- Galero
A galero (pl. galeri; L. "galerum", pl. "galera") in the
Roman Catholic Church is a large, broad-brimmed tasseled hat worn by clergy. Over the centuries the galero was eventually limited in use to individual cardinals as a crown symbolizing the title of "Prince of the Church". The red galero was first granted to cardinals byPope Innocent IV in 1245 at theFirst Council of Lyon . Tradition in the Archdiocese of Lyon is that the red color was inspired by the red hats of the canons of Lyon. According to Noonan, Pope Innocent wanted his favorites to be distinct and recognizable in the lengthy processions at the council.When on
28 April 1285 atGirona , during theAragonese Crusade ,Jean Cholet crownedCharles of Valois with his galero and pronounced himKing of Aragon , he earned Charles the nickname "roi du chapeau" ("king of the hat").econd Vatican Council
When creating a cardinal, the
Pope used to crown the candidate with a scarlet galero inconsistory , the practice giving rise to the phrase "receiving the red hat." In 1969, a papal decree following theSecond Vatican Council ended the use of the galero as an act of humbling the Church hierarchy. It was deemed that by removing such elaborate regalia, the people could better identify with their pastoral leaders. Today, only the scarletzucchetto andbiretta are placed over the heads of cardinals in consistory. A few cardinals from eastern rites wear distinctive oriental headgear. However, some cardinals continue to obtain galeri privately so that the old ceremony of its suspension over their tombs may be observed.When a cardinal dies, it is traditional that it be suspended over his tomb, where it remains until it is reduced to dust, symbolizing how all earthly glory is passing. It is said that when it falls, the cardinals soul has entered Heaven. In the United States, where only a few cathedrals have crypts, the galeri of past archbishops who were cardinals are suspended from the ceiling. Hence,
St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York (where past archbishops are entombed beneath the sanctuary), Holy Name Cathedral inChicago, Illinois , [http://holynamecathedral.org/special/tours/tour9.htm] theCathedral Basilica of Saint Louis inSt. Louis, Missouri , theCathedral of Our Lady of the Angels inLos Angeles, California , and theCathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle inWashington, D.C. are five Cathedral churches in theUnited States that hang the galeri of past Cardinals from their ceilings.Ecclesiastical heraldry
The galero (or "ecclesiastical hat") is still in use today in
ecclesiastical heraldry as part of the achievement of thecoat of arms of an armigerous Roman Catholic cleric. The galero replaces thehelmet and crest, because those were considered too warlike for the clerical state. The color of the galero and number of tassels indicate the cleric's place in the hierarchy. Depiction in arms can vary greatly depending on the artist's style, but even when it looks like acappello romano with tassels, in heraldry it is still considered a galero.References
*CathEncy | wstitle=Ecclesiastical Heraldry | last=Fox-Davies | first=A.C. | authorlink = Arthur Charles Fox-Davies
*CathEncy | wstitle=Lyons | title=(Archdiocese of) Lyons | last=Goyau | first=Georges
*CathEncy | wstitle=First Council of Lyons (1245) | last=Goyau | first=Georges
*"Instruction on the dress, titles and coat-of-arms of cardinals, bishops and lesser prelates." "L'Osservatore Romano ", English ed. 17 Apr 1969: 4. ISSN 0391-688X. Online at [http://www.fiu.edu/~mirandas/instruction69.htm http://www.fiu.edu/~mirandas/instruction69.htm]
*cite book | last=Noonan, Jr. | first=James-Charles | title=The Church Visible: The Ceremonial Life and Protocol of the Roman Catholic Church | year=1996 | publisher=Viking | id=ISBN 0-670-86745-4 | pages=191External links
* [http://www.dieter-philippi.de/mydante_1479.html Pictures of clerical headgear, information and literature in German language]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.