NOTA BENE: The arms of Cardinal O'Malley are incorrect insofar as they violate the legislation concerning the arms of cardinals laid down by Pope Benedict XV. That legislation forbade the display of any secular external ornaments as well as any orders of chivalry except the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. Cardinal O'Malley incorrectly displays the crosses of two orders with his arms. He also displays the cross of the Order of Christ (of Portugal) which he was legitimately awarded but which he may not display with his coat of arms. Lastly, the cross of the Order of Malta is incorrectly shown with a red fimbriation. Three strikes.The artwork is original to Hans van Heijningen.
2 comments:
You are correct that the colour of the Maltese cross is wrong – it should be outlined in black or gold, or if suspended from below the shield from the grand cross riband of the Order, in gold with the crown and military trophy (as a Bailiff Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion, the rank held by the Cardinal, should display it). The Cardinal is not a professed knight of the Order so should not display his arms ensigned on the cross anyway; in modern times I have never seen a Cardinal display the Order’s arms in any form with the exception of the Cardinal Patron of the Order. If he is going to do this correctly, then as a Bailiff he should have the chief of a Bailiff (i.e. in the top third of the shield, gules (red), the plain cross argent (white)). As for using the badge of the Portuguese Order of Christ, this ceased to be a strictly Catholic Order 170 years ago, and since it was revived by the Portuguese Republic in 1917 after being (invalidly) abolished in 1910, as a strictly secular Order of Merit. The very fact that its badge is almost identical to the badge of the Papal Order of the same name, an Order never given to clergy and the highest award given by the Pope, is a further reason why it should not be displayed. Whoever can have advised this modest Franciscan to allow such vanities!
Actually lots of cardinals and bishops display their membership in the SMOM in their coats of arms. if you look further down in this blog to the post on the cardinals of New York you'll see that Cardinal Spellman did. Also, the late Cardinal laghi did as well as Cardinal de Montezemolo.
O'Malley is entitled to place the shield on the cross of the Order because he is a Conventual Chaplain.
As for the Order of Christ, as I said, it should not be displayed. However, the reason it appears to look the same as the papal Supreme Order of Christ is that it is, in fact, one and the same. The two orders were linked a very long time ago and while Portugal turned it into an order of merit and continues to give it out the Holy See reserved it to Catholic Sovereigns and no longer gives it out. (I refer you to the book "Orders of Knighthood and of Merit" by Peter B. van Duren) The last person to receive it was Fra Angelo Mojana who was Prince and Grand Master of the Order of Malta two GMs ago. He received it shortly before his death. Currently no one holds it from the Holy See.
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