Pope's pallium noticeably different from ones he'll give archbishops

Published: 2006-06-22

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI will place woolen bands, called palliums, around the necks of new archbishops June 29 as a symbol of their authority and responsibility. The pope, too, wears a pallium over his chasuble when celebrating Mass, but his is noticeably different -- at least for the time being -- from the palliums worn by archbishops. U.S. Archbishops Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, George H. Niederauer of San Francisco and Donald W. Wuerl of Washington are among the archbishops named in the past year who are expected to receive their palliums from Pope Benedict on the late-June feast of Sts. Peter and Paul. While the flippant may call it fashion, the pallium and the chasubles chosen by Pope Benedict actually are the result of a study of history and aesthetics. For hundreds of years the pope's pallium, like the one still worn by archbishops, was a circular band of wool with a 12-inch-long strip hanging from the center down the front and the back. The one chosen by Pope Benedict is wider and drapes around his neck; it is more than twice as long as an archbishop's pallium, with the ends hanging down his left side and reaching below his knees.

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