A quick question regarding blessing ourselves when the priest reads the gospel

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Aeden

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Does anybody know why we don’t make the ordinary sign of the cross? We do “mini crosses” on our heads, mouths and hearts. Does anybody know why we do that?
 
There is a little prayer that goes with it. It’s not a sign of the cross per se:

“May these words be on my mind, on my lips and in my heart”
 
In a more general sense, here is the meaning behind the sign itself:

The Sign of the Cross
Code: 
  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 ... To seal oneself with the sign of the cross is a visible and public Yes to him who suffered for us; to him who in the body has made God's love visible, even to the utmost; to the God who reigns not by destruction but by the humility of suffering and love, which is stronger than all the power of the world and wiser than all the calculating intelligence of men. The sign of the cross is a confession of faith: I believe in him who suffered for me and rose again; in him who has transformed the sign of shame into a sign of hope and of the love of God that is present with us. The confession of faith is a confession of hope: I believe in him who in his weakness is the Almighty; in him who can and will save me even in apparent absence and impotence. By signing ourselves with the cross, we place ourselves under the protection of the cross, hold it in front of us like a shield that will guard us in all the distress of daily life and give us the courage to go on. We accept it as a signpost that we follow ... The cross shows us the road of life — the imitation of Christ. . .Whenever we make the sign of the cross, we accept our Baptism anew; Christ from the cross draws us, so to speak, to himself. . .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
 
Matopos said:
There is a little prayer that goes with it. It’s not a sign of the cross per se:

“May these words be on my mind, on my lips and in my heart”
Click to expand...
I’ve always said a similar prayer, but I just made it up for myself, and I’ve been in the Church for 30 years! This one is better, and also seems to be the “correct” one to accompany this action! 🙂

Thankyou, and thankyou Aeden for the question! 👍
 
This is the one I use:

“Let us receive in our minds,
announce it with our lips,
and keep in our hearts.”
 
I found this in Wikipedia.
“May Christ’s words be in my mind, on my lips, and in my heart”. This is used at the Proclamation of the Gospel at Holy Mass and also is commonly used when blessing oneself with holy water when leaving or entering a church.
Click to expand...
I feel that this is slightly better than “May these words…” because it focuses on the gospel as Christ’s words. We’ve just heard the other readings, yet we make this sign before the gospel.

The last thing I want to do is say that anyone is wrong, or to argue about this, but I am wondering whether anyone else either agrees that “Christ’s words” is better, or can say whether it is the more “official” version? 🙂
 
I was told the 3 cross’s are the Church’s way to help us involve the Holy Spirit to assist us in receiving, speaking and living then Gospel message.
 
We were taught to say, ‘Bless my mind, my lips and my heart.’
 
I believe it is the original ‘sign of the cross’ that is referred to in revelations 7. The seal to placed on the forehead of Catholics.

In Roman times, a slave would be signed (tattooed) in his forehead to identify him. We do this as a sign of following Christ.

Over time it probably grew in size as a more visible sign.
 
Matopos said:
There is a little prayer that goes with it. It’s not a sign of the cross per se:

“May these words be on my mind, on my lips and in my heart”
Click to expand...
The prayer is correct , but there are three signs of the Cross made , on the forehead , on the lips , and on the heart .
 
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