Reflect the sign of the cross from a historical and theological point of view
It is a habit for us Christians to start our day, our prayers and tasks with the sign of the cross. You’ve certainly made this sign many times, but perhaps you do it without knowing what you’re doing, or perhaps you’ve never stopped to think about its real meaning. Let us see, then, from a historical and theological point of view, the true meanings of the sign of the cross.
The practice of making the sign of the cross has been practiced since the beginning of the Church. Today, it is lived in both the Roman and Orthodox Churches. The beginning of its practice dates back to a Church priest named Tertullian, who lived in the third century. He was born around 160 AD and died in 220 AD In one of his writings, called ‘De Corona Militis’, we clearly find this practice described by him as follows: “When we set out for a walk, when we go out and come in, when we dress , we wash and start our meals, when we go to bed, when we sit down, on these occasions and in all our other activities, we cross our foreheads with the sign of the cross.”
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Another testimony from the same century is from Saint Hippolytus of Rome. When speaking about the practices of Christians, he exhorts them in the following ways: During temptation, piously make the sign of the cross on your forehead, as this is the sign of the Passion recognized as proven against the devil, as long as it is done with faith and not to display you before men, effectively serving as a shield. The adversary, seeing how great is the strength that comes out of the heart of the man who serves the Word (as it shows the inner sign of the Word projected on the outside), will immediately flee, repelled by the Spirit that is in the man. (Tradition of the Apostles,42).
Importance of the sign of the cross
Considering these two testimonies mentioned above, we see that the sign of the cross was widespread among Christians in the early days of Christianity, from the 3rd century onwards. We now move on to the next step of our reflection, that is, its meanings, in particular the theological one.
As there are several meanings of the sign of the cross, it is worth listing the most important ones. When we draw the sign of the cross on our body, we are affirming at least three fundamental truths of our faith: God, who is One and Triune; the Incarnation of Jesus and his Death on the Cross.
When we say: “In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit”, at this moment we profess faith in the Holy Trinity. The sign of the cross we make, which starts on the head, then goes down to the stomach, then raises the hand to the right shoulder; then, also followed to the left, indicates two realities. The first: when we make the gesture, starting at the head and going down to the stomach, we are declaring our faith in the Incarnation of Jesus through the womb of the Most Holy Mary. Second: this same sign, if you notice, is made in the shape of a cross on our body, “it marks the mark of Christ on what will belong to him and signifies the grace of redemption that Christ provided us through his cross”. (Catechism, n.1235).
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What does the Catechism of the Catholic Church say?
The Catechism of the Catholic Church also says that, “when a Christian begins his day, his prayers and his actions with the sign of the cross – “In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen”, he dedicates the journey to the glory of God and invokes the grace of the Savior, which enables him to act in the Spirit as a son of the Father. The sign of the cross strengthens us in temptations and difficulties”. (Catechism, no. 2157).
There are also those popular meanings: the cross on the forehead is for God to free us from all bad thoughts. In the mouth, it is to free us from bad words. In the chest, for God to free us from evil actions. All of these meanings have their validity, as long as they are understood within their context.
Professor Felipe Aquino, in the book on the sacraments, presents the liturgical meaning of the sign of the cross. “The cross on the forehead reminds us that the Gospel must be understood, studied, known; the cross on the lips reminds us that the Gospel must be proclaimed, announced (the mission of every Christian); and the cross on the chest, at the height of the heart, tells us that the Gospel, above all, must be lived, preached and witnessed by all who believe in the resurrection of Christ. The Christian, who is going to proclaim and read the Good News, must also make the cross when reading the Gospel to be read, thereby indicating that each word spoken is an awakening for each Christian to be light and salt for the world.
In short, the sign of the cross can never be made in a superstitious way, on the contrary, it must be placed in its proper place based on its theological meaning. Given all these beautiful meanings of the sign of the cross, from now on, we will certainly do it differently, that is, with more faith and devotion.