Scapulars, a Part of Catholic Culture

A friend, Sam, asks about scapulars, wondering, "Do you know the responsibility or reasoning behind wearing one, that would be different then wearing a crucifix?"

Scapulars have a long history, which is recounted in detail here, though I warn you, the read is rather dry.

All religious apparel, including vestments, jewelry, crosses, and robes are sacramental in character. A sacramental is something, an act, rite, object or substance (i.e. holy water), that instills a disposition in the faithful that facilitates the reception of grace, especially, but not exclusively, through the sacraments.

In the Sacraments of the Catholic Church (Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Marriage, Ordination, Reconciliation, and Anointing the Sick) the grace represented in the signs is actually received, independent of the disposition of those administering the sacrament. Contrarily, the efficacy of sacramentals depends on the disposition of those who participate in the sacramental. The grace received through anointing with holy water, or through praying during the Mass, or through using the Rosary, or through walking a pilgrimage, or through wearing religious jewelry depend on the participant's faith in conjunction with the act, object, substance, or prayer. At the same time, those very acts, objects, substances, and prayers will cultivate a disposition towards faith and the reception of grace in any form.

So, praying during Mass will not necessarily be a means of receiving grace, but it will dispose you to the reception of grace in the sacraments. If one were to feed the poor, which is a sacramental act, while hating the poor, they will not receive the grace involved in the act. However, the act itself will help to form that person so that they will be more likely to perform the act with love, especially if it is in conjunction with other good and sacramental acts.

This is not to say that grace is not received through sacramentals. A person who receives the poor with love will receive grace, and will be transformed by it. However, the act itself does not contain the grace received. Contrarily, a consecrated Host, whether St. Francis of Assisi or Adolph Hitler eats it, contains the Body and Blood of Christ and that very Body and Blood will be received regardless of the disposition of the recipient. That being said, God's self-giving in the Eucharist does not overide the free will of men; moral and spiritual preparedness remains the "precondition both for the reception of other graces conferrred in the celebration itself and for the fruits of new life which the celebration is intended to produce afterwards" (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1098). The Sacrament is not made by the power of humanity, but humanity must open itsef to be re-made by the power of the Sacrament.

Both the crucifix, worn as jewelry, and scapulars are sacramentals. The primary difference between them is that wearing a crucifix does not involve proscribed rules for its use, and so does not have the same quality of disposing the wearer to grace as does the scapular.

Scapulars are adapted from the habit, or religious clothing, worn by monks, and their use, as described in the link above, has a long and varied development. Different monastic communities have developed the tradition of wearing the scapular in their own ways, and the image, color, text and size of the scapular will vary depending on the community who uses it. There are scapulars that are devoted to various saints, to Mary, to qualities of Christ, like his Blood and Sacred Heart, and to the Trinity. When a person is invested with a scapular, there are prayers or rites that are prayed over the garment, blessing it and its user. In some cases, the wearer is obligated to pray in a certain way, for example uttering the Hail Mary three times a day, or other prayers particular to the tradition of the scapular being worn. For a person properly disposed, who has worn the scapular faithfully and acted according to its regulations, indulgences are given by the Church.

Both scapulars and crucifixes can be meaningful accessories that help to remind us of God, and his works and graces. Both, again, can be more or less pointless, or even sacrilegious, expressions of personal vanity or taste.

Something of particular merit and beauty about the scapular is that it is a specifically Catholic tradition. To wear a scapular is an act that draws a person into the culture of the Church. The scapular is connected to the history of monasticism, to the saints and our veneration of their holiness, to the ongoing prayers and intercessions of the 'cloud of witnesses', and to our local parish community and priest, where it is distributed and blessed. And, despite its connection to the Church community, to wear the scapular is an individual exercise, a devotion and sacramental prayer that works continually, in our homes, work places, schools, malls, and cars. And it acts continually as a sign, reminding the wearer to pray, and to reflect the face of Christ to everyone they encounter.

It is a wonderful tradition, one among many that each new generation of Catholics has the responsibility to foster and hand down to our posterity.

An article that has been influential in my life as regards the importance of Christian Culture can be found here. I strongly recommend any of Robert Louis Wilken's writings.