also , or ; el, σκούφια or ) is an item of clerical clothing, a cap, worn by Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic monastics (in which case it is black) or awarded to clergy as a mark of honor (in which case it is usually red or pu ...
Notes and references
Bibliography
*
*
*
"Instruction on the dress, titles and coat-of-arms of cardinals, bishops and lesser prelates"
''L'Osservatore Romano
''L'Osservatore Romano'' (, 'The Roman Observer') is the daily newspaper of Vatican City State which reports on the activities of the Holy See and events taking place in the Catholic Church and the world. It is owned by the Holy See but is not a ...
'', English ed. 17 April 1969: 4.
External links
*
Pictures of birettas, information and literature
{{Hats
Anglican vestments
Cardinals (Catholic Church)
Eucharistic vestments
History of clothing (Western fashion)
History of clothing
History of fashion
Lutheran vestments
Religious headgear
Catholic clerical clothing