New chasubles and dalmatics are created for Dec. 3 installation Mass

Father Steven Giannini, left, and Father Aaron Pfaff sit after Communion during a Nov. 7 Mass at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis. They are wearing chasubles taken from a set of 300 that have been made by The House of Hansen in Chicago for the archdiocese to use during major archdiocesan liturgies. They will be used on a large scale for the first time at the Dec. 3 Mass at the cathedral during which Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin will be installed as the sixth archbishop of Indianapolis. (Photo by Sean Gallagher)

By Sean Gallagher

A diocesan bishop and his priests are one in their service of God and the Church.

That unity can be powerfully expressed when they come together for worship wearing vestments of the same design.

This is partly how Father Patrick Beidelman, archdiocesan director of liturgy, explained arrangements that he made in recent months, in conjunction with Bishop Christopher J. Coyne, apostolic administrator, to have 300 chasubles made for major archdiocesan liturgies and those held during conferences hosted by the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.

All of the vestments are being paid for through the generous gift of a donor, who wishes to remain anonymous.

These white chasubles feature gold trim and a simple gold embroidered cross. They will be used for the first time on a major scale during the Dec. 3 installation Mass of Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin when hundreds of visiting priests, bishops, and priests who minister in central and southern Indiana gather at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral.

“Having a set in which you have multiple vestments of the same style, I think, adds to the beauty of the celebration,” Father Beidelman said. “It adds to the noble simplicity that I think we’re called to in the context of liturgy.”

Father Beidelman, in consultation with several archdiocesan priests and Bishop Coyne, created the design for the chasuble and the 20 dalmatics—a deacon’s outer vestment—that are being custom tailored by The House of Hansen in Chicago.

The archdiocese first had a set of vestments made for the “Celebration in the Spirit of Hope: The Great Jubilee,” a Mass celebrated on Sept. 16, 2000, in the former RCA Dome in Indianapolis that drew approximately 30,000 Catholics from across central and southern Indiana.

Father Beidelman noted that there are not enough of these vestments, known as the “jubilee vestments,” to accommodate all of the visiting clergy and those from the archdiocese that will participate in the installation Mass, and at other large conferences and conventions, such as the National Catholic Youth Conference, that the archdiocese has started to host in recent years.

Since the new set of vestments will be used for the first time on a large scale at the installation Mass, they will be known as the “installation vestments.” They will be stored at the cathedral and will primarily be used for liturgies there or at other locations in Indianapolis.

The jubilee vestments will continue to be used for archdiocesan liturgies, such as priest funerals, celebrated at other locations in the archdiocese.

Father Beidelman is looking forward to seeing hundreds of bishops, priests and deacons wearing the new chasubles and dalmatics at the installation Mass.

“I can’t wait,” Father Beidelman said. “I’ve been watching other installations of other archbishops and bishops in these past few months. And it’s always breath-taking when that number of priests and bishops gather with the lay faithful for a celebration. I imagine that it will be a real moment of gratitude and joy.” †