Red Shoes and the Room of Tears

Judy Keane

by Judy Keane on March 11, 2013 · 10 comments

In the Room of Tears, the new pontiff will choose one of three white vestments in either small, medium, or large along with a white cape for his first appearance before the world.  Here he will lay down his red zucchetto (skull cap) and replace it with a white one.  He will also find three pairs of meticulously made red shoes laid out for him in various sizes, ready and waiting to be broken in.  He will choose the pair carefully  - for the shoes will go wherever he goes – every step of the way.  We know the new Pope faces critical issues in a world which tends to judge the Vicar of Christ mercilessly.  Protecting life from conception to natural death, defending religious freedom and the dignity of marriage, ecclesiastic challenges, increasing economic strife and poverty, bringing lost sheep back to the flock, and reinforcing the universal call to holiness –  are among some of the crucial issues awaiting the new Pontiff.  If not for the aid of the Holy Spirit, it would be an impossible job to undertake.

As we await his introduction to the world by French Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, the Senior Cardinal Deacon, from the balcony of St. Peter’s with the words, “Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum – Habemus Papam!” [I announce a great joy to you. We have a Pope!] let us pray in a special way for the future Holy Father, for as his predecessor recently said, “the time of testing is here.”  In leading the faithful through such challenging times, the new Pope has big red shoes to fill indeed.   

 

Eugenio Marongiu / Shutterstock.com

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Judy Keane

By Judy Keane

Judy Keane is a Catholic writer and a communications/marketing executive who resides in Phoenix, Arizona. She holds an MBA in International Business and is currently working on her first book.

Tagged as: papal shoes, Room of Tears, Stefanelli, vestments

  • farkme

    So did they have to know his size before the event?

  • Athanasius McVay

    The red has nothing to do with the blood of the martyrs, per say. see my wikipedia article on papal shoes. red and white were the colours of the Roman emperors and the illustrissimi class. the emperor raised the Bishop of Rome to think rank. also it is a myth that Pius V changed the papal costume to white. look at portraits of his predecessors: Julius II, Clement VII, Paul III, Pius IV. Pius V continued to wear his white Dominican habit.

  • Ellie

    They are just shoes, nothing more.

  • nanda

    The shoes of the Pope!! We are not talking about you shoes…it much , but much more than just shoes! He is the Vicar of Christ!

  • Sara

    Honestly, I wonder if he won’t wear them now because his black ones are perfectly good. When he needs a new pair, maybe he’ll go with the red! He doesn’t strike me as the sort to switch before it’s necessary—sort of the way I manage the budget and shoe-needs for my children.

  • Richard III

    Well, did Pius V make the white in the papal costume OFFICIAL then rather than inventing or starting it?

  • Theresa

    I will be sad and feel like something is missing if Pope Francis does not wear burgundy-red shoes. They don’t have to be expensive ones, but it’s part of Papa — just like the white robes!

  • KBernadette

    Sad article now that our new holy father has forgone the shoes…

  • carl641

    I read that in the time of the Roman empire the wearing of red shoes was only allowed for the emperor and his wife. When Christianity became legal under the edict of Milan, the wearing of red shoes was expanded to the Pope. I seen several articles that say the red represents the blood of Christ, but it appears that’s a later interpretation.

  • taad

    Everything in ” wicked pedia” is factual and true? Right…..