Why most Religious Sisters wear blue

Ever wondered why most Catholic Sisters wear the colour blue?

Sisters are a group of Catholic women who live together in a community, profess the Evangelical Counsels (take the vows of Chastity, Poverty and Obedience) and are involved in the service of God and mankind. In the Roman Catholic Church all over the world, most Religious Women popularly known as Roman Sisters use blue as their habit.

The habit is the religious dress worn by Sisters which comprises the veil and the main dress. There are different groups of Sisters in the Catholic Church, and each belongs to an Institute or Congregation.

Just as a school uniform shows which students belong to a particular school, the habit of a Catholic Sister also shows her commitment to God and identifies the Religious community to which she belongs.

Colours are very important in the Catholic Church and every colour tells a story.

In the Catholic Church, blue is associated with Mary, the mother of Jesus. Even though not all congregations wear blue, many of them choose blue because they emulate Mary, the mother of Jesus.

The colour blue is associated with the Blessed Virgin Mary because of her attribute as the Star of the Sea which signifies her purity of heart. It also describes her as a guide that leads Christians safely through life’s storms and brings them peace.

One may ask, how then do we differentiate between the various groups of Sisters? To know and identify the group to which a Sister belongs, one needs to check how the habit looks like. Take note that some congregation’s habits are sewn in simple plaits and box plaits.

Remember – wearing a different habit doesn’t mean other Sisters don’t also emulate Mary in their own way. However, when you see Catholic Sisters dressed in blue, know that they have Chosen Mother Mary as their model and guide.

And this is why most Catholic Sisters wear blue habits.