Why does the pope wear red shoes?
The details behind the color of his shoes, explained.
If you’re wondering why the pope wears red shoes, you’re not alone. It’s a good question! It’s a tradition that’s been going on for quite some time. Since the surprise announcement that Pope Benedict XVI would retire and Pope Francis would be his replacement, (as announced Wednesday) the world watched as he made his debut. And it left many people wondering, where does the tradition of red shoes come from?
According to NY Books, red shoes were originally worn by aristocrats (people who were rich and could afford expensive colored leather).
Here, NY Books gives an explanation of why, exactly, the pope does wear red shoes!
"Romans knew that the timetable for the papal conclave would be a quick one when the three sets of vestments prepared for the new pontiff — in small, medium, and large sizes — had already disappeared from the display window of Gammarelli, the ecclesiastical tailors, on Friday, March 8. The three white wool satin cassocks had appeared on March 4, along with one scarlet capelet, the mozzetta, trimmed in white ermine, versatile enough for one size to fit any aspiring pontiff, a single pair of red kangaroo-leather shoes in a medium size and a white moiré silk zucchetto, the pontifical skullcap. Though they are loaded with Christian significance, many of these articles of clothing actually have a far more ancient pedigree.
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Those red shoes, for example — which the pontifex emeritus has now given up in favor of a more ordinary brown pair from Mexico — may symbolize the blood of Christian martyrs. But when red shoes were the height of fashion in Etruscan Rome, that is, 500 years before the birth of Jesus, they designated the wearer as an aristocrat, someone who could afford leather that had been colored with the most expensive dye in the Mediterranean, Phoenician “purple,” actually scarlet red. (It was produced by scoring the bodies of mollusks and ranged in color from blue to red, with red the most prized shade). The leather itself came not from kangaroos, of course, but from the Chianina cattle, who came to Italy together with the Etruscans and provided the ancestral form of Florentine beefsteak."
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I love the excitement and love for the new Pope. The change.......it is coming! I can feel it and so can millions
of others.
This man who refers to himself as Pope Francis, is to be admired for his dedication to his beliefs and his
humble ways. We can all learn from him at this time in history and I pray that we do listen well and let him
guide us into a newer and more revered world. We must take care of what God has given us and we must
obey HIS commandments daily. It is the only way to Peace throughout the world.
As for traditions: All churches are steeped in traditions. Religion has many parts to it and some are traditional
and some are newer in our evolving world.
I love and admire the traditions of the Catholic Church. You can always spot a Catholic personality and that
is a "good thing". Catholicism instills rightousness, goodness and humility in children. We need more of that
and we need to get down on our knees more often in front of a cross or at an altar. It is humbling and it gives
us inner peace to go forward with.
Evil cannot live at the foot of a cross.
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