Here’s Your Guide To What the Pope’s Clothes Are Called

When Pope Francis visits Juarez, chances are he will look as he does in the photo above. So why does the Pope dress like that, and what are his clothes called?

The Pope wears a white robe called a cassock. It is traditionally white because of Pope St. Pius V (1566-72). He was a Dominican priest and wanted to continue wearing the robes of his religious habit. He will also be wearing a mozzetta, a short cape that signifies his place in the hierarchy of the Church.

The Pope wears a white skullcap called a zucchetto. It is not the yarmulkes that a Jewish rabbi would wear, and it has a completely different function. Rabbis wear a yarmulke as a sign of their respect for God. Popes wear a zucchetto because in the early days of the Church, men who entered the monastic life were required to shave the the crown of their head because St. Paul wrote, "Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair, it is degrading to him". Priests also wore the caps to keep their heads warm. It's just a tradition now, but it has nothing to do with religion. The Pope is the only priest who can wear the white skullcap.