Where Do Friar Clothes Come From? 

Two weeks ago I was in Assisi and saw St Francis robe! It was patched up and humble and it was such a witness to the Franciscan way!

Someone is wearing my habit. I was an OFM in formation but left before final vows. My charism was to be married and have a family, but I've tried to live out the Franciscan charism within my family life.

Ordained on the Feast of St. Francis, I’ve been a member of a community without a habit for 40 years. We are beginning to rediscover our original habit and I thank for this video.

I'm an amateur violinist. I own a violin that I love very much that was made in Germany between 1910 and 1920. Because it was made so long ago (though really not that long ago in the grand scheme of things), I know that other people played and loved this instrument, and I hope that other people will play and love it after I die. This is different from a habit that you don't own, but it's similar: I've sometimes wondered about my violin's previous owners, how it got from Germany to Maine, USA where I chose it and brought it to New Brunswick, Canada, what stories this instrument would tell if it could talk. It's inspired me to research exactly what Germany was like during the 1910s: no surprise, but things weren't great, and to me, the fact that people were still making beautiful instruments in such an awful time is an incredibly hopeful thing.

Your comment about shopping second hand is a great idea. I'm sure I've got things at a charity shop that were out of the wardrobe of someone who passed away - it's good to think about the continuation of items. When I get something which has a small hole, or missing button, torn seam, etc., I mend it, and when I pass it on to another charity, it may make the item useful again to someone else. Do you mend your own habit, Father Casey?

The religious brothers/sisters in my community don't wear habits at all, they just wear regular clothes like everyone else. I asked a Dominican why he doesn't wear his habit, he said it stains too easily. I get it, but I wish more religious brothers/sisters would wear the habit rather than pants-suits and a short haircut.

I can testify to it being a Franciscan tradition. When I was in the Felicians (who are Third Order Franciscans), I was getting ready to enter novitiate. I elected to wear a habit and so I was fitted for one "dress" habit that I would receive at investiture and then I was given access to a large collection of habits worn by sisters who went to the big motherhouse in the sky. I would have had my one dress habit for special occasions and then a few daily habits and a couple "work" habits that could get jacked up without too much guilt.

Thank you, Fr. Casey! A follow up video might be necessary on Franciscan funeral traditions. Are Franciscan priests buried in alb, cincture, stole, and chasuable? How are the brothers buried who were not ordained? Interesting questions sparked by a fascinating video.

I really needed to hear this video. Its true sometimes we seem to stray from our walk with God just by slowly imperceptibly drifting away without even being conscious of it. This video and its message was a reminder. Thank you.

Love this. Way to honor a legacy while creating your own. We all leave a legacy by what we say and do. Thanks Fr. Casey!

Well said father Casey. A habit is a witness in the church.

Questions for a follow-up, maybe. Who makes habits? Do you do your own mending? How do you decide when a habit is too far gone for further wear & do you just put it in the trash? Who gets a brand new habit? Is there a habit storage & distribution system between the previous wearer & the new one?

Fr. Casey, another point is that the habit was based on the clothing of the poor people of the time the order was founded. Look at St. Teresa of Kolkata’s sisters wearing saris, or the garb St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton’s widow’s garb worn by the Sisters of Charity. Also, as a TOR I use the breviary of a sister who went to God. Before I wrote my name in the book I added ”,pray for us” after her name.

That concept of detachment that the Brothers are given at the time of their vows: "From now on, call nothing your own" is something we all could benefit from. Because you're right, they're only ours for a limited time.

Always uplifting and spiritual. We need more priests like you in our church

I can certainly appreciate carrying the legacy of others. In the Order of St. Lazarus I was invested with the fighting habit (cloak) of a deceased member. It was truly an honor and to learn about my predecessor and his legacy to the order.

Love these little snippets of information. What a man St Francis of Assisi was. Fr Casey is the kind of person you'd approach when you're lost in a new place.

As a fellow Brazilian follower, it just made my day hearing that the habit you use was once in Brazil 🇧🇷!

Thrift stores are pretty good. I am a teenager and shop at them all the time!

That was a fantastic video, truly amazing! Some day, another brother will be telling your story as the man who had the habit previously. You mentioned that the mother didn't go to the baptism back in the day, only the father, and that it was a story for another day; I truly hope you DO make that story, because I had never heard of that and that sounds fascinating as well!

Very thought provoking. I want to make 2024 the year of declutter. My home is bursting with things and I am finding it hard to manage it. May God give me strength and health and diligence in this coming year to make more room more Him by getting rid of all the extras! ❤

A very lovely way to reuse what isn't worn out or useless. I know my mother had issues with younger nuns in the 70s who didn't wear a habit. She still tells the story of picking my brothers up from Catholic school and thinking why isn't someone sending that female student home for dress code violation. She said she was shocked to learn that was a nun dressed like she was going to the disco with go-go boots and a mini skirt.

I think the logic of "no need to make new ones" makes it less weird.

Great title brother! And great video. I appreciate the upload 🙌🏽

As a Brazilian who's been watching your videos since you had professed your solemn vows, I'd suggest you to learn Brazilian Portuguese, as the first owner of this habit could! :-) man! congrats! you're videos are amazing! I love them all! Specially I admire who beautifully you protect Pope Francis from the crazy citizens from your country who consider our Pope a heretic. Keep up being this great Franciscan Friar and Priest you are!!!!!

Beautiful story thank you

Amazing. Had no idea of habit being passed down. God bless you Fr. Casey; you are incredible. Wondering how often you wash your habit, though?

I attended Bishop Timon high school on the south side of Buffalo, N.Y. It's an OFM operated institution. Never heard about this.

Thanks Fr. Casey for your innovative videos. You rightly deserve the Habit you are wearing. God bless us all, Amen.

I wear some of my late father’s clothes ,coats ,shirts ,boots etc, RIP Dad .

I am a Quaker with a deep respect for our history and traditions (and those of others) and I sometimes wish we still wore the old Plain Dress that distinguished us. I see the value in the witness of the habit and also the effect it has on you as a person.

There have been a simillar thing among some Buddhist monks. All their robes are required to be made as a patchwork. But some monks used to make their robes out of found burial clothes, from decaying corpses. But nowadays in most parts of the world (except few places in India and Tibet) nobody leaves dead bodies in open cemeteries. They wash and boil the clothes and boil again with a herbal tincture that gives its signature color.

Thank you for sharing. I always wondered about the Franciscan habit.

This is why I Love Franciscans. They try their best to live like St. Francis, who's only objective was to be close to Jesus. I saw my priest in the group picture. I had to pause it, but I found him. Along with several other friars. God bless our Franciscans of the newly formed Province of our Lady of Guadalupe.

This is so interesting... I feel humbled by those facts.

This is a wonderful video. It shows humility but realism about other lives.

So you can have more than one Habit. Who makes new Habits?

Wow. You wear the garment of a legend. That's awesome!

This is so beautiful.

The story of the previous guy was amazing!

I LOVE this video (as I do with most videos, if not all). Your lifestyle is just loving and inspiring and even though you may think it's a small thing, I'm happy that this platform that is there anyways, is also used by you and others spreading this message and spreading light. The platform is here, so why not use it for good, right? I'm really glad I discovered father Patrick and you 😊

Canon law says that when a man or woman joins a religious order they are too put off (or put away) their worldly clothes and put on the clothes (or habit) of the order they joined. Unfortunately there are nuns and priests whose religious orders don’t do this and they wear clothes like everyone else (hopefully not ripped jeans…lol) which is sad because they can’t be distinguished from the worldly. Someone once told me that when priests wear their Roman collars and black suits a lot of people feel uncomfortable around them. My answer was too bad.

And in the Catholic church, for a religious, a habit is and should be considered NORMAL!🙂

I recall Thomas Merton writing that he was ok with the Cistercian habit, but not sure why medieval underwear was still necessary. I hope you you get your own underwear.

Even our virtues (good habits) are borrowed from Jesus our Lord and Mary our mother.

Now please say a rosary for the one who used to wear that habit. God bless you and Mary keep you. 😇

I recently invoked St. Francis, of Assisi. My friend's cat was dying. He intervened, in the name, of our Lord Jesus Christ. Gave us all comfort and a renewed spiritual grow. They are protestant (they both prayed, too St. Francis.) and I am a Roman Catholic. Out of all, of this. Came the knowledge, of the invocation. Too all, of the Blessed Saints. To help us all, in this world.

Watching from the Netherlands 😁. God bless you

Very interesting to hear. Thank you 🙏

That's a great way to define property. In Germany, many old houses have this inscription: Dieses Haus ist mein und doch nicht mein, beim zweiten wird es auch so sein, dem dritten wird es übergeben, und der wird auch nicht ewig leben. Den vierten trägt man auch hinaus - nun sag mein Freund wem gehört dieses Haus? (This house is mine and isn't mine. It will be same with the next one, it will be given to the third, and he too will not live forever. The fourth too will be carried out of the house - tell me, friend, to whom it belongs?

Dear Brother, you made a very good point! And why not wear what others did before us?! A nice symbol. In monastic society you carry on tradition and customs, and symbolically the weight of christs cross and what it stands for. In the non monastic life, some more than others carry on other traditions and customs, some not quite the weight of christs cross but maybe that of a long family line or a prominent name. A friend of mine does, when I spoke to him, we philosophically agreed that we are but custodians of what we inherit, which can be a burden, certainly a task, but we do have some choices as humans, so we can improve, and we are free to decide what to carry on and what we might drop when it has proven to be a burden. Carry on the good and worthy and do not hesitate to leave behind what proved not to be and finally add, what is appropriate and good to you so you might leave this world to those who follow you in a better form that you did. So traditions, cusotms and other things should be ever evolving to be able to proof themselves over and through time. And even outside monastic life, I (ocassionally) and gladly do wear (some) clothes which I literally inherited (and would wear more if I'd fit sizewise). It was quite normal, just some years ago to pass on clothes within the family, was it for size, was it for children who grew out of them, was it from grandparents who passed or was it from sibling to sibling, it used to be normal. I think more people and families should revive this custom, a good custom as you keep it within your monastic family so well! God be with you!

Is it offensive when others wear a habit as a costume? Not in a gross mocking way (Id est, "sl*tty nun") or anything similar to that But i work at a non denominational (basically Baptist) Christian summer camp, and during tuck time we have a counsellor put on a habit and pass out snacks. That counsellor is known as "Friar Tuck" and I've always wondered if we're being horribly offensive in the process

Sounds like the habit is breaking you in

Very interesting. I have always wondered if we actually own our possessions or do they own us?

I thought they were buried in their habits... F. CASEY can you talk about what happens to Friars when they die? Funerals etc...

Are you allow to wash it? Do you have another one while one gets clean?

Fr. Casey, how common is it for a Franciscan to know the history of the habit they wear?

I used to wear part of the Fourth Degree regalia of a brother Sir Knight who had died. I still pray for him, even though I never met him. When my time to die was to come (tempus fugit, memento mori), I had hoped to be able leave any usable items to my son or sons in law, should they also become Sir Knights, or to any brother Sir Knight who might need them even if I might have never met him. Unfortunately, the Knights of Columbus decided to change the uniform rendering the old ones obsolete except for the sword.

How many habits do you have in "your" closet at any particular time? How many are from another person and how many have you given to ohers so far? Not a gotcha question, just trying to form an image of how it works in practice. (almost all my clothes are second-hand)

This is so amazingly beautiful.

a similiar thing for us is having the rosary or sick call crucifix from a deceased loved one.

I think it is beautiful that a habit is passed down from a deceased friar to a living one. We live knowing that death has been conquered by our savior. So it is only fitting that the clothing of the consecrated reflect that victorious reality.

Dear Father Casey. You do not know,but I pray for you and other YOUNG priests including my young parish priest. You see, I am concerned about the rate priests are leaving the priesthood largely because of celibacy. My family WAS a family of priests,four to be exact,but sadly only one is still a priest. Many are called but few are chosen,so they say. I still pray,though.

Was he buried in another habit?

How did you battle the sin against chastity throughout your seminary formation?

Wow one of the best vids you have made

It looks good on you.

Can a friar " bequeath" his habit (although he doesnt own it) to a specific individual (a nephew for example who is also a friar)?

No wonder it was a Franciscan that hung out with Thich Naht Hahn

2:04 men in black 😂 classic film

Brother! What is the fabric made from?! New clothes I buy only last one season and unfit to pass on! Joyful Anniversary of the Rule of 1223! Your little OFS sister!

My school is run by Francis can nuns

Why did Sylvester rate to get a new one?

Im what most would call a non-believer, but I do have a question related to prophets and saints. If the bible says "There is none worthy of worship but God" then why do abrahamic religions worship prophets and Saints like Mohammed, Moses, St. Anthony, etc?

Interesting video

The only thing more interesting than the habit coming from a dead man is the story behind the one from whom you "inherited" it. I completed the RU-vid survey on this video's title and noticed you used a combination approach in the title and the thumbnail; a sound choice! I just wrote a check for property taxes, a non-religious stark reminder we really own nothing! 😄 Are the habits of nuns handed down in a similar tradition?

That would be fine with me. Clothes are a pain.

I would consider it to be an honor to wear the habit of an individual that has passed.

Cargo shorts are better. 🎯

Dirty old fabric. You did not mention that those tunics can get ripe because it is the only one you get and washing them is not as easy like getting a pair of fresh jeans after a shower. An old brother mentioned that once a bishop offered him to purchase a new tunic in order to wash what he was wearing. Thanks for accepting your vocation.

Logistical question, are you allowed to wash the habit?

Luke 20:46-47 “Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”

I wear hand down clothes but I didn't brag around

It’s not weird

So if you own nothing, what is that large silver rectangle on the shelf behind you and to the viewerʼs left? Everything else I can see as being communal and you are simply using it, but that seems different.

I am a member (founding member, actually) of St. Francis of Assisi parish in San Antonio TX. The legacy and spirit of St. Francis is constantly around us. In our city are several old Spanish missions dating from the 1700s that remain, except for the Alamo, active parishes staffed by Franciscans. Occasionally, the friars will come to visit our parish and it is a marvelous experience to welcome them.

I'm a protestant (Baptist). But as I'm going through a lot right now I find your videos very comforting. Its nice to watch a brother in Christ make nice wholesome content. Pray for me please

I am not religious at all, but your words about not owning even the clothes on your back was inspiring. Even though I am not a believer, I appreciate your channel and the knowledge you bestow.

As a Brazilian, I was particularly touched by this story. God bless you, Father, as he blessed the one who had the robe before.

The former wearer really does sound like a legend. What an amazing life of service he lived.

I'm just wondering how are the Friars buried. What do they wear in their coffins if their habit is given to someone else?

On top of all those reasons listed, wearing a habit is an effective evangelistic tool. It probably elicits a lot of questions by curious onlookers, and that can spawn interesting, and even life changing conversations for those who ask such questions about the habit. Aside from this, as someone who does not live a consecrated life, I admire the simplicity that adhering to just wearing the habit brings to ones life. It frees the wearer from the burdens of vanity that most of us are shackled with.

This is the most beautiful and humbling story I have ever heard... what a beautiful tradition!

What an absolute honour it must be to wear that Habit.

As a deacon I wear my clerical collar while attending community events. It helps people see how we fit into 'normal' situations

Thanks for wearing a habit, Father. So many religious don't want to dress like one and that's so sad!

I think I've probably mentioned this in your comments before, but the most important thing I have ever been taught was when my former pastor said in a homily, "your life doesn't belong to you." You live this so radically, and we keep you in our prayers always.

Watching from the Philippines. I love the simplicity of the Franciscan habit, while those of the Dominicans has great color combination (B&W) ❤️

Not that wierd. I have a dead guy's Christian biker vest. I neither knew him, nor am a biker. His friend just thought I'd like it. And I do, very much.

I think my great grandfather named my grandmother something different than what her mom wanted at the baptismal ceremony. My grandmother is 99 yrs old (born the same year as Myles, who passed down your habit, and that is actually her maiden name!!).