The Sign of the Cross

The Sign of the Cross in Catholic prayers and religious practice is an important gesture that has to be understood and reflected. It has a spiritual significance not only as a sign that indicates that one is part of the Catholic Church but as a sign that one is a Christian. It is a sign that draws its origin from antiquity and a tradition that traces it existence from the Apostles and Fathers of the Church.

1. Entering a tradition and the power of Christ- the sign of the cross has been a Christian tradition that has been practiced by the early Christians who belonged to the Catholic Church. It is a rite and prayer itself practiced by the Catholic Church that became as source of power, blessings, and protection. It is a sign of faith that draws its roots from the early Christians to mark that they belong to Christ and believed in the power of the Cross for their salvation and daily protection. Tertullian (ca 160-225 AD) described the sign of the cross in these words: “in all our travels and movements, in all our coming in and going out, in putting on our shoes, at the bath, in lighting our candles, in lying down, in sitting down, in whatever employment occupies us, we mark our foreheads with the sign of the cross.”[1] Tertullian already attested also that the use of the cross was a way for Christians to sanctify daily life or signal mutual recognition during periods of persecution. In the early times the cross was drawn on the forehead with the right thumb. Later, in the Roman rite, it was made by drawing the right hand from forehead to breast, then from left shoulder to right shoulder.[2]

         Another Church Father by the name of St. John Chrysostom (347-407) spoke about the tradition among early Christians the value of the sign of the Cross and the practice that was already there as part of Christian identity and to turn to the power of Christ. He said: “never leave your house without making the sign of the cross. It will be to you a staff, a weapon, an impregnable fortress. Neither man nor demon will dare to attack you, seeing you covered with such powerful armor. Let this sign teach you that you are a soldier, ready to combat against the demons, and ready to fight for the crown of justice. Are you ignorant of what the cross has done? It has vanquished death, destroyed sin, emptied hell, dethroned Satan, and restored the universe. What you then doubt its power?”

2. Sign of Being Baptized in Christ- The Catechism of the Catholic Church demonstrates that the sign of the Cross is not only an incorporation in Christ but also lives as a baptized person in Christ by the daily way of life. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says: “The Christian begins his day, his prayers, and his activities with the Sign of the Cross: “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.” The baptized person dedicates the day to the glory of God and calls on the Savior's grace which lets him act in the Spirit as a child of the Father. The sign of the cross strengthens us in temptations and difficulties.”[3] As early as the beginning of the third century in Africa and at Rome, the making of the sign of the Cross on the forehead during the rites of initiation seems already to be a traditional way of showing that the person belonged to Christ and to be regarded as a kind of invisible seal; Christians also made the sign of the Cross as often they could because it became a gesture of blessing and as an exorcist gesture.[4]

3. It has an Antecedent Practice in the Old Testament- the sign of the Cross has two parts namely: the actual tracing of the Cross over our bodies, and the form or the words that accompany it. In the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, we find the mysterious mark on the forehead that was traced on persons as a sign of divine protection and as a mark distinguishing the righteous from the wicked. The Prophet Ezekiel had a vision of many leaders in Jerusalem worshipping the sun and other idols in the Temple of the Lord and filling the land with violence (Ezekiel 8). We witnessed that by their infidelity to the Covenant, the city would be punished and the people taken into exile.[5] The righteous ones who would receive a mysterious mark: the Hebrew letter tahv- which had the shape of an X or a cross-would be placed on their foreheads. This spiritual mark was to set them apart from the rest of the corrupt culture and would serve as a sign of divine protection (Ezekiel 9:4-6). Like the blood on the doorposts that protected the Israelite families from God’s punishment on Egypt at the first Passover, this mark on the foreheads in Ezekiel 9 would protect the faithful ones in Jerusalem when judgment fell on the city.[6]

         A similar illustration of the Book of Revelation depicts the saints in heaven as having a seal upon their foreheads (Rv 7:3). As the Book of Ezekiel rightly distinguishes the righteous from the unrighteous, the seal that is spoken of in the Book of Revelation is the sign that will protect the righteous from the coming judgment (Rev. 9:4).[7]

4. Power of the Name of God- As a Catholic makes the sign of the Cross, he invokes the name of God revealed in three divine Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The worship of the One True God is manifested in the Sign of the Cross and the Names of God that are represented by the sign. We have to be reminded that to call on God’s name is a form of worship and is often associated with prayer and sacrifice. In Sacred Scripture, a name is not merely a conventional way of referring to a particular person. A name mysteriously represents the essence of a person and carries the power of that person. Thus, to call on God’s name is to invoke his presence and his power. St. Paul mentioned that Jesus’ name is the name “above every0 other name.” (Phil 2:9)[8]

[1] Edward Sri, A Biblical Walk Through the Mass: Understanding What We Say and Do in the Liturgy (West Chester: Ascension Press, 2011), pp. 17-18.

[2] Richard P. McBrien, Gen. Ed., Encyclopedia of Catholicism (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1989), p.1191.

[3] Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 2157.

[4] Cf. A.G. Martimort, ed. The Church at Prayer, Vol I., “Principles of the Liturgy,” (Collegeville: The Liturgical Press, 1987), p. 185

[5] Cf. Edward Sri, A Biblical Walk Through the Mass: Understanding What We Say and Do in the Liturgy (West Chester: Ascension Press, 2011), p. 19.

[6] Cf. Edward Sri, A Biblical Walk Through the Mass: Understanding What We Say and Do in the Liturgy (West Chester: Ascension Press, 2011), p. 19.

[7] Cf. Edward Sri, A Biblical Walk Through the Mass: Understanding What We Say and Do in the Liturgy (West Chester: Ascension Press, 2011), p. 19.

[8] Cf. Edward Sri, A Biblical Walk Through the Mass: Understanding What We Say and Do in the Liturgy (West Chester: Ascension Press, 2011), pp. 20-22.