07-02-2023
Culture
Lent: The meaning of purple liturgical vestments
Here why priests wear purple vestments 40 days before Easter. History and meaning of the colour purple on liturgical vestments during Lent, as well as a small curiosity dating back to the Middle Age.
Every year faithful people celebrate the Lent, a period that goes through a spiritual journey starting with Jesus' Passion, death and subsequent Resurrection. During this period of penitence, in preparation for Jesus’ resurrection, the liturgical vestments are often purple. But why this colour?
In the past, purple was linked to the power and wealth of kings, but over the centuries it has gradually become associated with penance, recalling a particular moment in Christ's passion. Its meaning is partly linked to the Gospels' story according which Roman soldiers, after the scourging, made fun of Jesus by calling him King of the Jews and dressing him in a purple cloak. It is therefore from this moment that the adoption of the colour purple in sacred vestments is meant to evoke what was the pain and sufferance of Jesus before his crucifixion.
The purple of clerical vestments such as chasubles and stoles, which are worn during the 40 days before Easter, is definitively fixed as the official colour of Lent, but also of Advent, with the Roman Missal of the 1570 and the Council of Trent. In short, purple, a clear variation of black, represents a sign of penance, but also a preparation for one of the most important events of Jesus’ life.
Before we conclude, we would also like to report a small curiosity regarding this colour. As we all know, during Lent entertainment was forbidden and this included the attendance to theatre plays. It is starting from the Middle Age onwards that the idea of theatre players against the purple colour started to spread. This was precisely because non-participation caused serious economic hardships for the them who lived only on this income. In recent times anyway this belief has turned into a trend thanks to some celebrities.
In the past, purple was linked to the power and wealth of kings, but over the centuries it has gradually become associated with penance, recalling a particular moment in Christ's passion. Its meaning is partly linked to the Gospels' story according which Roman soldiers, after the scourging, made fun of Jesus by calling him King of the Jews and dressing him in a purple cloak. It is therefore from this moment that the adoption of the colour purple in sacred vestments is meant to evoke what was the pain and sufferance of Jesus before his crucifixion.
The purple of clerical vestments such as chasubles and stoles, which are worn during the 40 days before Easter, is definitively fixed as the official colour of Lent, but also of Advent, with the Roman Missal of the 1570 and the Council of Trent. In short, purple, a clear variation of black, represents a sign of penance, but also a preparation for one of the most important events of Jesus’ life.
Before we conclude, we would also like to report a small curiosity regarding this colour. As we all know, during Lent entertainment was forbidden and this included the attendance to theatre plays. It is starting from the Middle Age onwards that the idea of theatre players against the purple colour started to spread. This was precisely because non-participation caused serious economic hardships for the them who lived only on this income. In recent times anyway this belief has turned into a trend thanks to some celebrities.