Maniturgia

The Tradition of the Maniturgium

The hands of a priest are blessed with oil during his ordination ceremony. To catch the sacred Chrism, a strip of linen is wrapped around priest’s hands. The moment in the ceremony is brief, but it is only the beginning of the tradition. Rather than discard the linen touched by sacred Chrism, priests often choose to present this humble, yet holy, cloth to their mother at their first Mass.

The strip of linen, still scented and stained with sacred Chrism from the ordination, is gently folded and placed around the hands of the mother upon her death. She stands before the Lord, who says, “I have given you life, what have you given to me?” She humbly lifts the linen in her hands as she replies, “I have given you my son as a priest.”

A tradition of love and sacrifice is worth celebrating and preserving. I was blessed with the honor of making my first maniturgium in 2019 for the Diocese of Raleigh. I had officially joined the Catholic Church only two weeks prior at Easter and ordinations were in June. I had little time and little instruction, and just a few symbols printed from the Internet as a pattern to guide me. There was really very little by way of information of what a maniturgium needed to be, other than it must be linen. I learned many lessons in making those first three linen cloths! When the 2020 ordinations came around, I was better prepared and was able to make a version of the maniturgium I felt was fitting to the occasion. It is such a blessing to make anything that is part of an ordination ceremony, but the added blessing that it is a gift to the priest’s mother as well makes the tradition of the maniturgium truly unique. I choose to make every aspect of the maniturgium by hand, from the hems to the embroidery. Yes, machines are faster, but it is not the goal to make it quickly. It is a labor of love, much like raising a son. It is prayed over and loving worked by hand for hours and hours. The linen grows soft and the embroidery is added stitch by stitch, allowing for ample time to contemplate the gift that is a good and holy priest. It gives chance to pray for a mother who is both filled with joy and sorrow at the ordination of her son. It is no small gift to give your child fully to the service of the Lord. So the maniturgium is something of a ministry, a gift to honor a gift. 

Custom Maniturgia Design

I have made maniturgia for the Diocese of Raleigh at the request of my parish priest. Each maniturgium is customized with the name of the ordinand, the ordination date, and the Diocese.

The Marian Auspice, or Auspice Maria, means “Under the protection of Mary.” The crown is adorned with pearls, the “Queen of gems” and is topped with a fleur-de-lis, a version of the lily, which symbolizes Mary’s purity.

The Latin Tu Es Sacerdos In Aeternum Secundum Ordinem Melchisedech means “Thou art a priest for ever, according to the order of Melchisedech.” It references Hebrews 5:6 and Psalm 110:4.

The Chi Rho is a very old symbol of Christ. It is created from the combination of the first two letters (X and P) of the Greek word for Christos, ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ. The christogram is often considered a symbol of the Crucifixion, and its use became widespread during the reign of the Emperor Constantine.

ORDERING A CUSTOM MANITURGIUM

If you are a transitional deacon and would like a custom maniturgium for your ordination, please keep the following in mind:

• Give me as much notice as possible — my first vocation is wife and mother to five young children, my embroidery is part-time work, and I do not use machines, so it takes me several months to make a maniturgium as I only work a little at a time.
• I usually start in January/February for May/June ordinations — if your ordination is in just a few months, I may not be able to assemble, embroider, and ship in time. If I need to order supplies, I will need an additional few weeks.
• Each piece is custom made to order — I do not have any pre-assembled to sell. I would love to offer some “ready to go” versions eventually, but right now it isn’t an option.
• I offer a variety of styles — I’m not limited to what you see in the Diocesan example above. Instagram (@threadroses) is the best place to see the different variations of maniturgia I can make. I am also open to suggestions if you’ve got a particular devotion that you would like to include.
• Maniturgia are my favorite — even if the timeframe is tight, I will do my best to work a maniturgium into my schedule. I love everything about them and have a heart for our priests (and a devotion to St. John Vianney). So please don’t hesitate to ask, I’ll do my best to accommodate you.

Ordination Holy Cards

If you are looking for stunning, heirloom embossed paper lace holy cards for your ordination, please contact Catholic Printing Press (catholicprintingpress.com/ordination).