Sign of the Cross

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SnowAngels

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Hello!

I wasn’t sure where to putr this question, so I’m sorry if this isn’t the appropiate section!

Is the Sign of the Cross specifically a Catholic sign or just a Christian sign?
Thank you!
 
It is primarily a Catholic and Orthodox sign, but not uniquely so. That said, the amount of Protestants who use it in daily prayer is so low, that if you see someone signing themselves in public, Catholic or Orthodox is a safe bet. (Then distinguishing between the two based on if it’s right-to-left or left-to-right)
 
Razanir said:
It is primarily a Catholic and Orthodox sign, but not uniquely so. That said, the amount of Protestants who use it in daily prayer is so low, that if you see someone signing themselves in public, Catholic or Orthodox is a safe bet. (Then distinguishing between the two based on if it’s right-to-left or left-to-right)
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That can be a good guideline,but not a sure way to know. Byzantine rite Catholics make the sign of the cross right to left and Oriental Orthodox make it left to right.
 
THE SIGN OF THE CROSS

Book Review:
St. Francis de Sales’ little treatise entitled The Sign of the Cross begins by explaining how to make the sign of the Cross. It may seem like a no-brainer at first, but I’d bet that very few Catholics know why we make the Sign of the Cross the way we do. To summarize St. Francis de Sales, we use our right hand, because it is “the more worthy of the two.” With our right hand, we use either three fingers to represent the Trinity or five fingers to represent Jesus’ five wounds. We begin the prayer by placing our right hand on our forehead to acknowledge that God the Father is the one from whom all things originate. Next, we move our hand down to our stomach as a sign that Jesus proceeded from the Father. Lastly, we cross ourselves from left shoulder to right shoulder to show that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son and that He is the bond of love between Father and Son. Let that information sink in, and reflect on it going forward each time you make the Sign of the Cross.

The rest of this book deals with the origins, history, uses, and benefits of the Sign of the Cross. For example, did you know that in early times the Sign of the Cross was made on the forehead? It eventually evolved to its present form, but early Christians put the Sign on their forehead both as a profession of faith and an invocation of God’s assistance in every aspect of their lives. The most fascinating chapter to me was entitled “A Defense against Demons.” In this chapter, St. Francis de Sales quotes various Church Fathers, from St. Athanasius to St. John Chrysostom, all of whom speak about the power of the Sign of the Cross over Satan and his minions. It is truly a simple but powerful weapon that so many fail to realize they possess. So, in the words of Origen, “Let us rejoice, my beloved friends, and lift holy hands to heaven in the form of the Cross; when the demons see us armed in this way they will be crushed.”

If you are looking for a simple way to deepen your prayer life, then pick up a copy of The Sign of the Cross. You will gain a wealth of spiritual benefits from reading this book, but you must not stop there. You must then act upon what you have read. Slow down when crossing yourself. Think about each word as you say it. Also, start using the Sign of the Cross in every aspect of your life! You don’t have to just use it at the beginning and ending of formal prayer. You can use it when starting and ending a task at work. By doing this, you will make your entire day a prayer to God. These fifteen words can transform your life, if you only let them.
 
The sign of the cross is:

1 a confession of faith
2 a renewal of baptism
3 a mark of discipleship
4 an acceptance of suffering
5 a defense against the devil
6 and a victory over self-indulgence
 
SnowAngels said:
Hello!

I wasn’t sure where to putr this question, so I’m sorry if this isn’t the appropiate section!

Is the Sign of the Cross specifically a Catholic sign or just a Christian sign?
Thank you!
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Catholics ARE Christians.
 
thistle said:
Catholics ARE Christians.
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He wasn’t implying we aren’t. He was asking if the Sign of the Cross is generically a Christian sign, usable by any Christian, or specifically meant for the subset of Christianity that is Catholicism.

It’d be like saying Ash Wednesday is a Christian concept, but fasting on it is Catholic.

The Sign of the Cross is technically just a Christian sign, but (in private prayer) it’s used almost exclusively by Catholics and Orthodox.
 
JM3 said:
newadvent.org/cathen/13785a.htm
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As this article correctly points out, the Sign of the Cross was used by the earliest Christians who used to trace the cross on their forehead. The Sign of the Cross is reference three times in the Book of Revelation (7:3, 9:4 and 14:1). The tracing of the cross on the forehead evolved into the Sign of the Cross that we know of today.

If the various Christians apart from Catholicism do not use the Sign of the Cross it is because their Churches have abandoned it, not because we have adopted it.

-Tim-
 
Razanir said:
He wasn’t implying we aren’t. He was asking if the Sign of the Cross is generically a Christian sign, usable by any Christian, or specifically meant for the subset of Christianity that is Catholicism.

It’d be like saying Ash Wednesday is a Christian concept, but fasting on it is Catholic.

The Sign of the Cross is technically just a Christian sign, but (in private prayer) it’s used almost exclusively by Catholics and Orthodox.
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Thank you! 🙂
 
Razanir said:
He wasn’t implying we aren’t. He was asking if the Sign of the Cross is generically a Christian sign, usable by any Christian, or specifically meant for the subset of Christianity that is Catholicism.

It’d be like saying Ash Wednesday is a Christian concept, but fasting on it is Catholic.

The Sign of the Cross is technically just a Christian sign, but (in private prayer) it’s used almost exclusively by Catholics and Orthodox.
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Catholicism is not a subset of Christianity. We are the original Christians and therefore the sign of the cross IS a Christian sign.
 
thistle said:
Catholicism is not a subset of Christianity. We are the original Christians and therefore the sign of the cross IS a Christian sign.
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Technically we are a subset of Christianity. Same as Orthodoxy, same as Protestantism. Together, we make up all of Christianity. It’s incorrect to call us a denomination, but by virtue of being Christian, we’re a subset of Christianity. And again, the Sign of the Cross is just a Christian sign. It’s just that it’s mostly Catholics (and Orthodox) who use it, so it’s commonly regarded as specifically Catholic. But yes, it’s a Christian sign.
 
thistle said:
Catholicism is not a subset of Christianity. We are the original Christians and therefore the sign of the cross IS a Christian sign.
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Thistle is correct.

If the Sign of the Cross is no longer a universal symbol of Christians, it is not because Catholics have adopted something which was not used but because non-Catholics have abandoned something which was universal until they stopped doing it.

The Sign of the Cross was used by the first Christians. Masters used to write their name on the forehead of their slaves. The first Christians traced a Cross on their forehead using the thumb or finger as a sign of ownership - that they were slaves of Christ - and this evolved into the Sign of the Cross that we know today. The practice of signing on the forehead is referenced at least four times in the Book of Revelation (7:3, 9:4, 14:1, 22:4)

-Tim-
 
TimothyH said:
If the Sign of the Cross is no longer a universal symbol of Christians, it is not because Catholics have adopted something which was not used but because non-Catholics have abandoned something which was universal until they stopped doing it.
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Actually, (and I just looked this up to confirm it), plenty of liturgical Protestants still use it in liturgy. It’s only in private use, such as the Catholic practice of signing oneself before and after prayer, that it’s distinctively Catholic. Hence my emphasis on it still being a Christian symbol, but being distinctively Catholic in private prayer.
 
TimothyH said:
As this article correctly points out, the Sign of the Cross was used by the earliest Christians who used to trace the cross on their forehead. The Sign of the Cross is reference three times in the Book of Revelation (7:3, 9:4 and 14:1). The tracing of the cross on the forehead evolved into the Sign of the Cross that we know of today.

If the various Christians apart from Catholicism do not use the Sign of the Cross it is because their Churches have abandoned it, not because we have adopted it.

-Tim-
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Rev:7:3: Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
Rev:9:4: And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
Rev:14:1: And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.

I’ve read the references given but they do not seem to refer to the sign of the cross. They talk about the forehead, while the sign of the cross touches three other parts of the body.

Could you refer me to the source of “The tracing of the cross on the forehead evolved into the Sign of the Cross that we know of today”.
 
Oska2 said:
Rev:7:3: Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
Rev:9:4: And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
Rev:14:1: And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.

I’ve read the references given but they do not seem to refer to the sign of the cross. They talk about the forehead, while the sign of the cross touches three other parts of the body.

Could you refer me to the source of “The tracing of the cross on the forehead evolved into the Sign of the Cross that we know of today”.
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There are many references, easy to look up.

catholicexchange.com/biblical-roots-sign-cross

The Haydock Commentary talks about it at haydock1859.tripod.com/id293.html.

***In all our travels and movements, in all 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. **
  • Tertullian d ca. 250. De corona, 30*
*Let us then not be ashamed to confess the Crucified. Be the cross our seal, made with boldness by our fingers on our brow and in everything; over the bread we eat and the cups we drink, in our comings and in our goings out; before our sleep, when we lie down and when we awake; when we are traveling, and when we are at rest"
  • St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Catecheses, 13*
The tracing of the Cross on the forehead was featured prominently in the 1961 file “Barabbas” starring Anthony Quinn. There are many such references out there. It is common knowledge that it grew into the more bold and public Sign of the Cross we know of today after the persecutions stopped.

It is a shame it isn’t used more. I know a priest who blesses people that way, by tracing a cross on their forehead. It’s even in the Old Testament - very Biblical.

***And the LORD said to him, “Go through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark upon the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.” *(Ezekiel 9:4)

-Tim-
 
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