Chrismation Robes

[rainbowbright]

After getting Chrismated, did any one wear their robes for eight days afterwards? My priest old us this was something that came out of hippie California and is not practiced, so we didn't wear ours. My Godmother left the OCA because of my priest saying this and it was all a major trifle. Now I'm wondering if we really should have worn them- we did wear them for vespers right after we were chrismated, but that was just to make my Godmother happy. I've been doing more research and I really want to keep up with the traditions of the church but I feel like I'm being led away from them instead.
Thanks

[Rilian]

We were baptized and chrismated. We wore our robes and had our candles for our first three communions.

[Orthodox Andrew]

No one ever gave me a robe.:sigh:

[Rilian]

No one ever gave me a robe.:sigh:

We purchased ours and donated them to the church for future use.

[Orthodox Andrew]

We purchased ours and donated them to the church for future use.

I honestly did not know they exist until now.

[Akathist]

There wasn't a robe that fit me so I wore a white skirt and jacket (that ironically I had been married in.) We wore it for Pascha (after midnight following Chrismation) and then didn't wear them anymore.

I had not heard this tradition and I am OCA. (I have to say it doesn't seem like reason for anyone to leave the OCA though.)

[Monica, child of God]

I didn't have a robe. I have never seen an adult chrismated in our parish wear one.

M.

[Matrona]

After getting Chrismated, did any one wear their robes for eight days afterwards?

I didn't. I had no "robe", I just wore jeans and a t-shirt for when I was baptized. If I had had the wherewithal I would have bought or made one, but I didn't, and it really doesn't matter.

My priest old us this was something that came out of hippie California and is not practiced

That priest is wrong. Wearing one's baptismal/chrismation robe for eight days is a very old custom dating back to the early church; in fact, they used to pour a LOT of chrism over a person's head and the person would stay in the church and not wash off the oil for eight days. Needless to say, this is no longer the custom. But to say that this came out of "hippie California" is not only factually inaccurate, it's a very disrespectful way to refer to an old tradition. The priest in question might do well to reconsider the way he expresses his feelings on the subject in the future.

[RobNJ]

Robes? White? Sheesh, we're gonna need to call the tentmaker for mine! :doh:

Besides, after Chalie Chan, Sidney Greenstreet, & Colonel Sanders, the world has seen enough fat men in white suits!! ^_^

[rainbowbright]

Another tradition is to be buried in your robe (kind of difficult if you were Chrismated as a baby) so we have kept ours. My Godmother made our robes and my priest thought that was strange. My priest has only been a priest for 10 years and when I went to the monastery once, I found out that he gets a lot of his info about tradition from the Abbess there. Even though he's not on par with all he traditions, he is very good pastorally.

At least I'm not the only one who didn't wear it. I had a really difficult time after becoming Orthodox and still am, but my godmother said I was being attacked by Satan after my Chrismation because I didn't wear my robe (might as well get the garlic out to chase away the demons. I have a bit of a hard time getting a long with her.) and that it is still practiced in the old countries.
What's a good source on traditions? I've only heard of them orally or have ran into them little by little reading history, but I would like to read about them all myself.
Thanks

[MariaRegina]

In the OCMC, there have been quite a few mission pictures of the Catechumens wearing their baptismal robes ... some looked like altar server robes because they had a big cross on the back.

When the church of St. Peter in San Dimas was received into Orthodox from the Four Square church, they made Baptismal robes for all those who were to be baptized. The newly illumined wore them the entire week .. to school also.

This was the tradition in the time of St. John Chrysostom.

[choirfiend]

There's Tradition, and then there's traditions. Many traditions have good and useful purposes that one can apply to one's life in order to keep Christ before one's eyes at all times--but they are hardly the core of our belief and are widely practiced/not practiced across cultures, times, and locations. I would not worry so much about forcing traditions immediately into your life, but accumulate them much as you accumulate familial traditions. Some things, as simple as having certain foods on Christmas Eve, are tradition, but are hardly going to do what the Tradition of icons in church will do for you spiritually.

If people are given a baptismal robe (just like little babies get baptismal gowns), I've never been acquainted with the tradition of wearing it for 8 days. My guess would be that this would be much more normal in a time and place where people dressed everyday in robes!! What I am used to seeing is people carrying their lit baptismal candles with them when they receive Eucharist the first several times (maybe its even 40 days). This is demonstrative of their "newly illumined" status and they should be first in line to receive, usually followed by the children of the parish.
But like I said, these things are very, very closely tied to cultures, times, places, etc. They usually have good reasons and are reasonable when understood in the time, place, and culture they originated in. They may or may not be reasonable, useful, and/or practical in today's time, place and culture.

[Akathist]

You know, I forgot about carrying the lit baptismal candle. I did that the first two Eucharists.

[ufonium2]

I've seen both done in OCA parishes. It's not from "hippie California," whatever that means. Besides, some pretty amazing Orthodox Christians came out of "hippie California," and I can think of worse groups to emulate.

[Tsarina]

Where can one get those robes? I want one! :D

Please and thank you. :)

[Akathist]

Our parish has the robes already. They are larger alter boy like robes that are white. I think some have some gold trim but mostly they were white. I wear larger sized clothes so none of them fit me.

Ask your Priest Tasrina.

I haven't checked but if I were to look online I would see if Orthodox Christian Supply has some. But honestly, it would be less expensive to go and buy a robe pattern at the fabric store (as in a Caftan pattern) and some fake "satin" fabric and have the local sew shop or home sewwer person make it for you.

[Tsarina]

Our parish has the robes already. They are larger alter boy like robes that are white. I think some have some gold trim but mostly they were white. I wear larger sized clothes so none of them fit me.

Ask your Priest Tasrina.

I haven't checked but if I were to look online I would see if Orthodox Christian Supply has some. But honestly, it would be less expensive to go and buy a robe pattern at the fabric store (as in a Caftan pattern) and some fake "satin" fabric and have the local sew shop or home sewwer person make it for you.

Ill ask the Priest, thank you.

[Vasya Davidovich]

Wow.

I've never even heard of this tradition before.

Needless to say, I was not wearing robes to my Chrismation, nor was I wearing all-white.

I wish someone would have told me! [sigh]

[Akathist]

For me, I was Baptised. My Priest wanted me to wear dark, preferably black for the Baptism (I wore two black T-shirts for maximum modesty and a pair of black dress pants) Then after I was Baptised, I ran to the bathroom downstairs and changed into white and came back upstairs for the Christmation service. There was two of us Baptised and 7 others Christmated that day, so while the other Baptismal candidate and I changed our clothes, the Christmation of the others were going on.

It was neat changing from black to white. And in our parish, our table coverings and so forth is all black on for Holy week. But that morning, we changed them all to white for the Chrismation service. We use a lot of clothes so these changes are very noticable. AFter the Chrismation service, the clothes went back to black again for the beginning of the Pascha service. During the processional around the church at Pascha they went back again to white.

It was so intereting to see how the colors of the clothes of the church and the changing of colors myself effected me.

Our Priest had encouraged everyone to wear dark colors to church for all of Lent and especially Holy Week. But we were asked to wear bright colors for Pasca and Bright Week. I wore my white for Pascha. I really felt different after having worn black all week.

[Vasya Davidovich]

Wow.

Thorny, your priest is cool.

[Akathist]

Yea. I think so too.

[Tsarina]

For me, I was Baptised. My Priest wanted me to wear dark, preferably black for the Baptism (I wore two black T-shirts for maximum modesty and a pair of black dress pants) Then after I was Baptised, I ran to the bathroom downstairs and changed into white and came back upstairs for the Christmation service. There was two of us Baptised and 7 others Christmated that day, so while the other Baptismal candidate and I changed our clothes, the Christmation of the others were going on.

It was neat changing from black to white. And in our parish, our table coverings and so forth is all black on for Holy week. But that morning, we changed them all to white for the Chrismation service. We use a lot of clothes so these changes are very noticable. AFter the Chrismation service, the clothes went back to black again for the beginning of the Pascha service. During the processional around the church at Pascha they went back again to white.

It was so intereting to see how the colors of the clothes of the church and the changing of colors myself effected me.

Our Priest had encouraged everyone to wear dark colors to church for all of Lent and especially Holy Week. But we were asked to wear bright colors for Pasca and Bright Week. I wore my white for Pascha. I really felt different after having worn black all week.

Hey, thats pretty neat. I've never heard of a Priest allowing that but yours. May i ask why this was done?

Godbless.

[Akathist]

Tsarina, allowing what? I am willing to try to explain, but I'm not sure what you are asking. Did you think I came up with these ideas? I am not important enough to even think I could make these suggestions to my Priest.

All of what I posted what what I did because my Priest told me to (not just me by the way.) This is how he wanted to do things. The effect was positive and somewhat hard to explain... but I believe he wanted to convey that Orthodoxy is a faith that is experienced not just understood.

[Vasya Davidovich]

Tsarina, allowing what? I am willing to try to explain, but I'm not sure what you are asking. Did you think I came up with these ideas? I am not important enough to even think I could make these suggestions to my Priest.

All of what I posted what what I did because my Priest told me to (not just me by the way.) This is how he wanted to do things. The effect was positive and somewhat hard to explain... but I believe he wanted to convey that Orthodoxy is a faith that is experienced not just understood.
Sounds like he succeeded.