When Pope Leo XIV stepped out on the central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica to greet the crowd for the first time after his May 8 election, liturgical fashion aficionados around the globe took note: Gone was the simple white cassock and silver cross favored by Pope Francis. Back was the red satin mozzetta shoulder cape, the burgundy stola with gold embroidery, and a gold cross held by a double-stranded silken gold cord, per the AP. Over Leo's first few weeks, the excitement grew among fashion-conscious Catholics as they noticed new additions to the wardrobe, or rather a return to the old additions of the papal wardrobe: cuff links, white pants, lace.
After Francis' revolutionary papacy, Vatican watchers are now wondering if Leo's return to the past sartorial look means a return to the past on other things, too, including more substantial policy issues. But for tailors at the elite handful of liturgical tailoring shops in Rome, there's hope that Leo's return to the fancier garb of popes past will mean a boon to business if Leo's traditional look has a trickle-down effect from the pope to priests and all those in between.
- According to the Rev. John Wauck, professor of church communication at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, Leo's attire is a "return to form" that's similar to the attire worn by Pope Benedict XVI, Pope John Paul II, and other popes going back to the Middle Ages. They show "a respect for tradition," he said—important for many conservative Catholics.
- Many conservatives and traditionalists soured on Francis' informal style and disdain for tradition, which reached its pinnacle with his crackdown on the old Latin Mass. Leo has shown strong familiarity with Latin and has taken to singing the Sunday noontime prayer in Latin. Some traditionalist Catholics are hoping Leo will take the pro-Latin path even further and reverse Francis to allow greater use of the traditional Latin Mass.
- In addition to the clothing changes, Leo has returned to some other traditions of the Vatican that Francis eschewed. He has shown himself willing to accept the traditional "baciamano," or kissing of his ring. Francis disliked having his ring kissed and often pulled his hand away if someone tried to kiss it. "I think that what we see with Pope Leo is a willingness to embrace tradition, even if it risks seeming perhaps more formal than Pope Francis," Wauck said.
- It remains to be seen whether Leo will move into the papal apartment in the Apostolic Palace, which stood empty during the 12-year Francis papacy. Francis shocked the world by choosing to live in a small room at the Santa Marta residence at the Vatican, eating his meals in the common dining room.
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