As an Anglican Cathedral the liturgy used in worship reflects our historical use of robes and ceremony to heighten the sense of drama and spectacle in our worship. The choral tradition of the Cathedral enhances this still further by the use of dramatic music performed on our behalf by the Choir. They do this not only in the Cathedral, but also on the many missions to centres of reconciliation worldwide, such as the recent visit to Japan. As part of this tradition the Clergy, Servers and Choir wear robes. Christians have worn robes of one kind or another since the early church began to meet grow and to become more influential in Roman times. The present robes were created 40 years ago for the Cathedral’s consecration, we are currently reviewing what type of robes servers should wear and looking to replace the present stock.

Many robes worn in both the Anglican and Roman Catholic traditions have their roots in both working clothes and the clothes of the higher stations in society from that time. They also have links in the scriptures and serve as a reminder of important messages through imagery. This is particularly relevant to the white alb worn by priests and often by servers (though not at the Cathedral).

Cassock

This is the ordinary robe worn by a priest. Some will wear them all the time, others only as part of the robes worn for particular ceremonies. Its root is from working clothes worn by the lower ranks in the Roman army and ordinary workers in Roman times. The name and garment derives from the pre - Christian era in the Roman Province of Gaul (France). This garment was called a ‘caracalla’, which became Anglicised as ‘cassock’. It was a warm full-length sleeved full length garment. The Romans believed arm and leg covering rather vulgar but Emperor Marcus Aurelius Antonius (211 –217) wore this robe to increase his popularity and respect within the lower ranks of his army. After that it was worn by leading nobility and people of standing and adopted by the church. As a garment associated with humble ranks it is appropriate to wear it in church and over the centuries it has remained the working garment. Often vergers wear cassocks when carrying out their duties and it is useful for visitors as a visible sign that the person wearing the robe is connected to the Cathedral if they need assistance. It also saves vergers, servers and clergy clothes from damage, dust and dirt that can accumulate when carrying out duties at the Cathedral so there is a practical reason for them.

Alb

The Cathedral robes for servers do not include an alb although this is often a garment worn by both priests and servers within the Anglican communion. The alb of clean white material was worn in the early church as a clean over garment to cover up everyday clothes when celebrating communion. It continues in this role today. Its colour denotes the purity of the celebration, but it is also seen as a visual reminder of the seamless robe which the soldiers played dice for during Jesus’ passion (John 19:23-25). Robes should remind us of important aspects of the biblical text all of which heightens the spiritual dimension of our worship. St Jerome wrote that ‘we ought not to enter the holy of holies in soiled every day clothes, but with a clean conscience and clean clothes to administer the mysteries of the Lord’ this rule is instructive in reminding us to show some respect and reverence when celebrating the communion. However in modern times with far less manual and land working, it is often unnecessary to make such a distinction because our working clothes would normally be expected to be clean and tidy!

Tunicle

The Robes are worn rather like an actor wears costumes in a drama. It removes the sense of the individual, and concentrates the focus on the action being performed. The Robes worn by Clergy, Choirs and Servers add to the spectacle but also provide an historic link with the roots of our Church in Roman times.

Surplice

This is a white over garment with a hole for the head to go through and long flowing sleeves. It is a modification of the alb the name being derived from superpellicum meaning ‘over garment’. Similar to the alb, the surplice was a garment to be worn as a clean item for worship worn over what would be an often grubby cassock, though of course both garments would be expected to be clean!

As in many churches and from earliest times, the cassock is the working garment, and it is in this garment that servers will set up services and clear away, so their use as a working ‘overall’ is still with us with them being covered at the time of the service by a more elaborate over garment.

The servers wear Grey Tunicles with light coloured satin darts over a cream coloured cassock. The Tunicles resemble a traditional Roman garment, and the colour tends to blend with the different colours of the garments worn by the clergy reflecting the liturgical seasons of the year. The tunicle is an adaptation of the Roman Tunic, which would have had short or no sleeves and be no longer than knee length. The tunicles worn by the Servers were designed especially for the new Cathedral opened in 1962 by John Piper who also created the beautiful Baptistery Window. The lead server is the Crucifer or Cross Bearer, and he or she wears a cassock surplice with a grey satin lined cloak making the Cruficer a distinctive character.

A Server

Further Reading:- if you are interested in researching clergy robes and their history some of the following books may be of interest: “How to Read a Church” by Richard Taylor; “The Church Seasons: Historically and Poetically Illustrated” by Alexander Grant.