Cassock - Eastern Practice (Orthodox and Eastern Catholic)

Eastern Practice (Orthodox and Eastern Catholic)

In Eastern Christianity there are two types of cassock: the Inner Cassock and the Outer Cassock or Rason. Monastics always wear a black cassock. There is no rule about coloration for non-monastic clergy, but black is the most common. Blue or grey are also seen frequently, while white is sometimes worn for Pascha. In the Eastern Churches, cassocks are not dress for any lay ministry. Generally, one has to be blessed to wear a cassock usually in the case of exercising a clerical duty.

• The inner cassock (more often simply cassock) is an ankle length garment worn by all major and minor clergy, monastics, and often by male seminarians. The Eastern Orthodox Church version (Russian: подрясник podryasnik, Ukrainian: підрясник pidryasnik) is double-breasted, closely fitted through the torso and flaring out to the skirt, with a high collar buttoned off-center, and may be cinctured with either a leather or wide cloth belt. In the Russian tradition, married clergy and the minor orders who may become married refrain from wearing black cassocks, which are reserved for celibate clergy and monastics. The Greek Orthodox version, called an anteri (αντερί) or rason (ράσον), is somewhat fuller, gathered at the waist with a narrow cloth belt, and with a high collar buttoned in the front. The inner cassock is usually worn by all clergy members under their liturgical vestments.
• The outer cassock (Russian: ряса ryasa, Ukrainian: ряса ryasa, Greek: εξώρασον, ράσον exorason) is a voluminous garment worn over the inner cassock by bishops, priests, deacons, and monastics as their regular outer wear. It is not worn by seminarians, readers or subdeacons in the Russian tradition. In the Greek tradition, however, chanters may wear it in church, usually with no inner cassock beneath but directly over secular clothing. The outer cassock should be worn by a priest celebrating a service such as Vespers where the rubrics call for him to be less than fully vested, but it is not worn by any clergy beneath the sticharion. It may be worn with the bottoms of the sleeves turned back, which are sometimes faced in a contrasting color. The Greek version tends to be somewhat lighter weight and more fully cut than the Russian. It is originally a monastic garment, and in the Russian tradition a man must be explicitly blessed by the bishop to wear it following his ordination to the diaconate.
• A cassock vest ("kontorasson" (κοντόρασον), "amaniko" (αμάνικο), "gileko" (γιλέκο)) is sometimes worn over the inner cassock. This is a closely fitted collarless vest, usually falling slightly below the waist. The vest has its origins in the outer cassock and therefore should be worn only by clergy and monastics who would, in formal or liturgical settings, wear the outer cassock.
• A cassock coat may be worn on very cold days, with the same cut as the outer cassock but slightly larger and of heavier material. It may or may not have a fur-lined collar. The coat is worn over the outer cassock, although many clerics may wear it in lieu of a coat on colder days.