Chasuble

The chasuble is a garment (or vestment) worn by priests during the celebration of mass and any other ceremony. It is composed of two pieces of stiff fabric joined at the shoulders. It is worn over the other garments.

The chasuble worn by the priest can have different colours and patterns depending on the celebration. For example, at Easter Mass, the chasuble is often in shades of yellow. This one, in black, is a funeral chasuble. Chasubles are often decorated with an embroidered cross on the back. Here, the cross is accompanied by the three letters “IHS”. These form what is known as the Christogram, an abbreviation for the name of Jesus Christ in Latin. This same motif is used in different circumstances but is notably on the coat of arms of the Jesuit order, a very important male religious community in Quebec.

The vestments, as well as all the ceremonial accessories, are stored in large cabinets in the sacristy, a small room behind the altar where the priest dresses for the ceremony.

Women’s religious communities make vestments for both male and female religious. With industrialization, these vestments began to be produced in factories and could be purchased by catalogue.