Along with church prayer, an Orthodox Christian is given the sign of the cross to help. Performed with sincere faith and heartfelt prayer, it truly can work wonders, which has many documented evidence. Unfortunately, many people, especially at the beginning of their churching, make the sign of the cross incorrectly and do not understand its meaning at all. So how do Orthodox believers need to be baptized correctly?
Symbolism of the cross banner
In Orthodoxy, all actions are filled with deep meaning and always have a symbolic meaning. And, of course, the sign of the cross in particular. Orthodox Christians, along with representatives of some other Christian denominations, believe that by signing themselves with the cross, they drive away all unclean spirits and protect themselves from evil.
How to be baptized
In order to cross yourself, you need to fold the three fingers of your right hand into a pinch, and press the remaining two fingers to the inside of the palm. This position of the fingers is not accidental - it tells us about the nature of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, of his own free will, suffered for the salvation of every person. Three folded fingers together - this is the trinity of God in the Holy Trinity (God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit). The Trinity is one, but at the same time it has three separate incarnations. Two fingers pressed to the hand testify to the dual origin of Christ - he is both God and man.
In order to cross correctly, a person first brings his hand to his forehead and says “In the name of the Father”, then the hand falls on the stomach with the words “And the Son”, then comes the right shoulder “And the Holy One” and the left shoulder “Spirit”. At the end, a bow is made and the word "Amen" is pronounced.
This formulation, again, reveals the nature of God. All three hypostases of the Holy Trinity are mentioned, and the word "Amen" at the end affirms the truth of the Divine Trinity.
In itself, the imposition of the sign of the cross on a person symbolizes the Cross of the Lord, on which he was crucified. By His crucifixion, death and resurrection from the dead, our Lord Jesus Christ made the instrument of shameful execution an instrument for the salvation of human souls. That is why Orthodox Christians have long used this gesture as a symbol of participation in the death of the Lord, and then His resurrection.
About the Lord Jesus Christ:
History reference
The banner of the cross has been used by Christians from the very beginning of the birth of faith. After the Resurrection of Christ, the first confessors of the faith put on themselves the symbol of the instrument of his execution with one finger, as if wishing to show their readiness to be also crucified for the Lord.
Later, at various periods of time, there were customs to be baptized with several fingers, as well as with the whole palm. At the same time, they touched the eyes, lips, forehead - the main human senses, in order to sanctify them.
Important! With the spread of the Orthodox faith among Christians, it became customary to be baptized with two fingers of the right hand, overshadowing the forehead, stomach and shoulders.
Around the 16th century, the practice of covering the chest instead of the stomach spread, since it is in the chest that the heart is located. A century later, the rule was formed and consolidated to be baptized with three fingers of the right hand, putting them again on the stomach, instead of the chest. It is this method that is used by the Orthodox to this day.
Interesting! Adherents of the old rite of church worship (Old Believers) still practice double-fingered application.
Where and how to use the sign of the cross
Everyone who considers himself a believing Christian should treat the banner of the cross with great reverence. In addition to great help, it also carries a deep spiritual meaning. By overshadowing himself with the cross, a person shows his will to be a partaker of our Lord Jesus Christ in his death, and then in the Resurrection.
sign of the cross
Based on this, one should always be baptized attentively and with prayer. If this happens at a service in a church, all prayers and significant parts of the service begin and end with the sign of the cross. It is also customary to be baptized at the mention of the names of the Lord God, the Most Holy Theotokos, saints.
Which hand is the right one to be baptized and how to be baptized correctly - from left to right or from right to left? How to fold your fingers correctly? Why is it necessary to be baptized and is it necessary to do this before entering the temple?
The essence of the sign of the cross, why is it necessary to be baptized?
In the sign of the cross for a believer, several essences are combined: religious, spiritual-mystical and psychological.
Religious essence consists in the fact that, by making the sign of the cross, a person shows that he is a Christian and lives with Christ; that he is part of the Christian community, appreciates its traditions and cherishes them. That he remembers and keeps in his heart the whole earthly life of Christ - from His first to the last day - and tries to match it to the best of his ability. That honors and tries to live according to the commandments that were given by Christ.
Spiritual and mystical essence lies in the fact that the sign of the cross itself has life-giving power - protecting the one who is baptized and sanctifying him. The cross is a spiritual image that a person puts on himself, “overshadows” himself with it - makes himself similar to Christ in the degree of his faith. Therefore, Christians have a reverent attitude towards the sign of the cross, and they try to be baptized not hastily, “fusily”, but with giving an account.
At the same time, when it is said that the sign of the cross has a certain "mystical" essence, it does not mean that the cross is a "mathematical" formula - such as an Indian mantra, or the rituals of magicians - which begins to "act" from a simple repetition of a set of actions or words. In an inexplicable way for human understanding, the cross sanctifies everyone who is baptized, but at the same time, everyone is “rewarded according to his faith” ...
The sign of the cross is a prayer and the attitude towards it should be appropriate.
Emotional-psychological essence sign of the cross lies in the fact that a believer unconsciously begins to be baptized when he is “used” (at certain moments of the service), or at those moments when he wants to gather himself inwardly (before an important deed, before a secret step), or simply when he experiences psychological fear of something. Or vice versa - we are filled with joy and gratitude to God. Then the hand "begins to be baptized by itself."
With what hand and how correctly should the Orthodox be baptized?
In the Orthodox tradition, you need to be baptized with your right hand - regardless of whether you are right-handed or left-handed.
The order is: forehead - stomach - right - then left shoulder.
You can “shrink” the sign of the cross (not the stomach, but the chest) - for example, in situations where there are non-believers around, you want to cross yourself, but you try to do it “imperceptibly”.
The main thing is not to make the cross "inside oneself" smaller, always remember its greatness, importance and strength.
How to fold your fingers correctly (photo)
The Orthodox tradition says that the fingers should be folded like this: the thumb, middle and index are brought together - this symbolizes the Holy Trinity - and the ring finger and little finger are pressed against the palm.
Is it possible to be baptized in some other way or, for example, with two fingers or from left to right? No - in the Orthodox Church it is customary to be baptized with three fingers from right to left, and you need to do this - without reasoning. Even if we assume that the number of fingers is a convention and an earthly institution (referring to the fact that the Old Believers are still baptized with two, as all Orthodox in Russia once did), the very violation of tradition brings more spiritual harm to a person than good.
A page from the pre-revolutionary book "The Law of God", which tells about how to properly fold your fingers during the sign of the cross, and what it all symbolizes.
Do I need to be baptized before entering the temple or passing through the temple?
When entering the temple, it is customary to be baptized. For a person who is just getting acquainted with religion, this may seem like an artificial rule (like “must”), but over time it becomes natural and even a need to “gather” inwardly, overshadow oneself with Christ’s symbol and power, pay tribute to the temple in which ordinances are performed.
As for the situation when you just see the temple and pass by it, then a person should rely on his feelings and there are no rules. There are people who overshadow themselves with a sign every time they see the domes of the temple. There are those who do not do this, but at the same time in life they will be no less a model of a Christian.
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In 1656 in Moscow, already in connection with the church reform, the book “Table” was published, in which was placed, translated from Greek from the book “Treasure” (Θησαυρός) of the middle of the 16th century, the work of Damascus monk, subdeacon and Studite “Word in veneration of the honest and life-giving Cross, which is spoken of on the third Week of Holy Fasts, ”it says that one must be baptized with three fingers, and the mark of the cross must be done on the forehead, on the stomach (church-glory. womb, other Greek. κοιλία ), on the right shoulder, on the left shoulder: " great finger, and other ꙋгі́ѧ twò with ꙋ́шаѧ near є҆гѡ̀. the same first, let him put the youth on his head, the second on his belly, the third on the right frame, and the fourth on the left frame»
The more ancient, but less commonly used "two-finger" is used in the "old rite" of worship in the Edinoverie and Old Believers. At present, the use of two-finger is not forbidden in the Russian Orthodox Church, where "three-finger" and "nominal finger-composition", used when blessing priests and bishops, have become more common.
double-fingered
double-fingered (also bifidity) was adopted together with the Baptism of Russia and prevailed until the reforms of Patriarch Nikon in the middle of the 17th century and was officially recognized in Moscow Russia by the Stoglavy Cathedral. It was practiced until the middle of the XIII century and in the Greek East (Constantinople). Later it was supplanted by tripartite.
Two-fingeredness was officially condemned in the Russian Church at the Local Councils: the Council of 1656 and at the Great Moscow Cathedral, all those baptized with two-fingered were proclaimed heretics and anathematized, that is, they were excommunicated from the church and subjected to the most severe persecution. At the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1971, all pre-Nikonian Russian rites, including the ancient two-fingered sign of the cross, were recognized as Orthodox, and it is customary to consider anathemas against them “as if they had not been.”
When making double fingers, two fingers of the right hand - index and middle - are connected together, symbolizing the two natures of the one Christ, while the middle finger turns out to be slightly bent, which means divine indulgence and incarnation. The three remaining fingers are also connected together, symbolizing the Holy Trinity; moreover, in modern practice, the end of the thumb rests on the pads of the other two, which cover it from above. After that, with the tips of two fingers (and only them) they sequentially touch the forehead, abdomen or lower part of the perseus (chest), right and left shoulder. It is emphasized that it is impossible to be baptized at the same time as bowing; the bow, if required, should be done after the hand has been lowered.
The ancient rite does not use three fingers, it is believed that the image of the cross with three fingers in honor of the Holy Trinity is symbolically incorrect, because Jesus Christ was crucified and suffered on the Cross with a created soul and body, and not the whole Trinity with divine nature.
Three fingers put together symbolize the Holy Trinity; the symbolic meaning of the other two fingers could be different at different times. So, originally among the Greeks, they did not mean anything at all. Later, in Russia, under the influence of a controversy with the Old Believers (who claimed that “the Nikonians abolished Christ from the cross of Christ”), these two fingers were rethought as a symbol of the two natures of Christ: Divine and human. This interpretation is now the most common, although there are others (for example, in the Romanian Church, these two fingers are interpreted as a symbol of Adam and Eve falling to the Trinity).
The hand, depicting a cross, first touches the right shoulder, then the left, which symbolizes the traditional for Christianity opposition of the right side as the place of the saved and the left side as the place of the perishing (see Matt.). Thus, raising his hand first to the right, then to the left shoulder, the Christian asks to be included in the fate of the saved and to be delivered from the fate of the perishing.
Nominal Composition
An Orthodox priest, blessing people or objects, folds his fingers into a special signet, called nominative. It is believed that fingers folded in this way depict the letters ІСХС, from which you then need to add ІС ХС and mentally add a title to get the name Jesus Christ- І͠С Х͠С ( Ιησούς Χριστός ) in ancient Greek writing. When blessing, the hand, when drawing the transverse line of the cross, is first led to the left (relative to the one who gives the blessing), then to the right, that is, in a person blessed in this way, the right shoulder is first blessed, then the left. The bishop has the right to teach the blessing with both hands at once.
In Orthodox iconography, the hand folded into the sign of the cross is a common element. Usually clergy are depicted in this way with their hand raised for blessing, but sometimes the sign of the cross as a symbol of confession of their faith is also depicted on the icons of saints without holy orders. Usually saints are depicted with two fingers or with nominative numerals, extremely rarely - with three fingers.
Catholicism
In Catholicism, in contrast to Orthodoxy, there have never been such conflicts regarding the addition of fingers during the sign of the cross, as, for example, in the Russian Church, there are various variants of it at the present time. So, Catholic prayer books, speaking of the sign of the cross, usually cite only the prayer that is said at the same time (lat. In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti - "In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit"), without saying anything about the combination of fingers. Even Catholic traditionalists, who are usually quite strict about the rite and its symbolism, allow the existence of various options here. The most accepted and widespread option in the Catholic world is the sign of the cross with five fingers, open palm, from left to right, in memory of the five wounds on the body of Christ.
When a Catholic makes the sign of the cross for the first time, entering the temple, he first dips his fingertips in a special bowl of holy water. This gesture, apparently an echo of the ancient custom of washing hands before the celebration of the Eucharist, was later reinterpreted as a rite performed in memory of the sacrament of Baptism. Some Catholics perform such a ceremony at home, before the start of home prayer.
The priest, blessing, uses the same sign of the cross as with the sign of the cross.
In addition to the usual large cross, the small cross was preserved in the Latin rite as a remnant of ancient practice. It is performed during the Mass, before the reading of the Gospel, when the clergy and those praying with the thumb of their right hand depict three small crosses on their foreheads, lips and heart.
For a Catholic, making the sign of the cross - in any form, in any rite - means, first of all, the proclamation of belonging to Christ. Thomas Aquinas wrote: "The sign of the Cross is a sign of the Passion of Christ, which we make not just for sanctification or blessing, but to confess our faith in the power of the Passion of the Lord."
Notes
- Dyachenko, Grigory Mikhailovich. - S. 329.
- , with. 329: “By the stretch of the long and the middle, having come together two natures in Christ, that is, we confess the Savior of Christ Himself to be perfect God, and perfect man in two essence and nature, believed and known. By placing the finger on the forehead, we confess two of these, as if from God and the Father were born, as our word comes from the mind, and as if from above, from below, according to the Divine word, bow the heavens and from below. And by the position of the fingers on the navel, the hedgehog's removal to the earth, the hedgehog in the Most Pure Womb of the Mother of God, his unchanging conception, and the nine-month dwelling, we clearly proclaim. And by encircling the whole hand from there to the right hand and to the left country, we clearly form those who want to wear out a bitter answer from the righteous, standing at the right hand of the Judge, to the ungodly and sinners, according to the Divine voice of the Savior, speaking to the opposing and unrepentant Jews.
- Manuscript 201. Maximus the Greek compositions (indefinite) . Library of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. old.stsl.ru. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- English: Maxim the Greek "A fairy tale, how to be marked by the sign of the cross." (indefinite) (March 26, 2014). Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- : “Lay the first on the forehead, the same on the chest, that is, on the heart, and then on the right shoulder, the same on the left shoulder, that is, the true imagination of the sign of the cross.”
- (Russian). Wikisource. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
“Every time you protect yourself with the sign of the cross, be filled with great boldness and offer yourself entirely as a pleasing sacrifice to God.” Saint John Chrysostom.
From early childhood until death, a believing Christian wears on himself, on his chest, a cross as a sign of Christ's victory, protection and strength. Every day, during morning and evening prayers, during divine services and before eating food, before the beginning of the teaching and at the end of it, we impose on ourselves the sign of the Honorable and Life-Giving Cross of Christ. A Christian begins the day with the sign of the cross, and with the sign of the cross he goes to sleep, ending the day.
What does the sign of the cross symbolize and under what circumstances did the image of the cross appear?
The Sign of the Cross is a small sacred ceremony in which a Christian, depicting on himself the sign of the Cross of the Lord with the invocation of the Name of God, attracts the Divine Grace of the Holy Spirit.
The cross is the main symbol of Christianity, which is the instrument of execution of the God-man Jesus Christ, on which he was crucified to atone for the sins of the world. It seems to people far from the Church that Christians worship the cross - the instrument of execution. This is a superficial view, we worship the cross not as a symbol of death, but as a symbol of eternal life - the life-giving Cross - because Christ, subjected to a painful execution on the cross, redeemed us from ancient sin by his sufferings and gave us eternal life.
On the Cross we see the God-Man Crucified. But Life Itself mysteriously abides in the Crucifixion, just as many future ears are hidden in a grain of wheat. Therefore, the Cross of the Lord is revered by Christians as a "life-giving tree", that is, a tree that gives life. Without the Crucifixion, there would be no Resurrection of Christ, and therefore the Cross turned from an instrument of execution into a shrine in which the Grace of God operates.
Thus, the sign of the cross is an image of human salvation sanctified by Divine grace, leading us to its Prototype - to the crucified God-Man, who accepted death on the cross for the sake of redeeming the human race from the power of sin and death.
The history of the development of the sign of the cross originates from the Old Testament times. When Jerusalem and the Temple built by Solomon were burned to the ground by the soldiers of King Nebuchadnezzar, and most of the inhabitants of Judea were driven to Babylonia, the Old Testament Church was shocked by the tragedy that befell her. Under the influence of the experience of tragedy in the Old Testament Church, a custom arises during prayer at moments of greatest tension to run a finger across your forehead, depicting the last letter of the alphabet ת (taf), which was a conditional inscription of the name of God. This movement of the finger on the forehead is a manifestation of the prayer that the angel of the Lord put a sign on the forehead of the one who prays, in accordance with the prophecy of Ezekiel: made in his midst, make a sign” (Ezekiel 9:4)
When the Old Testament Church was introduced by the Lord God in the New Testament period, the custom, during prayer, at moments of greatest tension, to run your finger across your forehead, depicting the last letter of the alphabet ת (taf), did not disappear, because for Christians to have the inscription of the name of God on the forehead meant sign of belonging to God's chosen ones. In Revelation, the Apostle John the Theologian writes: “And I looked, and, behold, a Lamb stood on Mount Zion, and with him a hundred and forty-four thousand, having the name of His Father written on their foreheads” (Rev. 14:1)
What is the name of God and how can it be depicted on the forehead? According to the ancient Jewish tradition, the name of God was symbolically imprinted with the first and last letters of the Jewish alphabet, which were “alef” and “tav”.
The meaning of this image lies in the fact that a person depicting the name of God on his forehead - he outwardly shows his devotion to God. Over time, in order to simplify this symbolic action, the Jews began to depict only the letter “tav”. It is noteworthy that the study of the manuscripts of that era showed that in the Jewish writing of the turn of the eras, the capital “tav” had the shape of a small cross. This small cross meant the name of God. In fact, for a Christian of that era, the image of the cross on his forehead meant, as in Judaism, the dedication of his entire life to God. Moreover, the imposition of a cross on the forehead already resembled not so much the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet, but rather the Savior's sacrifice on the cross. When the Christian Church finally freed itself from Jewish influence, then the understanding of the sign of the cross as an image through the letter “tav” of the name of God was lost. The main semantic emphasis was placed on the display of the Cross of Christ. Forgetting about the first meaning, Christians of later eras filled the sign of the Cross with new meaning and content. The sign of the cross is an outward confession of one's faith in Christ crucified (1 Cor. 2:2; 2 Tim. 1:8). It should be noted that for the persecutors of Christians in the first centuries, the sign of the cross served as the main distinguishing feature by which they recognized a familiar person as a Christian. In one of the acts of martyrdom, a pagan of the first centuries said: “I know that they are Christians because they make the sign of the cross on their foreheads every minute.”
At the end of the third century, the famous Carthaginian church teacher Tertullian wrote: “At every coming and going, when dressing and putting on shoes, at baths, at tables, at lamps, on beds and seats, and at every deed, we draw the sign of the cross on our foreheads.” A century after Tertullian, Saint John Chrysostom wrote the following: "Never leave your house without crossing yourself."
As we can see, the sign of the cross has come down to us from time immemorial, and our daily worship of God is inconceivable without it. In the history of the Christian Church, there were three forms of finger composition: one-finger, two-finger and three-finger.
Approximately by the 4th century, Christians began to overshadow their entire body with a cross, i.e. the well-known "wide cross" appeared. However, the imposition of the sign of the cross at this time was still preserved with one finger. In the 9th century, one-fingeredness gradually began to be replaced by two-fingeredness, which was due to the wide spread of the heresy of Monophysitism in the Middle East and Egypt. When the heresy of the Monophysites appeared (those who reject human nature in Jesus Christ), they used the hitherto used form of finger-composition - single-fingeredness to propagate their teaching, since they saw in single-fingeredness a symbolic expression of their doctrine of the one nature in Christ. Then the Orthodox, contrary to the Monophysites, began to use two fingers in the sign of the cross, as a symbolic expression of the Orthodox teaching about the two natures in Christ. It so happened that the one-finger in the sign of the cross began to serve as an external, visual sign of Monophysitism, and the two-finger - Orthodoxy. In this way, the Church once again inserted deep doctrinal truths into the external forms of worship of God.
Around the 12th century, in the Greek-speaking Local Orthodox Churches (Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem and Cyprus), the two-finger was replaced by the three-finger. The reason for this was seen in the following. Since by the 12th century the struggle with the Monophysites had already ended, the double-fingeredness lost its demonstrative and polemical character. However, double-fingering made Orthodox Christians related to the Nestorians, who also used double-fingeredness. Desiring to make a change in the external form of their worship of God, the Orthodox Greeks began to overshadow themselves with the sign of the cross with three fingers, thereby emphasizing their veneration of the Most Holy Trinity. In Russia, as already noted, the three-finger was introduced in the 17th century during the reforms of Patriarch Nikon.
Every believing Christian, making the sign of the cross, must know the true meaning of the three fingers. The first three fingers put together express our faith in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit as a consubstantial and inseparable Trinity, and the two fingers bent to the palm mean the two natures of Jesus Christ: Divine and human, because. The Son of God, after His incarnation, being God, became at the same time a man. Signing ourselves with the sign of the cross, we touch our forehead with three fingers folded together to sanctify our mind, to the stomach - to sanctify our inner feelings (heart), then to the right, then left shoulders - to sanctify our bodily forces.
About those who signify themselves with the whole five, or bow before they have finished the cross, or wave their hand in the air or on their chest, St. John Chrysostom said: “Demons rejoice at this frantic waving.” On the contrary, the sign of the cross, performed correctly and slowly, with faith and reverence, frightens demons, calms sinful passions and calls on Divine grace. By the indescribable goodness of the Savior, in the power of the sign of the Cross, we have been granted a powerful weapon against all our enemies, visible and invisible. On the basis of centuries of experience in the manifestation of this miraculous power of the Cross of the Lord, Orthodox Christians have always expressed and continue to express their faith in the power of the life-giving Cross in the fact that they crown their churches, mark their dwellings, bless their children, wear it on their chests and incessantly use the sign of the cross in prayer. Unfortunately, many Orthodox Christians do not know the meaning of the sign of the cross, they use it carelessly and incorrectly, and some very often abandon its use in necessary cases. Our pious ancestors, according to the tradition of the Church, used the sign of the cross in all cases of their lives, at the entrance to the house and at the exit, at the beginning of the work and the end, when they sat down for a meal and when they got up because of it, when they went to bed and when they woke up, also with unexpected joy or with sudden misfortune; never passed by the holy icons and churches of God without crossing themselves.
If you delve into the meaning of the sign of the cross, it will be clear that this is not such an external rite that can be arbitrarily violated or changed. No, the sign of the cross is a sacred symbol of our faith, and in it, according to the explanation of the holy fathers, the whole of Christianity is abbreviated. Why do we sign ourselves with the cross when we pray? Why are we not limited to other prayer signs, such as raising our eyes to heaven, raising our hands, striking ourselves on the chest? The use of the sign of the cross is of particular importance. By the sign of the cross we express faith in the redemptive merits of the Lord Jesus Christ, the only Divine Intercessor and Mediator, without whom our prayer could never ascend to the throne of God.
Combining our prayer with the sign of the cross, we do not rely on ourselves, we do not ask God for the sake of our own merits, but for the sake of the merits of the cross of Christ the Savior and for His name. The Lord undoubtedly accepts such a prayer, as the Savior Himself said: “Whatever you ask of the Father in My name, he will give it to you” (Jn 16:23), if only our sign of the cross is not only an outward movement of the hand, but an expression of inner heartfelt faith in the Divine intercession of Jesus Christ. The sign of the cross is not only part of a religious ceremony. First of all, it is a great weapon. Patericons and the lives of the saints contain many examples that testify to the real spiritual power that the image of the Cross possesses.
The Monk Benedict of Nursia (480-543), for his strict life, was elected in 510 hegumen of the Vicovaro cave monastery. Saint Benedict ruled the monastery with zeal. Strictly observing the charter of fasting life, he did not allow anyone to live according to his will, so that the monks began to repent that they had chosen such an abbot for themselves, who did not at all suit their corrupted morals. Some decided to poison him. They mixed poison with wine and gave the abbot to drink during dinner. The saint made the sign of the cross over the cup, and the vessel was immediately broken by the power of the holy cross, as if struck by a stone. Then the man of God knew that the cup was deadly, for it could not bear the life-giving cross.”
Thus, the sign of the Holy and Life-Giving Cross of the Lord is a special sign for us, through which the Lord sends us His Divine blessing and grace, therefore this sign requires a deep, thoughtful and reverent attitude from us.
The ecumenical teacher of the Church, St. John Chrysostom, exhorts us to think about this with the following words: “The cross is a symbol of a Divine gift, a sign of spiritual nobility, a treasure that cannot be stolen, a gift that cannot be taken away, this is the foundation of holiness.”
Cross! This short word pierces, shakes to the innermost depths the soul of a Christian. To look at the Cross of Christ with the spiritual eyes of faith means to look at the mysterious Altar, where the Divine Lamb was slain as a Sacrifice for the sins of the world, Who with His Most Pure Blood reconciled us, who were once alienated and enemies (Col. 1:21). Christ conquered the world of sin, the world of spiritual darkness. We have in our hands a great and powerful weapon, given by Christ - His Cross is a sign of our faith, the eternal and all-perfect victory of good over evil, light over darkness. This is the true beauty of the Church, this is the weapon of the world, an invincible victory!
Priest Vladimir Kashlyuk
ABOUT THE SIGN OF THE CROSS AND THE CROSS
P Why is it important to make the sign of the cross?
Making the sign of the Cross on himself, a Christian, firstly, brings to mind that he is called to follow the footsteps of Christ, enduring in the name of Christ sorrows and hardships for his faith; secondly, he is strengthened by the power of the Cross of Christ to fight evil in himself and in the world; and thirdly, he confesses that he is waiting for the manifestation of the glory of Christ, the Second Coming of the Lord, which itself will be preceded by the appearance in heaven of the sign of the Son of Man, according to the Divine words of the Lord Himself (Matt. 24:30): this sign, according to the unanimous understanding of the Fathers Church, there will be a majestic appearance in the sky of the Cross.
How to overshadow yourself with the sign of the cross?
According to the tradition currently accepted by the Russian Orthodox Church, partsy can be folded in two ways to make the sign of the cross:
1) Three-fingered - the first three fingers (thumb, index and middle) of the right hand are put together, and the last two (ring and little fingers) are pressed to the palm; baptized with folded three fingers.
2) Double-fingered (so they were baptized until the 17th century) - the first two fingers (index and middle) are pressed against each other and pulled out, slightly bending the middle finger, and the other three (thumb, ring and little fingers) are folded together; baptized with outstretched two fingers.
Making the sign of the cross, the folded fingers are placed first on the forehead - to sanctify the mind, then on the womb (stomach) - to sanctify the inner feelings, then on the right and left shoulders - to sanctify the bodily forces. Lowering the hand, make a bow. In this way they depict the Calvary Cross on themselves and worship it.
The lower end of the cross cannot be placed on the chest, since in this case an inverted cross is obtained - its lower end becomes shorter than the upper one. The sign of the cross must be performed meaningfully and with a prayerful invocation of the Lord.
You can’t make the sign of the cross hastily, carelessly, without touching your forehead with your fingers, but only making a movement with your hand in its direction. “Cursed is he who does the work of the Lord negligently” (Jeremiah 48:10).
About those who signify themselves with the whole five, or bow before they have finished the cross, or wave their hand in the air or on the chest, St. JohnZlatoust said: “The demons rejoice at this frantic wave” . On the contrary, the sign of the cross, performed correctly and slowly, with faith and reverence, frightens demons, calms sinful passions and attracts Divine grace.
What is the meaning of the sign of the cross?
The sign of the cross, which is placed on oneself or depicted on oneself with a movement of the hand, is a silent, but open, confession of faith.
The first three fingers put together express faith in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit as a Consubstantial and Inseparable Trinity, and two fingers bent to the palm mean that the Son of God, after descending to earth, became a Man, being God, that is, it expresses two natures Jesus Christ - Divine and human.
The sign of the cross reminds:
About the fact that the Son of God laid down His soul on the Cross in order to redeem the human race from sin and eternal death, therefore everyone should strive to lay down his soul for his brothers. In other words, the sign of the cross recalls the infinite love of God for the human race and the duty of love of each person to God and to each other;
Secondly, about the insignificance of everything temporary, perishable and about the greatness of the blessings prepared for believers by the love of the Crucified for them in the Kingdom of Heaven;
Thirdly, about the unity of all Christians redeemed by the Cross;
Fourthly, about the unceasing grace-filled omnipresence of the Lord and about His omnipotent power;
And, fifthly, about the undoubted fulfillment of all the promises of the Redeemer, which are contained in the Gospel.
What power does the image of the sign of the cross have on itself?
The sign of the cross gives the soul strength and strength to drive away and overcome evil and do good. And this, of course, in the event that they make the sign of the cross with faith, reverence and attention.
The power of the sign of the cross is extraordinarily great. In the lives of the saints, there are often stories about how demonic spells dissipated after being overshadowed by the cross. Therefore, those who are baptized carelessly, fussily and inattentively, simply please the demons.
When should you make the sign of the cross?
The sign of the cross symbolizes the invocation of the name of God, and therefore it is usually performed with the words: “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” or at any other beginning of prayer. It also symbolizes the doxology of God and is performed with the words: “Glory to the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit” or any other doxology and at the end of the prayer.
So, one should make the sign of the cross at the beginning of the prayer, during the prayer and after it, as well as when approaching everything holy: at the entrance to the temple, when kissing the cross, icons, holy relics. Believers are baptized before the start of any work and after its completion, before and after eating, before leaving the house and at the entrance to the house, in moments of danger, in grief, in joy, and in many other situations.
The Sign of the Cross sanctifies all the Divine Mysteries, and it also sanctifies every thing necessary for life.
It is not difficult to find many suitable books and pamphlets on this subject in Orthodox shops and church shops today.
You can offer the book "Interpretation of the Canon on the Exaltation of the Honorable and Life-Giving Cross of the Lord", the creation of St. Cosmas, compiled by Nicodemus the Holy Mountaineer. Translation from Greek, edited by Professor I.N. Korsunsky.
Why is it necessary to wear a pectoral cross?
Orthodox Christians must necessarily wear a cross so as not to deviate from the most ancient Christian tradition. When the Sacrament of Baptism is performed on a person, the cross is put on by the hand of the priest, and the worldly hand should not dare to take it off.
The cross is a material evidence of a person's belonging to the Church of Christ. At the same time, it is a sharp weapon in the spiritual struggle: “Let us mark the life-giving cross on our doors, and on the forehead, and on the lips, and on the lips, and on every member of ours, and arm ourselves with this invincible Christian weapon, the conqueror of death, the hope of the faithful, the light to the ends of the earth, the weapon that opens paradise, casting down heresies, the affirmation of faith, the great storehouse and saving praise of the Orthodox. We, Christians, will carry this weapon with us in every place, day and night, at every hour and at every minute. Do nothing without it; whether you sleep, get up from sleep, work, eat, drink, are on the road, sail on the sea, cross the river - adorn all your members with the life-giving cross, and evil will not come to you, and the wound will not approach your body ( Ps. 90:10) ”(Reverend Ephraim the Syrian).
The meaning of wearing a cross is revealed in the words of the Apostle Paul: “I have been crucified with Christ” (Gal. 2:19).
What to choose a cross - gold or silver?
But the main thing is to wear the cross meaningfully, with faith, without taking it off.
Is it possible to wear an unconsecrated cross?
Can. St. John Chrysostom writes that demons bypass the place where just two sticks (twigs) fell from a tree and lay down cross-shaped. But it is customary to consecrate pectoral crosses in the church.
Is it possible to wear a cross on a chain?
There is no fundamental difference between a chain and a braid. It is important that the cross is firmly held.
Is it possible to wear the cross that my sister wore if she bought a new one?
Can. The cross is a sacred thing, a symbol of salvation, no matter who wore it.
Is it possible to wear a cross and a zodiac sign on the same chain?
-‘ The pectoral cross is a sign of belonging to the Church of Christ, and the signs of the zodiac, amulets, amulets are evidence of adherence to various superstitions, so you can’t wear them at all. “What does light have in common with darkness? What agreement is there between Christ and Belial? Or what is the partnership of the faithful with the unbelievers? What is the compatibility of the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God, as God said, I will dwell in them and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (2 Cor. 6:14-16).
Do I need to remove the cross when washing in the bath?
The cross accompanies a person all his life. You can only replace it if necessary. You can put on a consecrated wooden cross for an operation or a bath.
A person who takes off his pectoral cross or does not wear it at all after Baptism suffers from lack of faith and the absence of a real church consciousness. About an immoral person in Russia they said: "There is no cross on him." Sometimes one glance at the holy cross is enough to clear a clouded memory and awaken a faded conscience in the soul.
Should Orthodox believers venerate a four-pointed cross or only an eight-pointed one?
The Orthodox Church equally reveres both the eight-pointed and the four-pointed cross as an instrument of the suffering of Christ the Savior. The shape of the cross is not a dogmatic issue, but a historical and aesthetic one.
It is the Old Believers who claim that only the eight-pointed cross, that is, consisting of a straight tree, a transverse tree, a foot and a plaque with an inscription, is called the true and life-giving cross of Christ. The four-pointed cross is not the true Christ, but heretical, Latin.
But such a teaching of the Old Believers is completely inconsistent with the teaching of the Fathers of the Church, who clearly testify that the four-pointed cross is the true cross of Christ. So, St. Ephraim the Syrian calls the cross that we put on ourselves, which means four-pointed, life-giving. Unfairly, the Old Believers claim that Christ was crucified on an eight-pointed cross, since it is known that the plaque with the inscription "Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews" was placed by Pilate after the moment of the crucifixion. This means that the Savior was crucified on a six-pointed cross.
Material monuments also testify against the Old Believer opinion about the four-pointed cross. So, in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, a Byzantine-made four-pointed copper cross of St. Mark the Cave (XI century) is kept. Under the seal and the image of the four-pointed cross, all the sacraments are performed. Many priests wear on their chests not an eight-pointed, but a four-pointed cross. And the Old Believers themselves, when they pray, depict a four-pointed cross on themselves.
Honoring the four-pointed and eight-pointed cross, the Orthodox Church venerates not two crosses, but one cross of the Lord, as, for example, venerating the full and half-length image of Christ the Savior, honors One Savior.
Any cross: four-pointed, six-pointed or eight-pointed, made of wood, metal or any other material is revered not for its appearance or material, but is revered as an image and symbol of Christ's Suffering. “For whenever there is a sign, there He Himself will be” (St. John of Damascus).
How to distinguish an Orthodox cross from a Catholic one?
According to church tradition, an Orthodox cross can be eight-pointed and four-pointed; Catholic - usually four-pointed with a more elongated vertical crossbar, with or without the image of the Crucified. The image of Jesus Christ on it is also distinctive. On Catholic crosses with a crucifixion, the body of Jesus Christ is depicted as heavily sagging and with legs nailed to the cross with one nail. On Orthodox crosses, the feet of Christ are nailed with two nails, each separately. Above was placed a tablet with the inscription: Jesus of Nazarene King of the Jews. On the Orthodox crucifix there are capital Slavonic letters: IНЦI, on the Catholic Latin: INRI (Iesus Nazareus Rex Iudaorum). On the back of Orthodox pectoral crosses, according to tradition, an inscription is made "Bless and save". These outwardly distinctive forms of Orthodox and Catholic crosses do not have a fundamental difference, being a reflection of different church traditions.
Is it possible to raise a cross found on the street and what to do with it?
A cross found on the street must definitely be raised, since it is a shrine, and it should not be trampled under foot. The found cross can be taken to the Church or consecrated and worn if one does not have one, or given to the one who will wear it.
