Stole
- For the lady's garment, see stole (shawl).
The stole (a liturgical vestment of various Christian denominations) is an embroidered band of cloth, formerly usually of silk, about two and one-half to three metres long and seven to ten centimetres wide, whose ends are usually broadened out.
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Etymology and history
The word stole derives from Latin stola, from the Greek stolē, 'garment', originally 'array' or 'equipment'.
The stole was originally a kind of scarf that covered the shoulders and fell down in front of the body. After being adopted by the Church about the seventh century, the stole became gradually narrower and so richly ornamented that it developed into a mark of dignity. Nowadays, the stole is usually wider and can be made from a wide variety of material.
There are many theories as to the "ancestry" of the stole. Some say it came from the tallit (Jewish prayer mantle), because it is very similar to the present usage (as in the minister puts it on when he leads in prayer) but this theory is no longer regarded much today as that the stole originated from a kind of liturgical napkin called orarium very similar to the sudarium. In fact, the stole, in many places is called the orarium. hence, it is linked to the napkin used by Christ in washing the feet of his disciples. Hence, it is a fitting symbol of the yoke of Christ, the yoke of service.
Use
In the Roman Catholic Church and churches of the Anglican Communion, the stole is conferred at the ordination of a deacon and is the common vestment of the Holy Orders. The bishop wears the stole around his or her neck with the ends hanging down in front while the deacon places it over his or her left shoulder and lets it hang cross-wise at his or her right side. The priest used to cross it over his or her breast but since the Second Vatican Council, the stole has been worn in the same fashion as that of the bishop. In Roman Catholicism, wearing of the stole is reserved to deacons, priests, and bishops.
In The United Methodist Church, deacons wear a stole around the shoulder as in the Anglican and Roman traditions. An ordained elder wears the stole in the same fashion as an Anglican or Roman priest, the role of elder being the United Methodist equivalent to that office. The stole in Methodism is a symbol of ordination and sacramental authority. Stoles are often given by the congregation (sometimes hand-made or decorated) as a love gift at ordination or at other life milestones.
In the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, only bishops and pastors wear the stole, in conjunction with the pectoral cross, as they are the only ordained ministers in the church. Diaconal ministers, the ELCA's equivalent to the deacon, wear the pectoral cross as a sign of their consecration into the ministry of service.
Symbolism
Together with the cincture and now defunct maniple, the stole symbolizes the bonds and fetters with which Jesus was bound during his Passion; it is usually ornamented with a cross. Another version is that the stole denotes the duty to spread the Word of God. In the Roman Catholic and United Methodist Churches, the stole is colored white or gold for Christmas, Easter, and other high feasts, red for Pentecost Sunday, feasts of martyred saints, Good Friday, and ordinations, green for Ordinary Time (the periods between Epipthany and Lent and from Pentecost Sunday to Christ the King), with Violet/Purple for Advent and Lent. Roman Catholics also use rose (pink) for the 3rd Sunday in Advent (the pink candle in the Advent wreath) and the 4th Sunday in Lent--symbolizing as a "break" in the gloom of penance during the purple seasons.
In the Anglican Communion and the ELCA, the primary colors are the same (white, red, green, and purple), but with blue being worn in place of purple for Advent (symbolizing the night sky or the Virgin Mary), and either crimson (Anglican Communion) or scarlet (ELCA) being worn for the Holy Week period. Black, a common color used by most denominations, symbolizing mourning, was originally worn for Good Friday and funerals, but since the 1960's, black has been superceded by white. In some situations, black is still reserved for funerals in some Roman Catholic and Anglican funerals (an example of the latter was for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth, the "Queen Mother"), while ELCA Lutherans use black only for Ash Wednesday, and as a cross drape for Good Fridays.
The stole in Eastern rites
In the Eastern rites, the stole is known as the epitrachelion (when worn by a priest or bishop) and the orarion (when worn by a deacon or subdeacon). The priest's stole consists of a long strip of cloth, hung around the neck with the two strips sewn together. The protodeacon or archdeacon wears it over the left shoulder and crossed under the right, and the deacon wears it over the left shoulder with the two ends left hanging. The subdeacon wears his orarion over both shoulders, crossed in the back and the front.
Homonyms
Stole is also the past participle of the irregular English verb "steal".
References
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th ed., vol. 26, p. 953.