Crossing yourself

[ronnok20]

Just wanted to share this with you and get some comments and feedback. When I left the RC and turned Anglican I found that most folks make the sign of the cross exactly the same as RC’s with the exception of a few and our priest. He teaches to put your thumb, middle and index finger together to signify the trinity and keep your ring finger and pinky flat to your palm to signify that Jesus is truly divine and was truly human at the same time and using your right hand in this fashion cross starting to the forehead and then to your right instead of left and then to the left and then over your heart. I believe that Orthodox folks cross this way and I have been crossing this way for some time now myself. Isn’t this the way the early church folks crossed themselves?

 

[Allweather]

Good question… I’ve never had it laid out to me a “proper” way to do this. I live in New Mexico, where most people are Mexican, or Spanish ancestry. I notice most people around here also adding a kiss upon their hand at the end of the maneuver, but I don’t know what that means. I’ve always thought that the form of it is not very important. How you do it, or whether you do it, it is a sacramental that is of value only to the extent that you’re uniting with Jesus in the doing of it. Lately I’ve tried to be more reverential about it, making a more deliberate, slow, full crossing from forehead to navel, shoulder to shoulder. I keep a small container of holy water at my front door and dip my finger in it and cross myself when leaving the house. Helps to remind me to whom I belong as I proceed into public.

 

[MarysRoses]

Good question… I’ve never had it laid out to me a “proper” way to do this. I live in New Mexico, where most people are Mexican, or Spanish ancestry. I notice most people around here also adding a kiss upon their hand at the end of the maneuver, but I don’t know what that means. I’ve always thought that the form of it is not very important. How you do it, or whether you do it, it is a sacramental that is of value only to the extent that you’re uniting with Jesus in the doing of it. Lately I’ve tried to be more reverential about it, making a more deliberate, slow, full crossing from forehead to navel, shoulder to shoulder. I keep a small container of holy water at my front door and dip my finger in it and cross myself when leaving the house. Helps to remind me to whom I belong as I proceed into public.

I have taught children their sacraments classes in NM for many years… This may not be the only explanation for the way we do it here, but this is how I teach the kids to make the sign of the cross. You put your forefinger over your thumb to make a little cross, holding you fingers in s little cross as you bless yourself in the usual way, then, the reason you kiss your hand, is you kiss the small cross you made with thumb and forefinger, reminiscent of venerating the cross by kissing it on Good Friday.