Since the victorious athlete was crowned with a laurel wreath, the whole headdress soon was seen as a sign of victory. The mitre took on a similar symbolic meaning. Such symbolism arises from St. Paul’s analogy: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on a merited crown awaits me…" (2 Tm 4:7-8). Surely, the bishop should be leading his flock in the race to salvation to final victory in Heaven.

Over the centuries, mitres were elongated or embellished according to the times. For example, during the baroque period, mitres were very tall and were embellished with jewels. Also, please that in the Eastern Rites, the bishops wear a mitre that looks like an ornamented round hat with a cross on top.

The crozier, or officially the pastoral staff (baculis pastoralis), symbolizes the role of the bishop as the Good Shepherd. The word translated as "good" in the original Greek text is kalos, which also means "model." Our Lord is the model shepherd for the apostles and their successors, the bishops, who are appointed as shepherds. The bishop, like a good shepherd, must lead his faithful flock along the path of salvation, disciplining and protecting them as needed. The shepherd’s staff is therefore a most appropriate symbol for the office of bishop. 

St. Isidore explained that a newly consecrated bishop received the crozier "so that he may govern and correct those below him or to offer support to the weakest of the weak." Since the time of Pope Paul VI, the Holy Father’s crozier has a curved cross at the top, which symbolizes his special office as not only Bishop of Rome, but also the Vicar of Christ who is entrusted with the leadership of the universal Church.

Finally, the Holy Father, Metropolitan Archbishops and the Patriarch of Jerusalem also wears a pallium. (A metropolitan archbishop is one who actually governs an archdiocese and heads a province.)

The pallium is a strip of white wool which is worn around the neck like a collar, over the chasuble, with two strips — one hanging down the front and one hanging down the back. Predating Christianity, the pallium was about 12 feet in length and worn for warmth. Christians adopted this garment and viewed it as a sign of their fidelity to Christ.

The usage of the pallium evolved over time. By the third century, it was worn by both the laity and clergy; by the fourth century, by the pope and eventually exclusively by him alone; by the fifth century, by the pope and those important clergy who had received it as a gift from the pope; by the ninth century, exclusively by the pope, metropolitans, archbishops, and bishops of special distinction; and by a decree of 1978, to metropolitan archbishops and the Patriarch of Jerusalem, as well as the pope.

THE END