View source for Cilice

{{Short description|Coarse garment important to Christianity}}
{{hatnote group|
{{About|a garment|the material itself|Sackcloth}}
{{Distinguish|Chalice}} }}
{{Infobox clothing type
| name          = Cilice
| image_file    = Christian_Hairshirt.jpg
| image_size    = 
| caption       = A hairshirt belonging to a Christian, with a set of [[Anglican prayer beads|prayer beads]] hanging off a belt loop used to hold the [[girdle]] that tightens the garment around the waist
| type          = [[Undergarment]]
| material      = Coarse cloth or animal hair
| location      = [[Cilicia]] 
| introduced    = [[Post-Exilic period]]
}}

[[File:Maria-Magdalena-Valladolid.jpg|thumb|[[Mary Magdalene]] in cilice. Polychrome wood carving by [[Pedro de Mena]], Church of San Miguel and San Julian, [[Valladolid]]]]
A '''cilice''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|ɪ|l|ᵻ|s}}, also known as a '''sackcloth''',<ref name="Jeffrey1992">{{cite book|last=Jeffrey|first=David L.|title=A Dictionary of Biblical Tradition in English Literature|year=1992|publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing|language=en|isbn=9780802836342|page=[https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofbibl0000unse/page/673 673]|url=https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofbibl0000unse/page/673}}</ref> was originally a [[garment]] or [[undergarment]] made of coarse cloth or animal hair (a '''hairshirt''') worn close to the skin. It is used by members of various Christian traditions (including the [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]],<ref name="StravinskasShaw1998">{{cite book|last1=Stravinskas|first1=Peter M. J.|last2=Shaw|first2=Russell B.|title=Our Sunday Visitor's Catholic Encyclopedia|year=1998|publisher=Our Sunday Visitor Publishing|language=en|isbn=9780879736699|page=483}}</ref>  [[Lutheran church|Lutheran]],<ref name="Neve1914">{{cite book|last=Neve|first=Juergen Ludwig|title=The Augsburg Confession: A Brief Review of Its History and an Interpretation of Its Doctrinal Articles, with Introductory Discussions on Confessional Questions|url=https://archive.org/details/augsburgconfessi00neve|year=1914|publisher=Lutheran Publication Society|page=[https://archive.org/details/augsburgconfessi00neve/page/150 150]}}</ref> [[Anglican Church|Anglican]],<ref name="KnightMason2006">{{cite book|last1=Knight|first1=Mark|last2=Mason|first2=Emma|title=Nineteenth-Century Religion and Literature: An Introduction|url=https://archive.org/details/nineteenthcentur00knig|url-access=limited|date=16 November 2006|publisher=Oxford University Press|language=en |isbn=9780191535017|page=[https://archive.org/details/nineteenthcentur00knig/page/n104 96]|quote=[[Edward Bouverie Pusey|Pusey]] regularly endured a hair shirt as well as self- imposed flagellation and fasting routines.}}</ref> [[Methodist]],<ref name="Bergen2011">{{cite book|last=Bergen|first=Jeremy M.|title=Ecclesial Repentance: The Churches Confront Their Sinful Pasts|date=31 March 2011|publisher=A&C Black|language=en|isbn=9780567523686|page=255|quote=In fact, it was scandal of disunity within Methodism that led UMC leaders to address the issue of racism as the underlying cause. ... The petition for forgiveness proceeded on two distinct but interrelated levels. Each of the approximately 3,000 persons in the assemble was called to silent personal confession of the sin of racism before God, publicly symbolized by receiving ... sackcloth ... and the imposition of ashes.}}</ref> and [[Scottish Presbyterian]] churches)<ref name="Yates2014">{{cite book|last=Yates|first=Nigel|title=Eighteenth Century Britain: Religion and Politics 1714-1815|date=11 June 2014|publisher=Routledge|language=en|isbn=9781317866480|page=87|quote=The Evangelical revival in Scotland encouraged both much stricter conditions being placed on admission to Holy Communion and the maintenance of traditional discipline within the established church. ... Lesser transgressors could be ordered by the kirk session to stand before the congregation for up to three Sundays, sometimes wearing sackcloth, and publicly acknowledge their sins before 'being subjected to a "rant" from the minister'.}}</ref> as a self-imposed [[means of grace|means]] of [[Repentance (Christianity)|repentance]] and [[mortification of the flesh]]; as an [[instrument of penance]], it is often worn during the Christian [[penance|penitential]] season of [[Lent]], especially on [[Ash Wednesday]], [[Good Friday]], and other Fridays of the Lenten season.<ref name="BeaulieuChartres2013">{{cite book|last1=Beaulieu|first1=Geoffrey of|last2=Chartres|first2=William of|title=The Sanctity of Louis IX: Early Lives of Saint Louis by Geoffrey of Beaulieu and William of Chartres|date=29 November 2013|publisher=Cornell University Press|language=en |isbn=9780801469145|page=89}}</ref>

Hairshirt cilices were originally made from coarse animal hair, as an imitation of the garment worn by [[John the Baptist]] that was made of camel hair,<ref name="Brewer">{{cite book |last1=Brewer |first1=Ebenezer Cobham |title=A Dictionary of Miracles: Imitative, Realistic, and Dogmatic |date=1884 |publisher=Chatto and Windus |page=56 |language=English}}</ref> or [[sackcloth]] which, throughout the [[Bible]], was worn by people repenting.<ref>{{cite book |title=CSB Study Bible |date=15 June 2017 |publisher=B&H Publishing Group |isbn=978-1-4336-4811-3 |page=1404 |language=English |quote=Sackcloth was worn during times of mourning and repentance, usually while sitting atop ashes (Gn 37:34; 1Kg 21:27; Mt 11:21).}}</ref> Cilices were designed to irritate the skin; other features were added to make cilices more uncomfortable, such as thin wires or twigs. In modern Christian religious circles, cilices are simply any device worn for the same purposes, often taking the form of a '''hairshirt cilice''' as well as a (spiked metal) '''chain cilice'''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Morrow |first1=Jeffrey L. |title=Liturgy and Sacrament, Mystagogy and Martyrdom: Essays in Theological Exegesis |date=13 October 2020 |publisher=Wipf and Stock Publishers |isbn=978-1-5326-9382-3 |language=English}}</ref>

==Etymology==

The word ''cilice'' derives from the [[Latin]] {{lang|la|cilicium}}, a covering made of goat's hair from [[Cilicia]], a Roman [[province]] in south-east [[Asia Minor]].<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=cilice|title= Cilice|publisher= Online Etymology Dictionary|access-date=2012-06-30}}</ref> The reputed first Scriptural use of this exact term is in the [[Vulgate]] (Latin) translation of [[Psalms|Psalm]] 35:13, {{lang|la|"Ego autem, cum mihi molesti essent, induebar cilicio."}} ("But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth" in the [[King James Bible]]). The term is translated as ''hair-cloth'' in the [[Douay–Rheims Bible]], and as ''sackcloth'' in the [[King James Bible]] and [[Book of Common Prayer]]. Sackcloth can also mean [[burlap]], or is associated as a symbol of [[mourning]], a form of hairshirt.<ref>{{Cite news |title=The History of Hairshirts |url=https://handwovenmagazine.com/history-hairshirts/ |access-date=2024-03-05 |website=Handwoven |language=en}}</ref> 

==Use==
[[Image:St Aspais Melun - cilice.jpg|thumb|300px|Hairshirt cilice of [[Louis IX of France|St. Louis]] at St. Aspais Church, [[Melun]], [[France]]]]
[[File:Ivan the Terrible's cilice 02 by shakko.jpg|300px|thumb|[[Ivan the Terrible]]'s hairshirt cilice (16th century). The tsar wanted to die like a monk.]]

There is some evidence, based on analyses of both clothing represented in art and preserved skin imprint patterns at [[Çatalhöyük]] in Turkey, that the usage of the cilice predates written history. This finding has been mirrored at [[Göbekli Tepe]], another [[Anatolia]]n site, indicating the widespread manufacturing of cilices. Ian Hodder has argued that "self-injuring clothing was an essential component of the Catalhöyük culturo-ritual entanglement, representing 'cleansing' and 'lightness'."<ref>Ian Hodder, "Çatalhöyük: The Leopard's Tale", Thames & Hudson, 2006.</ref>

In Biblical times, it was the [[Jewish]] custom to wear a hairshirt (sackcloth) when "mourning or in a public show of repentance for sin" (Genesis 37:34,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Genesis|37:34|KJV}}</ref> 2 Samuel 3:31,<ref>{{Bibleverse|2 Samuel|3:31|KJV}}</ref> Esther 4:1).<ref>{{Bibleverse|Esther|4:1|KJV}}</ref><ref name="Kosloski2019"/> In the [[New Testament]], [[John the Baptist]] wore "a garment of camel's hair" as a means of repentance (Matthew 3:4).<ref>{{Bibleverse|Matthew|3:4|KJV}}</ref><ref name="Kosloski2019">{{cite web |last1=Kosloski |first1=Philip |title=The spiritual symbolism of John the Baptist's unusual clothing |url=https://aleteia.org/2019/08/29/the-spiritual-symbolism-of-john-the-baptists-unusual-clothing/ |publisher=[[Aleteia]] |access-date=9 February 2022 |language=English |date=29 August 2019}}</ref> As such, adherents of many [[Christianity|Christian]] denominations have worn sackcloth to repent, [[mortification of the flesh|mortify the flesh]] or as a [[penance]], especially for sins relating to lavishly adorning oneself (cf. 1 Peter 3:3,<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Peter|3:3|KJV}}</ref> 1 Timothy 2:9).<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Timothy|2:9|KJV}}</ref>

Cilices have been used for centuries in the [[Catholic Church]] as a mild form of bodily penance akin to [[fasting]]. [[Thomas Becket]] was wearing a hairshirt when he was [[martyr]]ed,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Barlow|first=Frank|title=Thomas Becket|publisher=The Folio Society|year=2002|location=London|pages=299, 314}}</ref> [[St. Patrick]] reputedly wore a cilice, [[Charlemagne]] was buried in a hairshirt,{{citation needed|date=February 2020}} and [[Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor|Henry IV]], Holy Roman Emperor and King of Germany, famously wore one in the [[Walk to Canossa]] during the [[Investiture Controversy]].{{citation needed|date=February 2020}} Prince [[Henry the Navigator]] was found to be wearing a hairshirt at the time of his death in 1460.{{Citation needed|date=July 2007}} [[Francis of Assisi|St. Francis of Assisi]], [[Ignatius of Loyola|St. Ignatius of Loyola]], [[Thomas More|St. Thomas More]]<ref name=caldwell/> and [[Thérèse of Lisieux|St. Therese of Lisieux]] are known to have used them.{{citation needed|date=February 2020}} Scottish king [[James IV]] wore a cilice during Lent to repent of the indirect role he played in [[James III of Scotland|his father]]'s death.  In modern times they have been used by [[Mother Teresa]], [[Pio of Pietrelcina|St. Padre Pio]], and [[Pope Paul VI]].<ref name=barrett>{{cite press release| title=Opus Dei and Corporal Mortification|author=Michael Barrett, a priest of Opus Dei| publisher=Opus Dei | date=17 May 2006| url=https://opusdei.org/en/article/opus-dei-and-corporal-mortification-2/}}</ref> In the [[Discalced Carmelites|Discalced Carmelite]] convent of St. Teresa in Livorno, Italy, members of [[Opus Dei]] who are celibate (about 30% of the membership), and the [[Franciscan]] Brothers and Sisters of the Immaculate Conception continue an [[Asceticism|ascetic]] use of the cilice.{{sfn|Allen|2006|pp=165, 169, 171–173}} According to [[John L. Allen Jr.|John Allen]], an American Catholic writer, its practice in the Catholic Church is "more widespread than many observers imagine".{{sfn|Allen|2006|p=173}}

Some high church Anglicans, including [[Edward Bouverie Pusey]], wore hairshirts as a part of their spirituality.<ref name="KnightMason2006"/>

In the Presbyterian [[Church of Scotland]], influenced by the [[Evangelical revival in Scotland|evangelical revival]], penitents were dressed in sackcloth and called in front of the [[chancel]], where they were ordered to admit their sins.<ref name="Yates2014"/>

In some Methodist churches in the United States, on [[Ash Wednesday]], communicants, along with receiving ashes, also receive a piece of sackcloth "as a reminder of our own sinful ways and need for repentance".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stpaulsrushville.org/2017/03/11/sackcloth/|title=Sackcloth|last=Ice|first=Roy E.|date=11 March 2017|publisher=St Paul's United Methodist Church|language=en|access-date=27 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170327170532/http://www.stpaulsrushville.org/2017/03/11/sackcloth/|archive-date=27 March 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
[[File:Cilice3.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Closeup of a metal chain cilice with inwardly-pointing [[Tine (structural)|tines]]]]

In [[Thomas Pynchon]]’s 1997 [[Postmodern literature|postmodern]] historical novel ''[[Mason & Dixon]]'', upon arriving at a [[Jesuits|Jesuit]] college in [[Quebec]] the character Eliza Fields is dressed in a cilice by nuns as a sadomasochistic punishment after having admitted to feelings of sexual arousal during her prior capture by a group of [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Phillips |first1=Mike |editor1-last=Alberts |editor1-first=Crystal |editor2-last=Paul Eve |editor2-first=Martin |editor3-last=Freer |editor3-first=Joanna |editor4-last=Pöhlmann |editor4-first=Sascha |title=Nose-gaping: The Smells of Mason & Dixon |journal=Orbit: A Journal of American Literature |date=2019 |volume=7 |issue=1 |doi=10.16995/orbit.768|doi-access=free |url= https://orbit.openlibhums.org/article/id/768/}}</ref> The spiked form of cilice, fashioned from a [[rose]] plant, that Pynchon’s character experiences appears to be based on those used by the 20th century [[Opus Dei]]. The cilice has been interpreted as a deliberate narrative device to muddy the historical accuracy of the novel and point to the relevance of [[Slavery in the United States|historical slavery]] in the contemporary United States.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Madsen |first=Deborah Lea |title=Captivity without Redemption: Pynchon's Allegories of Empire in Mason & Dixon |journal=Pynchon Notes |date=2016 |url= https://access.archive-ouverte.unige.ch/access/metadata/6a2947d5-013c-40f6-b86f-5fbbf7e944ea/download |publisher=[[University of Geneva]]}}</ref>{{ref|Alpha|α}}

In [[Dan Brown|Dan Brown's]] novel ''[[The Da Vinci Code]]'', one of the [[Antagonist (literature)|antagonists]], an [[Albinism|albino]] [[Types of membership of Opus Dei|numerary]] named Silas associated with the religious organization Opus Dei, wears a cilice in the form of a spiked belt around his thigh. The sensationalized depiction in the novel has been criticized for its inaccuracy in subsequent books and by Opus Dei itself, which issued a press release responding to the movie's depiction of the practice, claiming "In reality, they cause a fairly low level of discomfort comparable to fasting. There is no blood, no injury, nothing to harm a person's health, nothing traumatic. If it caused any harm, the Church would not allow it."<ref name=barrett/>{{sfn|Allen|2006|pp=162–163}}

The goat hair of [[Thomas More]], presented for safe keeping by Margaret Clement,<ref name="r6">{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia= Catholic Encyclopaedia |title= St. Thomas More| url= http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14689c.htm}}.</ref> was long in the custody of the community of Augustinian canonesses who until 1983 lived at the convent at [[Abbotskerswell Priory]], Devon. Some sources, including one from 2004, claimed that the shirt was then at the Martyr's church on the Weld family's estate in [[Chideock]], Dorset.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OpATDQAAQBAJ&q=thomas+more+relics+hair+shirt+Chideock+castle&pg=PT56 |title=Little Book of Dorset |author=David Hilliam |publisher=History Press |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-7524-6265-3}}{{page needed|date=October 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hjyc9bPITKgC&q=thomas+more+relics+hair+shirt+Chideock+castle&pg=PA42 |title=Shrines of Our Lady in England |author=Anne Vail |publisher=Gracewing Publishing |year=2004 |isbn=0-85244-603-9 |page=42}}</ref> In 2011 the shirt was put on public display at [[Buckfast Abbey]], near Buckfastleigh in Devon.<ref name=caldwell>{{cite web |url=https://www.thecatholictelegraph.com/st-thomas-mores-hair-shirt-now-enshrined-for-public-veneration/37221|title=St. Thomas More's hair shirt now enshrined for public veneration |author=Simon Caldwell |date=21 November 2016 |publisher=Catholic Telegraph}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Christianity}}
* [[Fasting]]
* [[Hessian (cloth)|Hessian]]

==Notes==
:{{note|Alpha|α}} For relevant passage see {{cite book |last=Pynchon |first=Thomas |author-link=Thomas Pynchon |date=1998 |title=Mason & Dixon |title-link=Mason & Dixon |location=[[Reading, Berkshire|Reading]] |publisher=[[Vintage Books|Vintage]] |chapter=53 |page=520 |isbn=9780099771913}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

*{{Cite book | last=Allen Jr. | first=John | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5jxSf_2HSy4C | title= Opus Dei: An Objective Look Behind the Myths and Reality of the Most Controversial Force in the Catholic Church | publisher=[[Doubleday_(publisher)]] | year=2006 | ref={{harvid|Allen|2006}}| isbn=9780385514507 }}

==External links==
{{wiktionary|cilice}}
*{{CathEncy|wstitle=Hairshirt|volume=7}}
*[https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/secondary/SMIGRA*/Cilicium.html On the Latin word ''cilicium''] (with photograph of a 16c hairshirt)
*[http://www.religious-vocation.com/redemptive_suffering.html Suffering and Sainthood in the Catholic Church] The importance of Penance and Mortification for those who desire to become a Catholic Saint

[[Category:Catholic penitential practices]]
[[Category:Opus Dei]]
[[Category:Corporal punishments]]
[[Category:Catholic religious clothing]]
[[Category:Undergarments]]
[[Category:Christian asceticism]]