Q: Hi, Fr. Paul! Thank you for all you do to help us grow in liturgical knowledge.
Recently, a friend of mine asked if a priest or monsignor may wear a biretta during Mass. We checked out the General Instructions of the Roman Missal, and it appears as though the Church does not envision the use of a biretta. I am aware, however, that the use of the maniple is also not mentioned in the GIRM, but I recall reading a document from the Vatican stating it was never abrogated. Fr. Mauro Gagliardi of the Office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff also mentions in an article that it was never abrogated.
If this is the case with the maniple, then can a priest wear a biretta at a Novus Ordo Mass? Also out of curiosity, was the biretta required by liturgical law to celebrate the Tridentine Mass before the Second Vatican Council? Thank you!
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A: GIRM 119 says that a priest wears alb, stole and chasuble. He also wears cincture and amice, “unless, due to the form of the alb, they are not needed.”
I read this to mean that the maniple has indeed been abrogated. Similarly, the GIRM makes no mention of the biretta. The preconciliar Mass did have rubrics pertaining to it, but those no longer apply.