Crosier
From Free net encyclopedia
Contents |
Staff
A crosier (crozier, pastoral staff) is the stylized staff of office carried by high-ranking Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican and some Lutheran prelates. The other typical insignia of most of these prelates, but not all, is the mitre.
As a symbol of the office of governing a bishop has in Western Christianity, it is borne by bishops in their own dioceses as "shepherd of the flock of God", i.e., the community under his jurisdiction. .
Those used by Roman Catholic and Anglican bishops have curved or hooked tops, similar in appearance to staves traditionally used by shepherds, hence they are also known as crook. In some languages there is only one term, referring to this form, such as German Krummstab, Dutch kromstaf.
The crosiers of (some) abbots are carried with the curve toward the back (rather than toward the front as with bishops) which symbolises the introvert nature of his jurisdiction: over the monastery only. Image:Catholiccrosier.jpg
The crosier is conferred upon ordination into office.
A crosier was also carried on some occasions by the Pope beginning in the early days of the church. This practice was gradually phased out and had disappeared by the time of Innocent III's papacy in the eleventh century. Paul VI introduced the pastoral staff, which the popes have used in the same manner as the crosier, except that it is not a crook but, rather, a crucifix on a staff. John Paul II adopted a slightly redesigned version. To this day, popes, however, do not bear a crosier as their jurisidiction is universal. Image:Crosier.jpeg Eastern Orthodox crosiers are commonly in the shape of a tau or, more rarely, with a similar t-shape but ending in sculptures of the heads of snakes or dragons.
References
External link
Other uses of the word
- Crosiers are also members of an order of Roman Catholic priests and brothers. The official name of the order is "Canons Regular of the Order of the Holy Cross."
- The coiled ends of some plants (such as unopened fern fronds) which resemble the traditional crosier staff are also termed "crosiers" (though these are more commonly called "fiddleheads").
- Crosier is also a somewhat archaic synonym for the constellation Crux (the Southern Cross).
- various nouns proper; see also Crozier.de:Krummstab
eo:Episkopa bastono es:Báculo pastoral no:Bispestav pl:Pastorał sv:Kräkla