Geneva gown

Geneva Gown

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Geneva gown

The Geneva gown, also called a pulpit gown, pulpit robe, or preaching robe, is an ecclesiastical garment customarily

Convention (norm)

A convention is a set of agreement, stipulated or generally accepted standards, norm , norm or criterion, often taking the form of a Custom ....
worn by ordained ministers in the Christian church

Christian Church

Christian Church and the word church are used to denote both a Christian Groups of people and a Church . The word church is usually, but not exclusively, associated with Christianity....
es that arose out of the historic Protestant Reformation

Protestant Reformation

The Protestant Reformation was a Christian reform movement in Europe. It is thought to have begun in 1517 with Martin Luther's Ninety-Five Theses and may be considered to have ended with the Peace of Westphalia in 1648....
.

gown, analogous to the Western

Western culture

File:Clash of Civilizations map.pngWestern culture are terms which are used to refer to cultures of European origin. This terminology originated as a way of describing what was different about the Graeco-Roman culture and its descendants, in contrast to the older neighboring civilizations of the Middle East, which in many ways continued...
doctoral robe and similar to American

United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
judicial attire

Court dress

Court dress comprises dress prescribed for court....
, is constructed from heavy material, most appropriately of black color, and usually features double-bell sleeves with a cuff (mimicking the cassock

Cassock

The cassock, an item of clerical clothing, is a long, close-fitting, ankle-length robe worn by clerics of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Anglican Church, and some clerics of the Reformed, and Lutheran churches....
once worn under it) and velvet

Velvet

File:Ottoman cover.jpgVelvet is a type of tufted textile in which the cut yarns are very evenly distributed, with a short dense pile, giving it a distinct feel....
facings (or panels) running over the neck and down both sides of the front enclosure length-wise.

An example of the Geneva gown can be seen here...

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Encyclopedia

The Geneva gown, also called a pulpit gown, pulpit robe, or preaching robe, is an ecclesiastical garment customarily

Convention (norm)

A convention is a set of agreement, stipulated or generally accepted standards, norm , norm or criterion, often taking the form of a Custom ....
worn by ordained ministers in the Christian church

Christian Church

Protestant Reformation

Description

The gown, analogous to the Western

Western culture

United States

Court dress

Cassock

Velvet

Doctor of Divinity

Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in Divinity . Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christianity theology or related religion subjects....
, D.Min.

Doctor of Ministry

The Doctor of Ministry degree is, according to The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada , a doctoral level degree oriented toward ministerial leadership often in an area of applied theology, such as missions, evangelism, church leadership, pastoral psychology or the psychology of religion, church growth, church...
, S.T.D.

Doctor of Sacred Theology

"S.T.D." redirects here. For other uses, see STD.The Doctor of Sacred Theology is the final theological degree in the pontifical university system of the Catholic Church....
, Th.D.

Doctor of Theology

Doctor of Theology is a terminal academic degree in theology. It is a research degree, involving the publication of an original contribution to scholarship in the form of a dissertation, that is for most purposes the equivalent of a Doctor of Philosophy in Theology or a similar discipline....
) or in the liberal arts and sciences (Ph.D.

Doctor of Philosophy

Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated Ph.D. or PhD for the Latin , meaning "teacher of philosophy", is an postgraduate academic degree awarded by University....
, D.A.

Doctor of Arts

The Doctor of Arts is a List of academic disciplines-based terminal degree doctorate academic degree that was originally conceived and designed to be an alternative to the traditional research-based Doctor of Philosophy and the education-based Doctor of Education ....
) may adorn each sleeve with three chevrons or bars of velvet cloth, also most properly black, signifying senior scholarly

Intellectual

An intellectual is a person who uses his or her intelligence and Critical thinking, either in their profession or for the benefit of personal pursuits....
credentials. The velvet panels of the gown's facings and chevrons are often adorned with red piping.

Contemporary choir

Choir

A choir, chorale, or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral Music, in turn, is the music written specifically for a choir to perform....
robes and other expressions of lay vesture

Vestment

Vestments are liturgy garments and articles associated primarily with the Christianity religions, especially the Latin Rite and other Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, Methodists, and Lutheran Churches....
are inspired by, but remain distinct from, the Geneva gown.

Purpose

The simple yet dignified gown is meant to convey the authority and solemn duty of the ordained ministry as called by God

God

God is a deity in theism and deism religions and other belief systems, representing either the sole deity in monotheism, or a principal deity in polytheism....
to proclaim the Gospel

Gospel

In Christianity, a gospel is generally one of the first four books of the New Testament that describe the birth, life, ministry, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus....
of Jesus

Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , also known as Jesus Christ, is the central figure of Christianity and is revered by most Christian churches as the Son of God and the Incarnation ....
and preach the biblical Word of God, the bearer being a learned minister of the Word and teaching elder (presbyter
Presbyter

Presbyter in the New Testament refers to a leader in local Christian congregations, then a synonym of episkopos . In modern usage, it is distinct from bishop and synonymous with priest, pastor, Elder , or religious minister in various Christian denominations....
) over the Church

Church Body

A local church is a Christian religious organization made up of a congregation, its members and clergy. They are organized more or less formally, with constitutions and by-laws, maintain offices, sometimes seek non-profit corporate status in the United States and often have state or regional structures....
faithful.

Worn over street clothes

Clothing

A feature of all human societies, except perhaps the most primitive, is the wearing of clothing or clothes, especially in public. The primary purpose of clothing is functional, as a protection from the weather....
, traditionally a cassock

Cassock

Clerical collar

A clerical collar is a piece of clerical clothing. It is a detachable collar that buttons onto a clergy shirt or rabbat , being fastened by two metal studs, one attached at the front and one at the back to hold the collar to the shirt....
, the gown eschews ostentation, obscuring individual grooming

Etiquette

Etiquette is a code that influences expectations for social behavior according to contemporary Convention Norm s within a society, social class, or Group ....
and concealing fashion

Fashion

Fashion refers to the styles and customs prevalent at a given time. In its most common usage, "fashion" exemplifies the appearances of clothing, but the term encompasses more....
preferences, and instead draws attention to the wearer's office and not the person.

Usage

By convention

Convention (norm)

A convention is a set of agreement, stipulated or generally accepted standards, norm , norm or criterion, often taking the form of a Custom ....
a minister may wear the gown only at expressly Christian services

Rite

A rite is a subsesquitent contemporary file of complaints that are sent to the secretary of taste and is a jeremiah was a bull frog.Rites fall into three major categories:...
of worship

Worship

Worship usually refers to acts of religion devotion typically directed to one or more deity. It is the informal term in English for what sociology of religion call cult —traditional beliefs and practices, the individual study of which is one of the chief concerns of theology....
wherein a sermon

Sermon

A sermon is an public speaking by a prophet or member of the clergy. Sermons address a Bible, Theology, Religion, or Morality topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law or Human behavior within both past and present contexts....
, that is an exposition of Scripture, is delivered.

With the gown a minister may also wear preaching bands and a liturgical stole

Stole

The stole is a liturgy vestment of various Christianity religious denomination. It consists of a band of colored cloth, formerly usually of silk, about seven and a half to nine feet long and three to four inches wide, whose ends may be straight or may broaden out....
. Less typically a minister may choose to put on white gloves when distributing the elements of the Lord's Supper

Lord's Supper

The Lord's Supper may refer to:*Eucharist, a rite in Christianity*The Last Supper, the last meal Jesus shared with his disciples....
, a practice predating the advent of stainless steel

Stainless steel

In metallurgy, stainless steel is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10% chromium content by mass. Stainless steel does not stain, corrode, or rust as easily as ordinary steel , but it is not stain-proof....
chalices

Chalice (cup)

A chalice is a goblet intended to hold a drink. In general religious terms, it is intended for quaffing during a ceremony....
and communion trays.

For historical and theological reasons the gown is most typical of Congregational

Congregational church

Congregational churches are Protestantism Christianity churches practicing congregationalist church governance, in which each Wiktionary:congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
, Presbyterian and Reformed churches, that is those congregations primarily influenced by Calvinist formulations of Christian doctrine

Doctrine

Doctrine is a codification of beliefs or "a body of teachers" or "instructions", taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system....
and church order

Ecclesiology

Ecclesiology is the study of the Christian theology understanding of the Christian church. Specific areas of concern include the church's role in salvation, its origin, its relationship to the historical Jesus, its discipline, its eschatology, and its clergy....
, and less customary but nonetheless common in the Baptist

Baptist

A Baptist is a member of a Christian denomination characterized by the rejection of infant baptism in favor of believer's baptism by Baptism#Immersion....
and Methodist traditions. In fact, the pulpit robe is among the usual Methodist vestment worn by elders

Elder (Methodism)

An Elder in the Methodist Church -- sometimes called a Presbyter or Minister -- is someone who has been ordained by a Bishop to the ministry of Word, Sacrament, Order, and Service....
in a service of worship

Service of worship

In the Protestant Christian denominations of Christianity, a service of worship is a meeting whose primary purpose is the worship of God. The phrase is normally shortened to service....
, although the Alb is also very common. The gown can also be found worn in some "low church

Low church

Low church is a term of distinction in the Church of England or other Anglican churches initially designed to be pejorative. During the series of doctrinal and ecclesiastic challenges to the established church in the 16th and 17th centuries, commentators and others began to refer to those groups favouring the theology, worship and authoritar...
" parishes of Lutheran and Anglican communions and in many African-American congregations regardless of denominational

Christian denomination

A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity.Worldwide, Christians are divided, often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions....
affiliation. Rarely, if ever, is this uniquely Protestant attire worn by Eastern Orthodox or Roman Catholic clergy

Clergy

Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. The term comes from the Greek language ?????? - kleros, "a lot", "that which is assigned by lot" or metaphorically, "heritage"....
.

In the Church of Scotland it is normal for the Geneva Gown to be vented sleeveless and worn over a Cassock. Cassock, usually black also comes in blue, and a red cassock signifies a Queen's Chaplain.

Trends

United or Uniting churches which contain an episcopalian element have in some countries (notably Australia; generally not in Canada) tended to abandon the Geneva gown in favor of the more symbolically ecumenical alb and cincture, whereas some non-united evangelical

Evangelicalism

Evangelicalism is a Protestantism Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s.Most adherents consider its key characteristics to be: a belief in the need for personal conversion ; some expression of the gospel in effort; a high regard for Biblical authority; and an emphasis on the death and resurrection of Jesus....
congregations have for various reasons done away with distinct ministerial dress altogether.

Some Jewish rabbis and spiritual

Spirituality

Spirituality, in a narrow sense, concerns itself with matters of the spirit, a concept closely tied to religion and faith, transcendence , or one or more Deity....
leaders of other non-Christian faiths have fashioned their modern religious garb patterned after the historic Geneva gown.