What is the cloth that priests are the men of?

[Patty_O_Furniture]

In case that wasn’t clear, “man of the cloth” is the phrase I’m talking about. The shroud of Turin is all I can come up with, but that just sounds wrong.

[foolsguinea]

The cassocks they wear, maybe?

I don’t really know.

[mbh]

Wild guess, but I think it’s “man of the cloth” as opposed to “man of iron”, ie, a preacher rather than a warrior. The phrase “the cloth” would refer to a priest’s vestments.

[brachyrhynchos]

According to this thread from the Phrase Finder Discussion Forum:

MAN OF THE CLOTH – “…was originally a term applied to anyone who wore a uniform or livery in his work. A baker’s white jacket and trousers would be called the ‘baker’s cloth.’ But by the seventeenth century, ‘man of the cloth’ came to be restricted to the clergy and the expression ‘the cloth’ meant clergymen collectively.” From “Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins” by William and Mary Morris (HarperCollins, New York, 1977, 1988).

Interesting site. I see browsing in my future…