Among the liturgical insignia of the Supreme Pontiff, one of the most evocative is
the pallium made of white wool, symbol of the bishop as the good shepherd and, at
the same time, of the Lamb Crucified for the salvation of the human race: “the lamb's
wool is meant to represent the lost, sick or weak sheep which the shepherd places
on his shoulders and carries to the waters of life” (Pope Benedict XVI, Homily for
the Holy Mass inaugurating his Petrine ministry on 24 April 2005).
The papal
pallium, in its present form, is a band of cloth having a wide and large style, and
with red crosses. The pallium of the metropolitan archbishops, however, is a narrow
band of material decorated with six crosses of black silk. The different form of the
papal pallium with respect to that of the metropolitans makes clear the diversity
of jurisdiction.