Clergy Kilt?

[FatherWilliam57]

I wonder if anyone would be interested in helping me to design a non-denomination associatted "Christian Faith" tartan? Not associatted with a particular denomination or saint but rather for ALL who have a Christian faith based in new testament teachings? Then they wouldn't have to feel awkward about a particular association other than faith in Christ?

Try this on for size: Try basing a tartan on Ephesians 6:10-17. The armor of God lists five items which are purely defensive weapons (belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shoes to proclaim the Gospel, shield of faith, helmet of salvation). The only offensive weapon listed in the battle against evil is the Sword of the Spirit (Word of God). Therefore, make the base color red (the color of the Spirit). Use five minor stripes of various colors for the defensive items. Call it Arma Dei or Ephesians. Just a quick thought to get you going.

[figheadair]

That choice might be seen by some as equally-----if you are not a Clark----as, dare I say it, bogus, as the first option!

But then should all those that wear Gow or Smith be blacksmiths, ditto Cooper etc?

[biblemonkey]

Try this on for size: Try basing a tartan on Ephesians 6:10-17. The armor of God lists five items which are purely defensive weapons (belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shoes to proclaim the Gospel, shield of faith, helmet of salvation). The only offensive weapon listed in the battle against evil is the Sword of the Spirit (Word of God). Therefore, make the base color red (the color of the Spirit). Use five minor stripes of various colors for the defensive items. Call it Arma Dei or Ephesians. Just a quick thought to get you going.

Interesting! Say, would it be worth it to get the fellow brothers and sisters on this site to go in on designing together and ordering custom weave and have kilts made the way some of the guys did with Cthulu (wow I butchered that, didn't I?) or would it be too cost prohibitive even in bulk?

Ideas flying around, creative juices flowing, and at the end of it all...kilts.

[M. A. C. Newsome]

You are not the first one to have the idea to create a generic "Christian" tartan, but none has ever been sucessfully put forth in the past. One has to ask if there is really a need for such a tartan. There really is no tradition in Scotland of having tartans associated with particular religions. Even most of what we would consider "religious" tartans in fact have some alternate provenance. For example, the Clergy tartan in question is actually an occupational tartan (which in and of itself was a rarity until very modern times).

Many of the tartans named for saints were not actually designed for that religious figure, but either for a geographical location (or a title associated with that location), such as the Earl of St. Andrews; for a particular church, such as the St. Columba tartan, designed and named for a church on Mull; or for more of a "national" tartan, such as the St. Patrick tartan, designed and named for Ireland's patron saint. Doubtless many people may purchase and wear these tartans for a more religious sentiment, but that was not the original rationale behind the design.

I also know of several tartans designed for individual churches/parishes, usually for some commemoration. For example, a few years ago I designed a tartan for a Presbyterian Church in eastern NC that was celebrating their 250th anniversary.

Even the St. Ninian tartan I designed is not, strictly speaking "a Catholic tartan" (though no doubt it is worn as such), but it has as its provenance the fact that it was commissioned by the Scottish Catholic bishops to commemorate the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Scotland on St. Ninian's Day, Sept. 16, 2010.

In short, these tartans all have a very specific rationale behind them, apart from simply being "a Catholic tartan," or "a Presbyterian tartan," or what have you.

Moreover, there is also the question of what makes such a tartan official. Just as a clan tartan is not truly a clan tartan without the approval of the chief, the same principle holds true for non-clan tartans. What authority approves of the tartan in question?

So, for example, with the St. Ninian tartan, we have the approval of the Scottish Catholic bishops, as the official tartan of the papal visit to Scotland in 2010. Ok. When I designed a tartan for Summerville Presbyterian Church last year, the tartan was formally adopted by that church. It had their official approval.

So, were one to design a "Christian" tartan, whose approval would it have? Without any such approval, it would remain a fashion tartan, strictly speaking.

One other consideration you might not have thought of is to design your own personal tartan. You could imbue the tartan with as much Christian symbolism and imagry as your heart desired. You would need no one's approval but your own to wear it. You could call it what you liked (within reason). And when people asked you about how you designed it, it would provide you with a good opportunity to talk about what it means to you. And you wouldn't need anyone's permission to do so! :-)

[rlloyd]

Just to throw in a few things toward the idea of designing a tartan:

Blue represents Heaven and truth.
Green represents Christ's power over death.
Purple represents Christ being King of all creation.
Red represents His blood.
White represents purity. And, for a seasonal tie-in, the Hebrew word for 'white' ('levonah') is also the word for frankincense. Frankincense, in turn, has anumber of symbolic meanings.

I know next to nothing about tartan design, but it's my understanding that there could also be specific thread counts of colors to represent various things (ie. 3 for the Trinity, seven for perfection, twelve for the Church, etc.).

[Jock Scot]

But then should all those that wear Gow or Smith be blacksmiths, ditto Cooper etc?

Some would say that as long as their name is Smith(for example) then the appropriate tartan can be found.

I think you can see my point though, some would say that if your surname is Clark then the Clark tartan is appropriate. Likewise if you are not "Clergy", then it is not appropriate to wear "Clergy" tartan.

[Newfoundlander]

There has been some great discussion here thus far, and quite interesting. If I may post a few observations and my thoughts.

Lad, first you seem to me to be quite faithful, and you'd like this kilt in the Clergy/Clarke tartan to be a representation of that connection and your personal beliefs. A fantastic reason for your tartan choice I think. I understand your hesitation in wearing a Clergy tartan, as your not ordained. davidg above suggested the very slightly differently shaded Clarke, and I think that would be a fantastic alternative. Though when I have seen these two tartans next to each other they have been perfectly identical. So though they might actually be different shades registered with the Tartans Authority, practically speaking, they're often sold as one in the same.

I understand your hesitation on the St. Ninian tartan as well, as its a "catholic" tartan. Though, and correct me if I'm wrong, I don't think the tartan is officially endorsed by the Vatican as priest clothing. It's more unofficial, so you could still wear it. The same goes for the other great suggestions above.
---- Actually Matt corrected this in the above post that was posted whilst I wrote this -----

I for one, as a Catholic, wouldn't care that a Protestant is wearing the St. Ninian, just as I'm sure most others wouldn't either. I'm sure the same goes for the few clergy who actually are aware of the clergy tartan. It's a symbol of your commitment to the Lord. Any clergy would be happy to see you wearing something that makes you feel more connected to the Lord. A few in my old parish wore the clergy tartan (admittedly, one was actually a Clarke), as did our parish priest, and he encouraged it. Wear whatever connects you to your Devine.

This is very much the same argument as wearing another clan's tartan. If I saw someone wearing the MacLeod tartan who didn't have roots in that family, I wouldn't care, nor would I demand they remove their kilt! I doubt any clergy would either. I think if you reiterate to any clergy that asks about your kilt your above statements about your connection to God, they'll be happy.

To the clergy here, is that fair to say?

All the soapbox aside, allow the scientist in me to come out. This is a major expense, you must be happy with it before you buy, and you really should buy what you want. As stated before, 99.95% of people won't know or care, and really the only person that matters is you in this equation. As there are no real "rules" about who can wear what, you should wear what you like.

If anyone gets really torqued off, ask them to remember that physically speaking, there is no such thing as colour anyway. That's a human perception

[biblemonkey]

One has to ask if there is really a need for such a tartan.

True.

But when do you need a reason to do something cool? Just kidding.

One other consideration you might not have thought of is to design your own personal tartan. You could imbue the tartan with as much Christian symbolism and imagry as your heart desired. You would need no one's approval but your own to wear it. You could call it what you liked (within reason). And when people asked you about how you designed it, it would provide you with a good opportunity to talk about what it means to you. And you wouldn't need anyone's permission to do so! :-)

I guess that's more the route I was thinking but in having it designed by a group of well meaning Christian brothers and sisters whose motivation is the creation of a tartan that honors their faith in God it becomes more than just "my personal tartan".

[biblemonkey]

Just to throw in a few things toward the idea of designing a tartan:

Blue represents Heaven and truth.
Green represents Christ's power over death.
Purple represents Christ being King of all creation.
Red represents His blood.
White represents purity. And, for a seasonal tie-in, the Hebrew word for 'white' ('levonah') is also the word for frankincense. Frankincense, in turn, has anumber of symbolic meanings.

I know next to nothing about tartan design, but it's my understanding that there could also be specific thread counts of colors to represent various things (ie. 3 for the Trinity, seven for perfection, twelve for the Church, etc.).

That was very similar to the resoning and colors I had at first thought as well. I know nothing about tartan design but if enough people really wanted this to become a reality I suppose we could get someone much more knowledgeable than I to come up with some concepts and have everyone vote their opinions.

Isn't it amazing how ideas seem to steamroll into creativity when enough awsome people are involved?

[Newfoundlander]

A though did just occur to me. If you want a more "general Christian" tartan that you feel doesn't exist, than why not design it, register it, and have it woven into your own kilt?

It's a bit more costly an option, but you can choose the symbolism of the colours that you feel reflect general Christian values. Perhaps work with your clergy to find the colours and meanings you wish to capture.... Could be fun