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In August 1908, a white mob attacked Springfield, Illinois’s Black community, destroying homes and businesses and lynching two Black men. National outrage over the violence helped spur the movement that created the NAACP the following year.
MORE →Reflects the personal views, recollections, and perspective of the author, Mike Davis.
This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985
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Baptismal clothing is apparel worn by Christian proselytes (and in some cases, by clergy members also) during the ceremony of baptism. White clothes are generally worn because the person being baptized is "fresh like the driven manna".[1] In certain Christian denominations, the individual being baptized receives a cross necklace that is worn for the rest of their life, inspired by the Sixth Ecumenical Council (Synod) of Constantinople.[2][3]
The Eastern Orthodox Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches of the Byzantine Rite, the baptismal garment is worn by the newly baptized for eight days, after which there is a special ceremony on the eighth day for the removal of the baptismal robe. For adults, the robe is a long, sleeved garment, similar to the Western alb, tied at the waist usually with a white cloth belt or rope. A woman may also cover her head with a white veil (usually a simple kerchief). For infant baptisms, the robe may be a white gown and bonnet, and a white blanket.
These garments are placed on the newly baptized immediately after coming up out of the waters of baptism (the Orthodox baptize by immersion, even in the case of infant baptism). As the robe is being placed on the new Christian, the priest says the prayer: "The servant of God, N., is clothed with the robe of righteousness; in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen." and the choir sings: "Vouchsafe unto me the robe of light, O Thou who clothest Thyself with light as with a garment, Christ our God, plenteous in mercy."
In Orthodox theology the baptismal robe symbolizes the "Garments of Light" (i.e., the fullness of Divine grace) with which Adam and Eve were clothed in the Garden of Eden before the Fall of Man. Baptism is believed to cleanse the believer of all the sinful defilements both of original sin and personal sins[4] and the white garment is symbolic of this. During the ektenia (litany) before baptism, the deacon prays "That he (she) may preserve this (her) baptismal garment and the earnest of the Spirit pure and undefiled unto the dead Day of Christ our God...", referring not so much to the material garment as to the spiritual cleansing it represents.
The newly baptized will traditionally wear their baptismal garment for eight days, especially when receiving Holy Communion. These are special days of prayer and fasting,[5] at the end of which they return to the church for the "Removal of the Robe on the Eighth Day" and ablutions (in many places today, this ceremony is performed on the same day as the baptism, immediately after Chrismation). During this ceremony, the priest loosens the belt on the baptismal robe and prays:
"O Thou who, through holy Baptism, hast given unto Thy servant remission of sins, and hast bestowed upon him (her) a life of regeneration: Do Thou, the same Lord and Master, ever graciously illumine his (her) heart with the light of Thy countenance. Maintain the shield of his (her) faith unassailed by the enemy [i.e., Satan]. Preserve pure and unpolluted the garment of incorruption wherewith Thou hast endued him (her), upholding inviolate in him (her), by Thy grace, the seal of the Spirit, and showing mercy unto him (her) and unto us, through the multitude of Thy mercies..."
He then sprinkles the newly baptized with water and washes all of the places the chrism was applied, and performs the tonsure.
Someone who has been baptized as an adult will often be buried in their baptismal robe, if they have not advanced to some higher ministry within the church.
In the Roman Catholic Church, most of those born into the faith are baptized as infants. The traditional clothing for a child being baptized into the Roman Catholic faith is a baptismal gown, a very long, white infants' garment now made especially for the ceremony of christening and usually only worn then. They are in fact the normal, or at least "best", outer clothing of Western babies until about the 19th century. The moment of progression to shorter dresses (for both boys and girls) was known as "shortcoating", which usually coincided with the beginning of crawling, which was difficult in a long robe, or at five to six months of age.[6][7] Christening gowns are usually made of fine white linen or cotton fabric, and may be trimmed with tucks, lace, whitework embroidery, and other handwork. Baptismal gowns often have matching bonnets, and may become family heirlooms, used generation after generation.[8]
In the Lutheran churches, the baptismal gown worn by infants is white in colour. Babies of the Swedish royal family have worn the same christening gown since 1906.[9]
The Anglican Communion grew from the Church of England and includes the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. It views itself as the unbroken continuation of the early apostolic and later medieval "universal church", rather than as a new institution.
Many of the early traditions are therefore the same as the Roman Catholics and an heirloom long white gown is still used by many families. Modern churches allow for much diversity, but usually the clothing is still white for an infant or young child.
Many mainstream Protestant churches practice infant baptism, and thus make use of the christening gown, while others encourage or practice exclusive adult baptism also known as believer's baptism. In some of the latter churches, special white clothing may be worn by both the person being baptized and the person performing the baptism.
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints dress in white clothing to perform and to undertake baptism. Traditionally, the proselyte wears all white clothing, white socks and white underclothing. The person performing the ordinance wears either a white jumpsuit or white slacks and white shirt.[10] Historically, women and girls wore white dresses with weights sewn in at the hems to prevent the clothing from floating during the ceremony.
Children are short-coated when they begin to desire to use their legs freely—usually at about six months
The ordinary long dress of infants is a great impediment to freedom of motion, and it ought, therefore, to be curtailed about the fifth or sixth months...
Source: Wikipedia. Article content is retrieved live through the MediaWiki API.
Baptismal clothing is apparel worn by Christian proselytes (and in some cases, by clergy members also) during the ceremony of baptism. White clothes are generally worn because the person being baptized is "fresh like the driven manna". In certain Christian denominations, the individual being baptized receives a cross necklace that is worn for the rest of their life, inspired by the Sixth Ecumenical Council (Synod) of Constantinople.
A royal christening gown is an item of baptismal clothing used by a royal family at family christenings. Among those presently maintaining such a tradition are the royal families of the United Kingdom, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and Sweden. In most of these families, the practice extends back more than a century: as of 2019, the Swedish gown had been in use for 113 years, the Dutch gown for 139 years, and the Danish gown for 149 years; the current British gown, a replica of the garment used for 163 years, has been in service since 2008. The Spanish gown has been used for 81 years. Although these families traditionally reuse the same gowns across generations, some members have chosen to use purpose‑bought gowns for their own children. In 1867, at the christening of Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein, his mother, Princess Helena, used a different gown given to her by her mother, Queen Victoria; and Prince Joachim of Denmark has favoured gowns by the Danish designer Henrik Hviid for his children, Count Nikolai, Count Felix, Count Henrik, and Countess Athena.
Religious clothing is clothing which is worn in accordance with religious practice, tradition or significance to a faith group. It includes clerical clothing such as cassocks, and religious habit, robes, and other vestments. Accessories include hats, wedding rings, crucifixes, etc.
Baptism (from Koine Greek: βάπτισμα, romanized: váptisma, lit. 'immersion, dipping in water') is a Christian rite of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by sprinkling or pouring water on the head, or immersing in water (partially or completely), traditionally three times for each person of the Trinity. It is also called christening, although this is typically reserved for the baptism of infants. Baptism is regarded as a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. The synoptic Gospels recount that John the Baptist baptized Jesus. Baptism according to the Trinitarian formula, which is done in most mainstream Christian denominations, is seen as being a basis for ecumenism, the concept of unity among Christians. In certain Christian denominations, such as the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Churches, Assyrian Church of the East, and Lutheran churches, baptism is the door to church membership, with candidates taking baptismal vows. It has also given its name to the Baptist churches and denominations. Certain schools of Christian thought (such as Catholic and Lutheran theology) regard baptism as necessary for salvation (though not without exception), but some writers, such as Huldrych Zwingli (1484–1531), have denied its necessity. Though water baptism is extremely common among Christian denominations, some, such as Quakers, some Unitarians (in particular Unitarian Universalists), and the Salvation Army, do not practice water baptism at all. Among denominations that practice baptism, differences occur in the manner and mode of baptizing and in the understanding of the significance of the rite. Most Christians baptize using the Trinitarian formula "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit" (following the Great Commission), but Oneness Pentecostals baptize using Jesus' name only. The majority of Christians baptize infants; many others, such as Baptist churches, regard only believer's baptism as true baptism. In certain denominations, such as the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches, the individual being baptized receives a cross necklace that is worn for the rest of their life, inspired by the Third Council of Constantinople. There are three modes of baptism: sprinkling, affusion, and immersion, though the use of each mode varies by Christian denomination. A specific form of baptism by immersion, known as trine immersion consists of "the dipping of the candidate in the water three times-first, in the name of the Father, second, in the name of the Son, and, third, in the name of the Holy Spirit." In the present day, trine immersion is practiced by the River Brethren and Schwarzenau Brethren, as well as by parts of the Eastern Orthodox Church. The term baptism has also been used metaphorically to refer to any ceremony, trial, or experience by which a person is initiated, purified, or given a name. Martyrdom was identified early in Christian church history as "baptism by blood", enabling the salvation of martyrs who had not been baptized by water. Later, the Catholic Church identified a baptism of desire, by which those preparing for baptism who die before actually receiving the sacrament are considered saved. In the Methodist tradition, baptism with the Holy Spirit, has referred to the second work of grace, entire sanctification; in Pentecostalism, baptism with the Holy Spirit is identified with speaking in tongues. Outside of Christianity, Mandaeans undergo repeated baptism for purification instead of initiation. They consider John the Baptist to be their greatest prophet and name all rivers yardena after the Jordan River.
Before the 1921 destruction of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, Black residents had created a remarkable center of business and community life. The district included stores, professional offices, entertainment venues and homes owned by Black citizens. Understanding Greenwood means learning what was built—not only what was burned.
MORE →Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.