National Working Group on Worship
Theology & Discipleship
The Uniting Church
in Australia
Paper No.1
GUIDELINES ON
LITURGICAL DRESS
1.
The
Commission on Liturgy recognizes the freedom of ministers of the Word, deacons
and
other leaders of worship
to choose whether or not to wear liturgical dress.
2.
In the
interests of a commonality of practice in the Uniting Church, the Commission
recommends the following
guidelines for the wearing of liturgical dress when leading worship
and in other in
appropriate circumstances:
2.1 Ministers of the Word, deacons, and other leaders of worship wear
the alb. It may be worn with
or without girdle or
cincture.
2.2 Ministers of the Word and deacons may wear a stole in the colours of
the liturgical season.
Ministers of the Word wear
the stole around the shoulders and hanging down both sides at the
front; deacons wear it over
the left shoulder and tied or fastened at the right hip.
2.3
Alternatively, ministers of the Word and deacons may wear a scarf, both
wearing it in the same
manner, i.e. around the shoulders and
hanging down both sides at the front. The Uniting Church
scarf is blue.
2.4Leaders
of worship may also choose to wear a simple pectoral cross, or other Christian
symbol.
2.5 Thus, it is appropriate for lay leaders of worship, including lay
pastors, lay preachers, and
candidates for the
ministry, if they wish, to wear alb (and pectoral cross or other Christian
symbol), and scarf but not
stole. A lay President, Moderator or Chairperson of Presbytery may
also wear a scarf of
office.
3.1. It is preferable that the alb, as its name implies, be white. The
girdle should also be white.
3.2 The stole is a strip of material, either plain or textured (e.g.
brocade) in colours appropriate to
the seasons of the
liturgical year. The width of the stole may vary according to its designer's
preference, but it is usually
cut to fit around the neck (i.e. without pleats), and is usually
narrower than a scarf. It
may hang to about knee length, and may be decorated with appropriate
universal Christians symbol
either at the bottom or at chest height.
The stole is a sign of
ordination, either of a minister of the Word or a deacon.
3.3 The scarf is a strip of plain material, some 18-20 cms in width,
gathered into pleats at the neck,
and hanging down to about
knee length, and without fringes. It may be decorated with a Uniting
Church logo, and/or a
cross, or the emblem of some other Uniting Church organization at the
bottom of both sides.
A Moderator may wear a
panel of silver cloth and a President a panel of gold cloth at the base of
the scarf. The Uniting
Church scarf is blue, but some presbyteries have designated alternative
colours for the scarves
worn by their office-bearers.
The scarf is a sign of
office in the church, worn by both lay and ordained people.
4. The Commission also honours
the traditions received from the uniting churches, which included
the wearing of dress
distinctive of the particular churches and ecclesiastical office. Therefore, it
recognizes the right of
ministers to continue to wear such dress, which may include cassock,
bands, gown, hood and black
scarf.
5. It is not appropriate to
wear academic robes or hoods with alb and stole or scarf. When it is
appropriate to wear such
distinctions, they are worn with their proper dress (e.g. street dress,
cassock and bands etc. )
11th November
1992