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Bishop's Insignias:
The miter (cap with two sharp peaks) with lappets (two tails hanging down from the back edge of the miter); the staff or crosier (large walking stick like a shepherd's crook); a gold signet ring with an amethyst (wine-colored stone); and a pectoral cross.
The Miter (whether simple, gold, or precious) symbolizes that a bishop is subject to the Holy Spirit. The lappets symbolize the authority of the Old and New Testaments over the bishop, consequently a bishop uncovers his or her head to hear the Gospel, and to approach God in prayer. The crosier (first used in the 600's A.D.) symbolizes a bishop's duty to seek the lost. The ring is a symbol of fidelity and the bishop's betrothal to the church. The old tradition of the pectoral cross was that it contained the relics of a martyr so as to present evidence of the power of the Cross in the sufferings of the faithful, as well as hope for the resurrection of the body.
In tradition, the bishop's chair (cathedra) is the setting from which a bishop teaches. It is a reminder of the Sermon on the Mount, when Jesus sat with his disciples. Traditionally, nothing more than a folding stool, it was a reminder that a bishop should be ready to travel with the Good News.
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