Evelyn Siqueira
Curious about the ceremonial attire of Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrão, the first cardinal from Goa? Keep reading ...
The red and white vestment that Cardinal Ferrão wore on the day of the Consistory (when he was made cardinal), in August 2022, is called the ‘choir dress’.
It consists of a scarlet cassock, a white rocchetto or surplice, often made of lace, a scarlet mozzetta (a shoulder cape worn over the surplice), a scarlet zucchetto or skull cap and a scarlet biretta or square cap worn over the zuchetto.
All of these are made of treated silk.
The last two items were conferred by Pope Francis during the investiture and are custom-made to fit the wearer.
While all these five items have to be bought by the cardinal himself, the Pope offers each cardinal a gold ring and a mitre, handcrafted in white damask silk.
The cardinal also wears a silk chord, red and gold in colour, from where his pectoral cross hangs.
Cardinal Ferrão’s vestments were tailored by I Sarti del Borgo, in Rome, Italy, which specialises in liturgical vestments and clothing. The expenses were graciously borne by the Roman Dicastery for the Evangelization of Peoples, Italy.
Cardinal Ferrão continues to be the Archbishop of Goa and Daman. He also has the following honorific titles:
Primate of the East since 1572
Patriarch of the East Indies since 1886
Titular Archbishop of Cranganore since1928
While Cardinal Ferrão retains these titles, he was also conferred a new kind of title during the Consistory: the title of Cardinal-Priest of the Church of Santa Maria in Via. It is assigned by the Pope to each new cardinal.