Diocesan Shield
Explanation of the Diocesan Shield/Coat of Arms
Heraldry is usually defined in general as an attempt to express by symbols an idea, a place, or quality. In an article written by the Rev. James T. Reilly, S.M. of Saint Michael’s Parish Wheeling, for the supplement of the Bishop Swint Jubilee edition of the West Virginia, Register of May 1947, the origin of the use of coat-of-arms and their significance are explained, along with the significance of the code of arms of the Diocese of Wheeling (now Wheeling-Charleston). The coat-of-arms of the Diocese of Wheeling was inaugurated at the time of Bishop Swint’s Episcopal Jubilee and was designed by Father Reilly. Until then the bishop had only his personal coat-of-arms.
Usually, the shield containing the diocesan coat-of-arms shows the arms of the See and of the prelate side-by-side. This is demonstrated in the shield shown in this article. On the cover of this centenary supplement, the reader will note the arms peculiar to the See of the Diocese of Wheeling which remains permanent on the diocesan shield. Each succeeding prelate adds his own personal coat-of-arms. Above the message of Bishop Swint, given on the inside of the cover page will be found the bishops own personal coat of arms. An excerpt of Father Reilly’s article referred to above follows:
The use of arms for ecclesiastics goes back to the days when civilians began to exhibit individual and distinguishing marks upon their shields and clothing. But, whereas the arms of civilians tended to remain the same for successive generations of a clan, the arms of ecclesiastic leadership changed with each prelate. Sees and monasteries soon adopted arms that represented the corporation, however, and to these were added the arms of the prelate. The manner of this varied greatly. In Central Europe, the tendency was to quarter the arms of the sea end of the bishop. In Switzerland, the arms of the bishop were generally placed on a smaller shield in the center. In England, the arms of the See and of the prelate have usually been placed side-by-side on the same shield. This custom is now being commonly followed in the United States.
External to the shield will be found the hat, cross, mitre, crozier, and motto. The ecclesiastical hat of red with 15 tassels is used by the Cardinal; the green hat with 10 tassels by an Archbishop; the green hat was six tassels by a Bishop; and the purple hat with six tassels by a Domestic Prelate. A golden cross with double arms is used by an Archbishop, one with a single set of arms by a Bishop. The miter and the crozier used by both are gold and identical. The motto placed below the shield generally uses the principal color of the personal arms for the lettering upon a riband of silver or plain white. The only other external insignia allowed by prelates of the rank of Bishop in upward, are the crosses of the Order of Malta, and of the Holy Sepulchre. Personal decorations, such as medals and crosses of orders, coronets, and other signs of personal nobility are forbidden. Some Sees in Europe have these insignia attached to the Sees, and so they appear where the arms of their Bishops are shown. Quite a few of the Bishoprics of Germany, Austria, Italy, and other Central European countries had the princely title attached, and in France many Bishops were also princes, dukes or counts by virtue of their appointment; for example, the Bishop or Archbishop of Paris was also Duke of St. Cloud.
In the United States, most of the Episcopal sees now show a shield containing the arms of the See, and other prelate side-by-side, and what is called impalement; which means that the shield is divided by a line down the center with the arms of the diocese on the dexter side and the arms of the Ordinary on the sinister side. Besides this shield, an Ordinary uses for personal and private letters a seal with his own arms alone, and a seal with the arms of the diocese under a mitre for chancery documents.
In a line drawing, a system known as hatching is in use, whereby one may tell at the glance what the color should be; black dots mean, gold; plain white, silver; perpendicular lines, blue; lines from the top left to the bottom, right, green; from the top right to the bottom left, purple. Mountains have been frequently represented by alternate points of silver and green. So, in the arms of Wheeling, the see of the Mountain State, this form is used, and over against the background of red has been placed a golden lily in honor of Saint Joseph, the patron of the Cathedral. The See is thus symbolized simply but effectually.
Bishop Swint’s Coat Of Arms
The Bishop’s personal arms, on the sinister half of the shield, are based on the arms of the Geschwindt or Swint family coat. The color was originally black, with a lattice work representing a gate across the center. In honor of the Blessed Virgin, the Bishop changed the color to blue. In the upper part and below the crescent, the golden stars were taken from the arms of St. Francis de Sales, patron of the Diocesan Mission band of which Bishop Swint was formerly a member.
Bishop Brennan’s Coat of Arms
Blazon: Arms impaled. Dexter: Party per chevron, Gules and chevronny of six Argent and Vert; overall a lily, stemmed and leaved Or. Sinister; Azure, at the centre point and escutcheon Or. charged with an “M” of the first below two diadems per fess and to base a lion’s head all of the first. Significance: The episcopal heraldic achievement, or bishop’s coat of arms, is composed of a shield that is the central and most important part of the design and tells to whom the design belongs, joined with the external ornamentation that tells the owner’s position or rank, and a motto placed upon a scroll. By heraldic tradition the design is described (blazoned) as if being done by the bearer with the shield being worn on the arm. Thus, where it applies, the terms sinister and dexter are reversed as the design is viewed from the front. By heraldic tradition the arms of the bishop of a diocese, often referred to as the Local Bishop or Ordinary, are joined to the arms of his jurisdiction. In this case, these are the arms of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston in West Virginia. These arms are composed of a red field on which are displayed a series of chevrons in silver (white) and green, representing the mountains of West Virginia. Overall is shown a gold (yellow) lily, with its full stem and leaves, to honor the titular of the Cathedral-Church in Wheeling. For his personal arms, seen in the sinister impalement (right side) of the design, His Excellency Bishop Brennan has simplified the design he used for his tenure as an Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. On a blue field are displayed two gold (yellow) crowns to honor his parents, Regina (the Latin word for queen) and Edward, to honor Saint Edward the Confessor of England. At the center of the design is a small shield, known as an escutcheon, that is gold (yellow) and is charged with a blue “M” to honor the most Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Mankind. The escutcheon is placed above a lion’s head to represent with a classic charge St. Mark, the Bishop’s baptismal Patron. For his motto, Bishop Brennan has chosen the phrase “LIVING THE TRUTH IN LOVE”, for it is in the love of Jesus Christ that the truth, regardless of it being high note or low, will win out. The achievement is completed with the external ornaments of a galero with its six tassels on either side of the shield and the gold processional cross that extends above and below the shield. These are the heraldic insignia of prelates of the rank of bishop by instruction of the Holy See, as of March 1969.
Article on the Mosaic Crest for the New Chancery Building – 1964
The mosaic crest in color for the Diocese of Wheeling was installed in the granite entrance way of the new Chancery Building at 1300 Byron St., Tuesday, June 2, 1964
The mosaic crest was executed at Pietrasanta in Italy, under the direction of the Charleston Tile and Marble Works of Charleston, West Virginia. It arrived in Baltimore, the latter part of May.
The crest contains the coat of arms of the Diocese of Wheeling and is placed in a background of mottled gray. On the coat of arms, we find the mountain State of West Virginia represented by alternate points of silver and green used in heraldry to symbolize mountains. Over this form, against a background of red, is placed a golden lily in honor of Saint Joseph, the patron of the Cathedral and of the Diocese. External to the shield is found the mitre, the ceremonial headdress of a bishop. The mitre is done in a gold mosaic, with an insert of green and red mosaics representing gems.