THE SIGN OF THE CROSS
The
symbol of Christian faith has ever been and always will be the Cross, for it is
the sign of our redemption by our Lord Jesus Christ who came to earth to suffer
for us and was crucified upon the Cross. When we wish to show that something is
dedicated to Christ, we mark it with a Cross. The Cross is placed on church
buildings, on the Holy Gospel, on banners, on the graves of the departed. When
we join the three fingers of our right hand together, it is as if we wanted to
say: "I believe in God, One in the Trinity; in God the Father, God the Son
and God the Holy Spirit; not in one person, but Three Persons; not in three
gods, but One God." When we bend the other two fingers of our right hand
down to the palm it is as if we were saying: "I believe that our Saviour
Jesus Christ, who is at the same time Real God and Real man - the God-man - came
down to earth for our salvation. "As we make the sign of the Cross, we say
the following prayer: "In
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen", with
which we clearly indicate that we belong to God and serve Him alone. God is
always near us, because He is everywhere. He always sees us, just as He sees
everything. But during prayer, we are especially close to God: we stand before
Him, speak to Him and He listens to us. Because of this, while praying, we sign
ourselves with the Cross more often, especially before and after each prayer. We
also make the Cross upon ourselves when we enter church, approach a sacred
object or kiss an icon, and many times during church services. We should make
the sign of the Cross in the morning to obtain God's blessing on the day; in the
evening to ask for His protection during the night; at all the important moments
of our life: when in danger, in sorrow, in joy; before all important
undertakings that they may turn out well; at mealtime to invoke God's blessing
and to give Him thanks. We must never make the sign of the Cross hurriedly and
carelessly. To those who cross themselves in a hurry, without due deliberation,
or who simply wave their hand fanning their breast, St John Chrysostom says:
"the
demons rejoice in this frantic waving." On the other hand, the Cross traced
correctly, with faith and reverence, dispels demons, calms sinful passions,
attracts Divine Grace and gives us the strength to do good. We must never be
ashamed of the sign of the Cross lest Christ be ashamed of us. We are assured by
Christians of all ages, but especially by those of the first centuries, that we
have at our command a very powerful weapon: the sign of the Cross. Therefore, it
is much to be regretted that we do not make better use of it in our times. Never
did the world array before the children of God enemies so numerous or so
insidious as at the present time. They assail him an every side, not only with
sword and fire, but with false philosophies, with pride of intellect, with
religious indifference, with materialism, with commodity. It is more difficult
for us to combat these enemies for a lifetime, than it was for early Christians
to gain a martyr's glory in a momentary struggle in the amphitheater. If, for
the first Christians, trained in the school of apostles and their immediate
successors, the frequent use of the sign of the Cross was so necessary, is it
not also indispensable to us? Let us then follow the pious custom of our fathers
in the Faith and make the sign of the Cross more frequently. |