[Cosplay] Question about rosaries

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

I'm planning on going to Anime Expo this summer (first con I'll be going to... whoo!) and I was thinking of cosplaying pirate!Spain. Being that Spain was a Catholic nation during that time, I was considering wearing a rosary around my neck for an added touch, but I'm wondering if this is offensive to Catholics or not. I'm not Catholic but as far as I know it isn't a sin to wear it for religious means, but it is to wear it as an accessory. Would it also be considered sinful or offensive to wear it in a costume? Has anyone done this before and had problems with it?

Comments

[elodiej.livejournal.com]

Cradle-Catholic, here!

Well, sin or not, it's not a huge deal unless you're going into canonical debates. I know a few Catholics who've worn rosary-necklaces but mostly it's just distasteful. I highly doubt that Catholic!Spain would've worn it as such, though, especially if it had been blessed. You're supposed to - and if you really use a rosary, you want to - keep it in top condition, avoid damage & the like.

Anyways, as far as I can tell, growing up in a Catholic school, parish, etc., is that it'll garner eyerolls from more religious Catholics. As long as you're not purposefully mocking/damaging/making fun of it while wearing it you should be fine. (An alternative might be to have a pouch, and if you've a belt put the pouch on that, or at least wear it tucked in a belt.) I don't think anyone would be very upset, but it's not something I'd exactly condone.

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much for the help. (: I'd of course be very careful with it, but the pouch also sounds like a very good idea. Thank you!

[elodiej.livejournal.com]

No prob! It's always cool to see someone so careful of these things, especially nowadays.

If you do go with the pouch & still want to show it off, you could possibly leave the crucifix & a few beads showing. I know when I was younger & had my rosary at school, I'd leave the crucifix out because mine was faux-ruby (it's my birthstone) and had a nice look to it, so I'd try & show off, I guess. XD There's rosary-bracelets and rosary-rings, where it's only one mystery's worth (the ten) and the beginning beads & crucifix. Those are cool to wear, though I don't know when they came into use. (Another afterthought, the patron saint of Spain is St. James the Apostle, so there's that too.)

[rubyshad0w.livejournal.com]

No problem at all, dear. Don't even think about that.

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Thanks (:

[tophatviolet.livejournal.com]

As a catholic myself I wouldn't find it too offensive as long as your not mistreating it. I must say I like what elodiej said though, they arn't really meant to be worn so a pouch would be a wonderful idea.

When in doubt think of it like this, a rosary is symbolic similar to how a flag is to a nation. So while it's ok to have cosplay with a flag, some flags can't touch the ground so you have to be careful. So be careful with a rosary in the same way. Be concious of what you have with you and don't leave it lying around and such.

All in all, personally I much approve of you using it in a cosplay for historical reason as compared to some of the people I've seen wearing them as a fashion statement.

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Thank you for the help. (: I would definitely be very careful with it, the last thing I want to do is disrespect Catholicism in any way. D:

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the help. (: I'm just concerned because I know the fad has been controversial to some.

[iroh-fancier.livejournal.com]

Heh. That fad made me think some very un-Christian thoughts when I saw it :x. I hope it's dying off a bit.

[iroh-fancier.livejournal.com]

I'm a Catholic who is very offended when people treat rosaries like jewelry or props. I treat my rosaries with a lot of respect and only use them to pray. While, of course, other Catholics will give you different opinions, since we're not a hivemind, I would strongly advise you not to do this. While Spain might have well carried a rosary around with him as a Catholic Nation, he would not have worn it at the time (if you think the church is strict now, you should've seen it before Vatican II). He would likely have carried one, though, but since he would have probably not have done so on his wrist, I don't think it would be historically accurate for you to wear one.

I want to thank you, however, for asking if this would cause offense or be an incorrect usage. I appreciate when people do that instead of just making assumptions.

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for the help! This is exactly what I was wondering about, and you do have a good point about the historical accuracy. Thank you again, I will look for another alternative. (:

[iroh-fancier.livejournal.com]

I and a lot of Catholics appreciate that :). Thanks for listening so openly <3

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Oh, thank you for telling me honestly how you feel about it! (: If you don't mind, I do have one other question. Say I carry it in a pouch, would it be alright to take it out occasionally for photos as long as I am very careful with it, or should I leave it be?

[cantabrasil03.livejournal.com]

Another cradle-Catholic (portuguese tradition so...yay spain's neighbor!)

I don't see a problem if you take it out to pose for pictures as long as you're not, like, rubbing it on the ground or something LOL. If you're just posing with it that's fine.

The pouch idea is actually excellent and accurate, and of course a cross on a chain (like in your icon) is also a must. :)

[cantabrasil03.livejournal.com]

I should also add that I'm going to AX too, so I can't wait to see what you come up with!

[distant-flicker.livejournal.com]

I don't personally find it offensive, but in Catholic school I was always taught that while you can wear a cross, a rosary is not for wearing. A rosary is meant to be carried around like prayer beads.

I think tophatviolet has the right idea in treating the rosary like a flag. With that in mind, I think it wouldn't hurt to do some research. There are a plethora of sites on how to use a rosary, so you can refer to them on how Spain would carry them.

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the help! I think I'll research another way to carry the rosary, and instead wear a cross around my neck. I have plenty of crosses to choose from in my dresser, haha. (:

[germanne03.livejournal.com]

Just as long as you don't disrespect it, I don't think it would be a problem.

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Okidokie. Thanks for the help. (:

[rosenblut.livejournal.com]

I was born and raised Catholic in Italy (but I'm not one anymore), and as far I remember no one would wear rosaries as necklaces or general jewellery (I once tried to use mine as a bracelet for my first communion but it didn't fit ^^'), nor do I think 16-17th century Catholics would do that either.
I think you'd be more historically accurate if you just wore a cross around your neck, as many Catholics still do nowadays; for more effect you could maybe wrap the rosary around the fingers of your hand, it's how a Catholic here would wear it when praying.

As for the offence factor, that really depends on the single person: some will feel offended, some won't care, there's no general rule.

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Alrighty, I think I'll skip the rosary and look into that. (: Thanks for the help.

[yamikisara.livejournal.com]

Why not wear a normal (golden) cross instead of a rosary?
I agree with the statements above that a rosary isn't something to wear casually, while a cross is(over here you usually get one during christening and are supposed to wear it) and I assume Spain would believe in God even as a pirate...even in his cat form he's wearing a cross! XD

But as long as you use it with respect I'm sure there won't be any problems. :)

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

I think I'll skip the rosary and instead wear a cross, like you said. (: Or a crucifix, if I can find one. I do have a golden cross I could wear, but I don't really want to because it's real gold and was a gift from my grandfather when I was baptized, so I don't want it to potentially get damaged/lost at a con. ;A;
Thank you so much for the help. (:

[mertseguer.livejournal.com]

I'm from Spain.

As said above, Rosaries aren't meant to be worn around the neck. Spain would have worn (and probably still does) a crucifix on a chain.

Technically the Rosary is a series of prayers and the rosary you're thinking about is an aid to keep count of them (one prayer per bead). People who carry one would do so in a pocket, not around their neck.

Even so I know that here nobody would have an issue with you wearing one, specially if you are so obviously in costume. Most would simply think it's strange because it's not something you're supposed to wear like that.

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Hm, okay. I have several crosses but I'll keep an eye out for a crucifix instead. Thank you so much for the help!

[daily-ruse.livejournal.com]

If it helps at all, when I was little I wore a rosary and my grandma smacked me and said I was disrespecting God. ><; But my family's......really really Catholic. I call them psycho!catholics.

A Crucifix would definitely be a better choice.

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Ahh D: Yeah, I think I'll stay away from wearing the rosary. Thank you so much for the help!

[hazel-belle.livejournal.com]

It wouldn't be sinfully, but you'd get looked down upon and might get remed out a bit. Your best bet would be to find a very good and tasteful looking cross necklace, which would be less offensive. I am Catholic and wouldn't freak out but I'd tell you to take the Rosaries off since you'll offend some people

If you wish to still hold the Rosaries, Carry the Rosaries in a new and soft pouch would be your best bet, and have them attach via looping along your belt.

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

That does sound like a safer bet, I think I'll try that instead. (: Thanks for the help.

[bubblefire.livejournal.com]

i would more suggest wearing just a cross on your neck (like the one in your icon) since as others have mentioned you don't want to offend some people

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Mkay, I think I'll try that instead. Thank you for the help!

[nota-lone.livejournal.com]

Like everyone else said earlier, Rosaries =/= necklaces.
If you want to drive home the Catholic aspect you could wear a crucifix (cross w/ Jesus) instead of a cross. Protestants don't wear crucifixes (mostly, I think).

[luckyasteroid.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I think I'll do that instead. I'm a Baptist and haven't known anyone in my church that wears a crucifix, nor anyone from other Protestant churches that I know. Thanks for the help! (:

[pyroh.livejournal.com]

Just wanted to thank you for opening this topic and to others for the information they provided. Had also been thinking of using a rosary as prop for a Spain cosplay, given the Catholic background. I'm not religious at all, so I was not conscious of the rosary etiquette -didn't even consider it, sadly- however, I will put others' views into consideration, as I'd rather people observe/admire my entire cosplay, rather than single out incorrect use of a religious item and infer my whole cosplay sucks because of it.

A little off topic

[jlightstar.livejournal.com]

I used to live in Spain when I was an ex air force brat and I had a couple of questions.

1. Were Saint cards/candles used during that period or was a small statute of a saint or the virgin mary used during their time at sea?

2. If someone was to cosplay !Matador Spain, would he have a card of La Macarena?

[titanicfreek.livejournal.com]

I am a Catholic, but not very religious anymore. I think as long as you respected the rosary, or maybe even bought a fake one that sort of represented a rosary, then I think it would be okay.

Or, like some of the others have said in previous comments, I think a plain crucifix would work fantastically. I actually, think it might be better if you are doing Pirate!Spain. Because, Spain is a Catholic, country. I believe he would keep the rosary in a safe place, so it wouldn't get lost or damaged. So a pouch would work out fantastic, if you wanted to have it with you, and take it out for a few specific photos.

But, seeing as well... he is a Pirate, The plain crucifix would work well with his outfit. :3

[shadow-of-egypt.livejournal.com]

It's pretty much as others above have said - you may as well stick to a cross or crucifix around your neck, both for accuracy, and to avoid running the risk of perhaps offending someone. (Though it's not exactly a sin to wear the rosary, per say, offence always varies from person to person. ;;; )
I've been Catholic since birth - I used to wear one of my less-expensive rosaries around my neck to church sometimes when I was a child, but that was only because it was a long one, and I was exceedingly prone to losing things. Much easier to keep track of around my neck, and even if I did lose it my nicer rosaries were at home. It was something I've only ever seen children do; the adults kept theirs wound around their wrists or tucked into a pouch in their belts until they needed to use them to pray.