Fascia (sash)

The law of grace and life in Christ bind together, hold together, the man, who before and without these, is unbound, not put together, not altogether whole.

[1] Plain (not watered) purple fascia are worn by patriarchs, archbishops and bishops who are not cardinals, and also by protonotaries apostolic, honorary prelates, and chaplains of the Pope, these three being the different ranks of monsignors, from highest to lowest.

However, the Eastern Catholic patriarchs have been allowed to wear scarlet fascia in their choir dress at times, especially before Vatican II, even when they were not also cardinals.

The Instruction Ut sive sollicite of the Secretariat of State, dated 31 March 1969,[2] declared that "the sash with tassels is abolished" for cardinals,[3] bishops,[4] and "Prelate Superiors of the Dicasteries of the Roman Curia who do not have the episcopal dignity, the Auditors of the Sacred Roman Rota, the Promotor General of Justice and the Defender of the Bond in the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, the Protonotaries Apostolic de numero, the Clerics of the Apostolic Camera and the Prelates of the Pontifical Antechamber".

[5] This Instruction did not deal with canons,[6] some few of whom have retained the tufted sash to which membership of their particular chapter entitled them.