Of all the signs and symbols we use in prayer, the Sign of the Cross is the most common. It permeates through the Mass, the Sacraments and our personal devotions. This universally understood sign sums up our Catholic identity.
Let the sign of the cross be continually made on the heart and in all our actions. Let us make it on our breasts and all our friends, that we may be entirely covered with this invincible armour of Christians.
St. Gaudentius
Identity
Of all the signs and symbols we use in prayer, the Sign of the Cross is the most common. It permeates through the Mass, the Sacraments and our personal devotions. We even see athletes making the sign of the cross before they race. If we see someone making the sign of the cross, we think ‘Catholic’ This universally understood sign sums up our Catholic identity.
But because we make the sign of the cross so frequently, we are in danger of taking it for granted. The symbol of the cross dominates Lent and Holy Week, so it is the perfect time to reflect on the significance of tracing it upon ourselves, and of how it has the potential to be a source of evangelisation.
Origins and Heresy
One of the earliest records of Christians using the Sign of the Cross was in 211 AD when Tertullian wrote about how Christians would sign themselves regularly: … in all our travels and movements, in our coming in and going out, in putting on our shoes, at the bath, at the table, in lighting our candles, in lying down, in sitting down, whatever employment occupies us, we mark our foreheads with the sign of the cross.
In times of persecution, this was impossible. The fish, anchor and Chi-Rho were less obvious and easier-to-use symbols. When they were able, Christians crossed themselves on the forehead. When Constantine made Christianity legal, the Church was free to identify itself in public. From this point, the custom of making a larger cross developed and we see it appearing in liturgical ceremonies. In the 4th century St Basil refers to the Apostles as those who ‘taught us in writing to sign with the sign of the cross.’ Of sacred functions, St Augustine says, ‘ if it be not applied to the foreheads of believers; to the water, with which they are regenerated; to the chrism, with which they are anointed, and to the holy bread, with which they are nourished, no rite is duly performed.’
In those early days, the sign of the cross was as much a part of everyday life as it was in the Church’s liturgy. St Athanasius (c. 370 AD) writes of the blessing of meat before a meal; ‘When thou art sat down at table, and beginest to break thy bread, having signed it with the sign of the cross—give thanks.’
St Cyril of Jerusalem instructs his catechumens to not be afraid of the sign of the cross and to use it freely on the forehead; ‘Use that sign, eating and drinking, sitting and lying, rising from bed conversing and walking; in one word, use it on all occasions.’ But Christians didn’t always get it right – in the 5th century, St Caesarius had to warn people not to cross themselves when they were on their way to commit adultery or steal.
In the 5th and 6th centuries, the Monophysite heresy threatened to split the church. It held that Christ did not have two natures, human and divine; that he was solely divine. In opposition to this, Christians began to sign themselves making a large gesture across their chest, (using two fingers representing both natures) making sure that it was visible to everyone.
Old Testament and The Cosmos
The Early Christians were aware of the connection between their practice and events in the Old Testament. In Ezekiel 9, God’s messenger was instructed to ‘go through the whole city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the forehead of everyone who is distressed or troubled.’ This mark was the Tav, the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet, which was the shape of a cross. It was the seal of God which placed his people under special protection. This is mirrored In Revelation 7, the 144,000 who were saved, were ‘marked with God’s seal on their foreheads.’
Justin Martyr described the sign of the cross as the ‘greatest symbol of the strength and rule of Christ.’ He also drew on Plato and his ‘Prophecy of the Cross’ for inspiration. In the astronomical world, it was understood that there were two great movements in the stars – the ecliptic movement of the sun and the orbit of the earth. They intersect and form the shape of a cross, imprinted across the cosmos, connecting with the Demiurge, the Creator of the World. Justin saw this as the explanation for God:
The Cross of Golgotha is foreshadowed in the structure of the universe itself. The instrument of torment on which the Lord died is written into the structure of the universe. The cosmos speaks to us of the Cross, and the Cross solves for us the enigma of the cosmos. It is the real key to all reality. Benedict XVI.
Left to Right?
Originally, we traced from right shoulder to left, the right shoulder reminding us that Christ sits at the right hand of the Father. The right therefore represents all that is good. Pope Leo IV (d. 855 AD) decreed that all blessings should be given from right to left but the faithful got into the habit of copying the priest and so therefore their actions were a mirror image – left to right.
By the end of the Middle Ages, the Eastern and Western churches had differing styles. In the 15th century, the Brigettine nuns of the Monastery of Sion in England stated that ‘one should begin with the head and move downward, then to the left side and to the right.’ This was because ‘Jesus came down from the Father (head), was born as man (breast), suffered on the cross (left) and ascended into heaven (right).’ This custom has survived to the present day.
Miracles
There are numerous stories involving miracles caused by the sign of the cross. St Benedict (d. 548) was sent to sort out a monastery where the monks had fallen into unruly ways. Benedict sought to restore discipline, but the monks weren’t happy and plotted to kill him. One day they put poison in his drink, but Benedict’s habit was to bless what he was about to receive and as he made the sign of the cross over the glass, it shattered into pieces.
‘The fire in the Borgo’ (1517) was painted by a pupil of Raphael. It depicts a miracle attributed to Pope Leo. A serious fire had broken out in the district next to the Vatican. The Pope stood in front of the old St Peters and blessed it with the sign of the cross and the fire went out.
Renewed Fervour
Each time that a Catholic makes the sign of the cross, it is a reminder that God is a communion of love, Pope Francis said in 2023.
Speaking on the solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, the Pope highlighted how the simple gesture that Catholics are taught as children is a sign of the central mystery of Christian faith. “By tracing the cross on our body, we remind ourselves how much God loved us, to the point of giving his life for us; and we repeat to ourselves that his love envelops us completely, from top to bottom, from left to right, like an embrace that never abandons us,” Pope Francis said. “Yes, brothers and sisters, our God is a communion of love: This is how Jesus revealed him to us,” he added. “God is love. God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and he gave his life for us, so we make the sign of the cross,” he said.
In the Name?
The words we say are grammatically incomplete, so what do we do ‘in the name of?’
The answer is everything. Our entire Christian lives are lived in the name of our Creator. He is concerned with everything we do, and we do it for him. This should give us enormous comfort, but it is also a huge responsibility. Whoever said being a Christian was easy?
This year we might reflect on what this simple gesture means and strive to make it with renewed sincerity and conviction.
Let us pray the sign
May it remind us of our Baptism, we have been chosen by Christ to do his work on earth.
May it remind us of our belief in the Triune God, source of all Creation.
May it remind us of the Cross upon which Christ suffered, died and saved us for eternal life with him.
Let us live the sign
Let’s not be afraid to make the sign in public and let others see work of the Christ in action.
Let’s bless our children at night time.
Let’s make it at mealtimes, when we see an ambulance and when we pass a church.
Let’s make the sign in moments of temptation or despair.
Let’s make the sign of the cross with confidence, to show the world who we are.
Amen!
Finally, we can’t forget this powerful concluding word. It is our ‘yes’ to everything that the sign of the cross means, everything we believe in. It deserves our respect and to be spoken with passion and love. This year, let us banish dull Amens.
The most basic Christian gesture in prayer is and always will be the sign of the cross. It is a way of confessing Christ crucified with one’s very body. We make the sign of the cross on ourselves and thus enter the power of the blessing of Jesus Christ. We make the sign over people to whom we wish a blessing… Through the cross, we can become sources of blessing for one another. Pope Benedict XVI.
Further Reading
The Spirit of the Liturgy. (Part Four) Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.
The Sign of the Cross. Recovering the Power of Ancient Prayer. Bert Ghezzi.
www.wordonfire.org/articles/contributors/a-short-history-of-the-sign-of-the-cross/
