sign of the cross

The small sign of the cross was originally made in some parts of the Christian world with the thumb of the right hand, being used on the forehead to bless oneself, along with being used to bless various objects, as attested by Tertullian, an Ante-Nicene Church Father.[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13785a.htm Thurston, Herbert. "Sign of the Cross." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 20 Jan. 2015] In other parts of the early Christian world it was done with the whole hand or with two fingers.Andreas Andreopoulos, The Sign of the Cross, Paraclete Press, 2006, {{ISBN|978-1-55725-496-2}}, p. 24. Around the year 200 in Carthage (modern Tunisia, Africa), Tertullian wrote: "We Christians wear out our foreheads with the sign of the cross."[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04517a.htm Marucchi, Orazio. "Archæology of the Cross and Crucifix." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 4. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1908. 20 Jan. 2015] He documented that Christians would trace the sign of the cross on their beds prior to sleeping. In the 4th century, the small sign of the cross was applied to various parts of the body. The 6th century saw the development of the large sign of the cross as a "four-point movement traced across the chest or in the air".{{cite book |last1=Couchman |first1=Judith |title=The Mystery of the Cross: Bringing Ancient Christian Images to Life |date=5 March 2010 |publisher=InterVarsity Press |isbn=978-0-8308-7917-5 |page=88 |language=en}}

Hippolytus of Rome, in his Apostolic Tradition, recommends sealing oneself the forehead in times of temptation, with it being described as the "Sign of the Passion." Vestiges of this early variant of the practice remain: in the Masses of the Roman Rite in the Catholic Church, the Lutheran Churches and the Anglican Churches, the celebrant makes this gesture on the Gospel book and—together with the congregation—on his forehead, lips, and on his heart at the proclamation of the Gospel (known as the lesser sign of the cross);{{cite web |last1=Ballmann |first1=Matthew |title=The Triumph of the Holy Cross |url=https://www.trinitysa.org/blog/2023/9/12/the-triumph-of-the-holy-cross |publisher=Trinity San Antonio Lutheran Church |date=13 September 2023 |quote=The identity and relevance of Christianity are both irrevocably tied up with the crucified Christ. The Cross — because of what it represents — is the most potent and universal symbol of the Christian faith. It has inspired both liturgical and private devotions: for example, the Sign of the Cross, which is an invocation of the Holy Trinity; a processional cross as the centering piece to the Divine Service; the “little” Sign of the Cross on head, lips and heart at the reading of the Gospel; or praying the Stations (or Way) of the Cross during the Lenten season.}} on Ash Wednesday the small sign of the cross is traced in ashes on the forehead; chrism is applied, among places on the body, on the forehead for the Holy Mystery of Chrismation in the Eastern Orthodox Church.

The actual motion of the large sign of the cross is heavily disputed, the Byzantine orthodox states the right to left motion to be the more ancient way whereas writings by Bar Salibi and other Syriac prose writers show that the left to right motion predates the right to left signage.{{Cite web |date=2011-12-28 |title=which sign of the cross is correct? |url=https://tasbeha.org/community/discussion/12737/which-sign-of-the-cross-is-correct |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=Tasbeha.org Community}} Western Catholics (the Latin Church) have made the motion from left to right, while Eastern Catholics follow the traditional signage of right to left.Daniel A. Helminiak, Religion and the Human Sciences: An Approach Via Spirituality (State University of New York Press (Albany, N.Y.: 1998). This gesture was also used in Western Europe into the high Middle Ages.Ælfric, Lives of Saints, II. 154–5, quoted by Kirsty Teresa March, Performance, Transmission and Devotion: Understanding the Anglo-Saxon Prayer Books, c. 800–1050 (dissertation), {{cite web | title=138 | url=https://cora.ucc.ie/server/api/core/bitstreams/6fb0c029-b4c7-4520-8c85-ff5d23d3084c/content}}: “Even though a man waves wonderfully with his hand, it is not a blessing unless he makes the sign of the holy cross … A man must sign with three fingers and bless because of the Holy Trinity who is a glory ruling God.” See also The Ancren Riwle: “Stand up and say, ‘O Lord, open thou my lips,’ and make the sign of the cross on your mouth with the thumb, and say, ‘God be our help;’ then a large cross from above the forehead down to the breast, with the three fingers,” edited by James Morton, {{cite web | title=19 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7BgIAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA19}}.

In the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic (Eastern Catholics) churches, the tips of the first three fingers (the thumb, index, and middle ones) are brought together, and the last two (the "ring" and little fingers) are pressed against the palm. The first three fingers express one's faith in the Trinity, while the remaining two fingers represent the two natures of Jesus, divine and human.{{cite book |chapter-url=https://www.orthodoxphotos.com/readings/LGOT/sign.shtml |chapter=The Sign of the Cross |last=Slobodskoy |first=Serafim Alexivich |translator-last=Price |translator-first=Susan |translator-link=Susan Price |date=1992 |via=OrthodoxPhotos.com |publisher=Holy Trinity Monastery (Jordanville, New York) |title=The Law of God |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180706134056/https://www.orthodoxphotos.com/readings/LGOT/sign.shtml |archive-date=6 July 2018 |url-status=live |access-date=13 March 2019 |isbn=978-0-88465-044-7}}Original: {{cite book |chapter-url=https://azbyka.ru/otechnik/Serafim_Slobodskoj/zakon-bozhij/6 |chapter=О крестном знамении |trans-chapter=The Sign of the Cross |last=Слободской |first=Серафим Алексеевич |date=1957 |publication-date=1966 |website=Православная энциклопедия Азбука веры {{!}} православный сайт |language=ru |script-title=ru:Закон Божий |trans-title=The Law of God |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170725073912/https://azbyka.ru/otechnik/Serafim_Slobodskoj/zakon-bozhij/6 |archive-date=25 July 2017 |url-status=live |access-date=13 March 2019}}

The large sign of the cross is made by touching the hand sequentially to the forehead, lower chest or stomach, and both shoulders, accompanied by the Trinitarian formula: at the forehead "In the name of the Father" (or {{lang|la|In nomine Patris}} in Latin); at the stomach or heart "and of the Son" ({{lang|la|et Filii}}); across the shoulders "and of the Holy Spirit/Ghost" ({{lang|la|et Spiritus Sancti}}); and finally: "Amen".Sullivan, John F., The Externals of the Catholic Church, P.J. Kenedy & Sons (1918)

There are several interpretations, according to Church Fathers:Prayer Book, edited by the Romanian Orthodox Church, several editions (Carte de rugăciuni - Editura Institutului biblic şi de misiune al Bisericii ortodoxe române, 2005), the forehead symbolizes Heaven; the solar plexus (or top of stomach), the earth; the shoulders, the place and sign of power. It also recalls both the Trinity and the Incarnation. Pope Innocent III (1198–1216) explained: "The sign of the cross is made with three fingers, because the signing is done together with the invocation of the Trinity.{{nbsp}}[...] This is how it is done: from above to below, and from the right to the left, because Christ descended from the heavens to the earth".Innocent III, De sacro altaris mysterio, II, xlv in Patrologia Latina 217, 825C--D.

There are some variations: for example a person may first place the right hand in holy water. After moving the hand from one shoulder to the other, it may be returned to the top of the stomach. It may also be accompanied by the recitation of a prayer (e.g., the Jesus Prayer, or simply "Lord have mercy"). In some Catholic regions, like Spain, Italy and Latin America, it is customary to form a cross with the index finger and thumb and then to kiss one's thumb at the conclusion of the gesture.Patricia Ann Kasten, Linking Your Beads: The Rosary's History, Mysteries, and Prayers, Our Sunday Visitor 2011, p. 34

Cyril of Jerusalem (315–386)Mark W. Elliott, Thomas C. Oden. Isaiah 40-66. Intervarsity Press (2007): p. 335 wrote in his book about the lesser sign of the cross:

{{blockquote|Many have been crucified throughout the world, but by none of these are the devils scared; but when they see even the Sign of the Cross of Christ, who was crucified for us, they shudder. For those men died for their own sins, but Christ for the sins of others; for He did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth. It is not Peter who says this, for then we might suspect that he was partial to his Teacher; but it is Esaias who says it, who was not indeed present with Him in the flesh, but in the Spirit foresaw His coming in the flesh.[https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/310113.htm Cyril of Jerusalem. Catechetical Lecture 13]}}

{{blockquote|For others only hear, but we both see and handle. Let none be weary; take your armour against the adversaries in the cause of the Cross itself; set up the faith of the Cross as a trophy against the gainsayers. For when you are going to dispute with unbelievers concerning the Cross of Christ, first make with your hand the sign of Christ's Cross, and the gainsayer will be silenced. Be not ashamed to confess the Cross; for Angels glory in it, saying, We know whom you seek, Jesus the Crucified. Matthew 28:5 Might you not say, O Angel, I know whom you seek, my Master? But, I, he says with boldness, I know the Crucified. For the Cross is a Crown, not a dishonour.}}

{{blockquote|Let us not then be ashamed to confess the Crucified. Be the Cross our seal made with boldness by our fingers on our brow, and on everything; over the bread we eat, and the cups we drink; in our comings in, and goings out; before our sleep, when we lie down and when we rise up; when we are in the way, and when we are still. Great is that preservative; it is without price, for the sake of the poor; without toil, for the sick; since also its grace is from God. It is the Sign of the faithful, and the dread of devils: for He triumphed over them in it, having made a show of them openly Colossians 2:15; for when they see the Cross they are reminded of the Crucified; they are afraid of Him, who bruised the heads of the dragon. Despise not the Seal, because of the freeness of the gift; out for this the rather honour your Benefactor.}}

John of Damascus (650–750) stated:Steven A. McKinion, Thomas C. Oden. Isaiah 1-39. Intervarsity Press (2004): p. 279

{{blockquote|Moreover we worship even the image of the precious and life-giving Cross, although made of another tree, not honouring the tree (God forbid) but the image as a symbol of Christ. For He said to His disciples, admonishing them, Then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in Heaven Matthew 24:30, meaning the Cross. And so also the angel of the resurrection said to the woman, You seek Jesus of Nazareth which was crucified. Mark 16:6 And the Apostle said, We preach Christ crucified. 1 Corinthians 1:23 For there are many Christs and many Jesuses, but one crucified. He does not say speared but crucified. It behooves us, then, to worship the sign of Christ. For wherever the sign may be, there also will He be. But it does not behoove us to worship the material of which the image of the Cross is composed, even though it be gold or precious stones, after it is destroyed, if that should happen. Everything, therefore, that is dedicated to God we worship, conferring the adoration on Him.[https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/33044.htm John of Damascus. An Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, Book IV]}}

Herbert Thurston indicates that at one time both Eastern and Western Christians moved the hand from the right shoulder to the left. German theologian Valentin Thalhofer thought writings quoted in support of this point, such as that of Innocent III, refer to the small cross made upon the forehead or external objects, in which the hand moves naturally from right to left, and not the big cross made from shoulder to shoulder. Andreas Andreopoulos, author of The Sign of the Cross, gives a more detailed description of the development and the symbolism of the placement of the fingers and the direction of the movement.Andreas Andreopoulos, The Sign of the Cross, Paraclete Press, 2006, {{ISBN|978-1-55725-496-2}}, pp. 11–42.

Within the Roman Catholic Church, the sign of the cross is a sacramental, which the Church defines as "sacred signs which bear a resemblance to the sacraments"; that "signify effects, particularly of a spiritual nature, which are obtained through the intercession of the Church"; and that "always include a prayer, often accompanied by a specific sign, such as the laying on of hands, the sign of the cross, or the sprinkling of holy water (which recalls Baptism)."[https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P58.HTM Catechism of the Catholic Church] (1992), chap. 4, art. 1. Section 1670 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) states, "Sacramentals do not confer the grace of the Holy Spirit in the way that the sacraments do, but by the Church's prayer, they prepare us to receive grace and dispose us to cooperate with it. For well-disposed members of the faithful, the liturgy of the sacraments and sacramentals sanctifies almost every event of their lives with the divine grace which flows from the Paschal mystery of the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Christ." Section 1671 of the CCC states: "Among sacramentals blessings (of persons, meals, objects, and places) come first. Every blessing praises God and prays for his gifts. In Christ, Christians are blessed by God the Father 'with every spiritual blessing.' This is why the Church imparts blessings by invoking the name of Jesus, usually while making the holy sign of the cross of Christ." Section 2157 of the CCC states: "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."[https://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s2c1a2.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church] (1992), section 2157.

John Vianney said a genuinely made Sign of the Cross "makes all hell tremble."[http://www.catholicdigest.com/articles/faith/praying/2010/08-24/making-the-sign-of-the-cross Emmons, D. D., "Making the Sign of the Cross", Catholic Digest] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160813153520/http://www.catholicdigest.com/articles/faith/praying/2010/08-24/making-the-sign-of-the-cross |date=13 August 2016 }}

The Catholic Church's Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite, the priest and the faithful make the Sign of the Cross at the conclusion of the Entrance Chant and the priest or deacon "makes the Sign of the Cross [i.e the lesser sign of the cross] on the book and on his forehead, lips, and breast" when announcing the Gospel text (to which the people acclaim: "Glory to you, O Lord").{{Cite web|url=http://resources.ipsissima-verba.org/documents/ordinary-form-order-of-mass-draft-3.pdf|title=The Order of Mass (The Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite): In Latin and in English|publisher=International Commission on English in the Liturgy|date=2010}}

The sign of the cross is expected at two points in the Mass: the laity sign themselves during the introductory greeting of the service and at the final blessing; optionally, other times during the Mass when the laity often cross themselves are during a blessing with holy water, when concluding the penitential rite, in imitation of the priest before the Gospel reading (small signs on forehead, lips, and heart), and perhaps at other times out of personal devotion.

File:SignOfTheCross.HandConfiguration.jpg

In the Eastern Orthodox Churches, use of the sign of the cross in worship is far more frequent than in the Western churches.Daniel B. Clendenin, Eastern Orthodox Christianity: A Western Perspective (Baker Publishing: 2003), p. 19. While there are points in liturgy at which almost all worshipers cross themselves, Orthodox faithful have significant freedom to make the sign at other times as well, and many make the sign frequently throughout Divine Liturgy or other church services.Hugh Wybrew, The Orthodox Liturgy: The Development of the Eucharistic Liturgy in the Byzantine Rite (1989, St. Vladimir's Press reprint, 2003), p. 5.Anthony Edward Siecienski, Orthodox Christianity: A Very Short Introduction Oxford University Press: 2019), p. 83. During the epiclesis (the invocation of the Holy Spirit as part of the consecration of the Eucharist), the priest makes the sign of the cross over the bread.Hugh Wybrew, The Orthodox Liturgy: The Development of the Eucharistic Liturgy in the Byzantine Rite (1989, St. Vladimir's Press reprint, 2003), p. 157. The early theologian Basil of Caesarea noted the use of the sign of the cross in the rite marking the admission of catechumens.Daniel B. Clendenin, Eastern Orthodox Christianity: A Western Perspective (Baker Publishing: 2003) p. 110.

In the Tsardom of Russia, until the reforms of Patriarch Nikon in the 17th century, it was customary to make the sign of the cross with two fingers. The enforcement of the three-finger sign (as opposed to the two-finger sign of the "Old Rite"), as well as other Nikonite reforms (which alternated certain previous Russian practices to conform with Greek customs), were among the reasons for the schism with the Old Believers whose congregations continue to use the two-finger sign of the cross (other points of dispute included iconography and iconoclasm, as well as changes in liturgical practices).Peter T. De Simone, The Old Believers in Imperial Russia: Oppression, Opportunism and Religious Identity in Tsarist Moscow (2018), pp. 13, 54, 109, 206.Gary M. Hamburg, Russia's Path Toward Enlightenment: Faith, Politics, and Reason, 1500-1801 (Yale University Press, 2016), p. 179.Peter Hauptmann, "Old Believers" in The Encyclopedia of Christianity, Vol. 3 (William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company/Brill: 2003). The Old Believers considered the two-fingered symbol to symbolize the dual nature of Christ as divine and human (the other three fingers in the palm representing the Trinity).

Among Lutherans the practice was widely retained. For example, Luther's Small Catechism states that it is expected before the morning and evening prayers. The Lutheran Hymnal (1941) of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS) states that "The sign of the cross may be made at the Trinitarian Invocation and at the words of the Nicene Creed 'and the life of the world to come.{{'"}}The Lutheran Hymnal, 1941. Concordia Publishing House: St. Louis, page 4. In the present-day, the sign of the cross is customary throughout the Divine Service.{{cite web|url = http://www.elca.org/Growing-In-Faith/Worship.aspx| title = Why Do Lutherans Make the Sign of the Cross?|publisher = Evangelical Lutheran Church in America|access-date = 16 June 2007}}{{cite web|url=http://www.lcms.org/pages/internal.asp?NavID=3941 |title=Sign of the Cross |publisher=Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod |access-date=12 September 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050920095725/http://www.lcms.org/pages/internal.asp?NavID=3941 |archive-date=20 September 2005 }} Rubrics in contemporary Lutheran worship manuals, including Evangelical Lutheran Worship of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and Lutheran Service Book used by LCMS and Lutheran Church–Canada, provide for making the sign of the cross at certain points in the liturgy.Evangelical Lutheran Worship. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2006Lutheran Service Book. St. Louis: Concordia, 2006 The sign of the cross is made with three fingers, starting with touching the head, touching the chest (heart) and then going from the right shoulder to the left shoulder.{{cite web |title=Making the Sign of the Cross |url=http://redeemernashville.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Making-the-Sign-of-the-Cross.pdf |publisher=Redeemer Lutheran Church |access-date=24 May 2023 |language=English |date=2017}}

In the Lutheran Churches, the lesser sign of the cross is made by the celebrant on the Gospel Book and on his/her forehead, lips, and breast when announcing the Gospel text (to which the people acclaim: "Glory to you, O Lord"). The faithful trace the lesser sign of the cross on their foreheads, lips, and hearts while praying "May the Word of the Lord be on my mind, on my lips, and in my heart".

The English Reformation reduced the use of the sign of the cross compared to its use in Catholic rites. The 1549 Book of Common Prayer reduced the use of the sign of the cross by clergy during liturgy to five occasions, although an added note ("As touching, kneeling, crossing, holding up of hands, and other gestures; they may be used or left as every man's devotion serveth, without blame") gave more leeway to the faithful to make the sign.Colin Buchanan, Historical Dictionary of Anglicanism (Rowman & Littlefield, 2nd ed.: 2015), pp. 533-35. The 1552 Book of Common Prayer (revised in 1559) reduced the five set uses to a single usage, during baptism. The form of the sign was touching the head, chest, then both shoulders.

The use of the mandatory sign of the cross during baptism was one of several points of contention between the established Church of England and Puritans, who objected to this sole mandatory sign of the cross,Louis P. Nelson, The Beauty of Holiness: Anglicanism and Architecture in Colonial South Carolina (University of North Carolina Press: 2009), p. 152. and its connections to the church's Catholic past. Nonconformists refused to use the sign. In addition to its Catholic associations, the sign of the cross was significant in English folk traditions, with the sign believed to have a protective function against evil. Puritans viewed the sign of the cross as superstitious and idolatrous. Use of the sign of the cross during baptism was defended by King James I at the Hampton Court Conference and by the 1604 Code of Canons, and its continued use was one of many factors in the departure of Puritans from the Church of England.

The 1789 Prayer Book of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America made the sign of the cross during baptism optional, apparently in concession to varying views within the church on the sign's use. The 1892 revision of the Prayer Book, however, made the sign mandatory. The Anglo-Catholic movement saw a resurgence in the use of the sign of the cross within Anglicanism, including by laity and in church architecture and decoration;Colin Buchanan, The A to Z of Anglicanism (Scarecrow Press: 2009), pp. 126-27. historically, "high church" Anglicans were more apt to make the sign of the cross than "low church" Anglicans.Corinne Ware, What Is Liturgy? Forward Movement Publications (1996), p. 18. Objections to the use of the sign of the cross within Anglicanism were largely dropped in the 20th century. In some Anglican traditions, the sign of the cross is made by priests when consecrating the bread and wine of the Eucharist and when giving the priestly blessing at the end of a church service, and is made by congregants when receiving Communion.Marcus Throup, All Things Anglican: Who We Are and What We Believe (Canterbury Press, 2018). More recently, some Anglican bishops have adopted the Roman Catholic practice of placing a sign of the cross (+) before their signatures.

The sign of the cross can be found in the Methodist liturgy of the United Methodist Church.{{cite web|url =https://www.umc.org/en/content/ask-the-umc-why-dont-united-methodists-make-the-sign-of-the-cross|title=Why don't we make the sign of the cross?|publisher = United Methodist Church|access-date =September 19, 2022}} John Wesley, the principal leader of the early Methodists, in a 1784 revision of The Book of Common Prayer for Methodist use called The Sunday Service of the Methodists in North America, instructed the presiding minister to make the sign of the cross on the forehead of children just after they have been baptized. (This book was later adopted by Methodists in the United States for their liturgy.)John Wesley's Prayer Book: The Sunday Service of the Methodists in North America with introduction, notes, and commentary by James F. White, 1991 OSL Publications, Akron, Ohio, page 142. Wesley did not include the sign of the cross in other rites.

By the early 20th century, the use of the sign of the cross had been dropped from American Methodist worship. However, its uses was subsequently restored, and the current United Methodist Church allows the pastor to "trace on the forehead of each newly baptized person the sign of the cross." This usage during baptism is reflected in the current (1992) Book of Worship of the United Methodist Church, and is widely practiced (sometimes with oil).The United Methodist Book of Worship, Nashville 1992, p. 91 Making of the sign is also common among United Methodists on Ash Wednesday, when it is applied by the elder to the foreheads of the laity as a mark of penitence.The United Methodist Book of Worship, Nashville 1992, p. 323. In some United Methodist congregations, the worship leader makes the sign of the cross toward congregants (for example, when blessing the congregation at the end of the sermon or service), and individual congregants make the sign on themselves when receiving Holy Communion. The sign is also sometimes made by pastors, with oil, upon the foreheads of those seeking healing.The United Methodist Book of Worship, Nashville 1992, p. 620. In addition to its use in baptism, some Methodist clergy make the sign at the Communion table and during the Confession of Sin and Pardon at the invocation of Jesus' name.{{cite web|url=http://www.revneal.org/Writings/Writings/preparedandcrosschecked.html|title=Prepared and Cross-Checked|last=Neal|first=Gregory S.|year=2011|publisher=Grace Incarnate Ministries|language=en|access-date=25 April 2019}}

Whether or not a Methodist uses the sign for private prayer is a personal choice, although the UMC encourages it as a devotional practice, stating: "Many United Methodists have found this restoration powerful and meaningful. The ancient and enduring power of the sign of the cross is available for us to use as United Methodists more abundantly now than ever in our history. And more and more United Methodists are expanding its use beyond those suggested in our official ritual."

In some Reformed churches, such as the Church of Scotland and Presbyterian Church (USA), the sign of the cross is used on the foreheads during baptism and the Reaffirmation of the Baptismal Covenant.J. Dudley Weaver Jr., Presbyterian Worship: A Guide for Clergy (Geneva Press: 2002), pp. 86-87. It is also used at times during the Benediction, the minister will make the sign of the cross out toward the congregation while invoking the Trinity.

It is common practice in the Armenian Apostolic Church to make the sign of the cross when entering or passing a church, during the start of service and at many times during Divine Liturgy. The motion is performed by joining the first three fingers, to symbolize the Holy Trinity, and putting the two other fingers in the palm, then touching one's forehead, below the chest, left side, then right side and finishing with open hand on the chest again with bowing head.{{cite web|url=http://www.armenianchurch.org/index.jsp?sid=1&id=5811&pid=2429&lng=en| title =Making the Sign of the Cross (Khachaknkel)|access-date = 6 December 2015}}{{cite web|url=http://www.armenianchurch-ed.net/feasts/the-holy-cross/about-the-exaltation-of-the-cross/|title=In the Shadow of the Cross: The Holy Cross and Armenian History|access-date=6 December 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222080108/http://www.armenianchurch-ed.net/feasts/the-holy-cross/about-the-exaltation-of-the-cross/|archive-date=22 December 2015}}

The Assyrian Church of the East uniquely holds the sign of the cross as a sacrament in its own right. Another sacrament unique to the church is the Holy Leaven.{{Cite book | chapter = The Sacrament of the Holy Leaven (Malkā) in the Assyrian Church of the East | title = The Anaphoral Genesis of the Institution Narrative in Light of the Anaphora of Addai and Mari | last = Royel | first = Mar Awa | chapter-url = https://www.academia.edu/12388908 | editor-first = Cesare | editor-last=Giraudo | isbn = 978-88-97789-34-5 | year = 2013 | publisher = Edizioni Orientalia Christiana | location = Rome | page = 363 }}

The small sign of the cross has been documented in early Christianity by Tertullian, an Ante-Nicene Church Father, who wrote in AD 204 in {{Lang|la|De Corona}} ({{Gloss|On Crowns}}): "In all our actions, when we come in or go out, when we dress, when we wash, at our meals, before retiring to sleep we form on our foreheads the sign of the cross." Tertullian attested to the Christian practice of tracing this small sign of the cross on objects, such one's bed before sleeping. It is traced on the forehead, or various objects, with the thumb (sometimes using holy water or anointing oil).{{cite web |title=Why Bonhoeffer made the sign of the cross |url=https://orthochristian.com/79955.html |publisher=Ortho Christian |access-date=6 March 2025}}

During the Christian rite of the anointing of the sick, practiced liturgically in Catholicism, Lutheranism and Anglicanism, the small sign of the cross is traced on the forehead of the individual being anointing.{{cite web |title=Order for the Blessing of the Sick |url=https://www.usccb.org/prayers/order-blessing-sick |publisher=United States Conference of Catholic Bishops |access-date=6 March 2025 |language=en |quote=394 A lay minister traces the sign of the cross on the forehead of each sick person and says the following prayer of blessing.}}{{cite book |last1=Gusmer |first1=Charles W. |title=And You Visited Me: Sacramental Ministry to the Sick |date=5 May 2017 |publisher=Liturgical Press |isbn=978-0-8146-6325-7 |page=39 |language=en}}

{{quotation|By tracing the sign of the cross on the forehead during the anointing, the priest indicates that all divine favors come to us through the salvific power of Christ, Who continues to be present with His Church, since “Christ is among us!” (Mt. 18, 20) And the faithful, in turn express their faith in Christ’s presence and assistance by answering, “He is and He shall be.”{{cite web |title=MIROVANIJE: THE ANOINTING WITH HOLY OIL: A Traditional Custom of the BYZANTINE RITE |url=https://archpitt.org/mirovanije-the-anointing-with-holy-oil-a-traditional-custom-of-the-byzantine-rite/ |publisher=Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh |access-date=6 March 2025}}}}

File:Lutheran baptism.jpg in a Lutheran church.]]

In the minor exorcism used in the Christian sacrament of Baptism, the Catholic Roman Missal (1911), Lutheran Baptismal Booklet (1526) and Book of Common Prayer (1549) enjoin the sign of the cross to be traced on the forehead of the baptismal candidate.{{cite book|last=Senn|first=Frank C.|title=Introduction to Christian Liturgy|year=2012|publisher=Fortress Press|isbn=9781451424331|page=162}}{{cite book|last=Bradshaw|first=Paul F.|title=New SCM Dictionary of Liturgy and Worship|date=April 2013|publisher=Hymns Ancient and Modern Ltd|isbn=9780334049326|page=41}}

The Saint Michael Center for Spiritual Renewal led by Roman Catholic exorcist Stephen Joseph Rossetti provides deliverance prayers for the laity. Among these is the Prayer for Cleansing the Faculties and Senses, which enjoins the use of the sign of the cross to be traced on several parts of the body using holy oil or holy water.{{cite web |author1=Stephen Joseph Rossetti |title=Cleansing the Faculties and Senses |access-date=6 March 2025 |language=English|url=https://www.catholicexorcism.org/deliverance-prayers-for-the-laity}}

File: Ashes to Go at Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church.jpg

On Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent in Western Christianity), the sign of the cross is made by the celebrant on the forehead of believers during the ceremony of the imposition of ashes; this takes place in Latin-Rite Catholicism, Lutheranism, Moravianism, Anglicanism, as well as in a number of Reformed (Continental Reformed, Presbyterian, and Congregationalist), Methodist, Anabaptist, and Baptist churches, among others.{{cite web|url=https://www.rca.org/resources/liturgy-rca-basics-worship/liturgical-calendar|title=The Liturgical Calendar|year=2018|publisher=Reformed Church in America|language=en|access-date=13 March 2018}}{{cite web |last1=Lipin |first1=Bridget |title=Lenten Reflections: Ash Wednesday |url=https://www.abc-usa.org/2017/02/lenten-reflections-ash-wednesday/ |publisher=American Baptist Churches USA |language=English |date=27 February 2017}}{{cite web |title=The Significance of Lent |url=https://www.methodist.org.sg/the-significance-of-lent/ |publisher=Methodist Church in Singapore |access-date=14 February 2024 |language=English |date=22 January 2020 |quote=Over the last 25 years, more and more Methodist local conferences have been observing Lent, the 46 days before Easter.}}

Tertullian, an Ante-Nicene Church Father, attested to a Christian woman making the sign of the cross on her bed before sleeping. Christians of various denominations mark doors, windows and lintels of their house with the sign of the cross using holy anointing oil for a house blessing. Prayers such as the following are used for the same:

{{quotation|With the sign of this cross I am making a declaration that this house belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ that no sickness, death, thief or evil can enter this home. This oil is a symbol of the blood of Jesus Christ. No weapons that are formed against us or this property shall prosper and any destruction must pass over us, in Jesus name. We are safe and protected under the blood of Jesus.}}

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{{Commons category|Sign of the cross}}

• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5cHmzs769c Why do Lutherans Make the Sign of the Cross? - University Lutheran Chapel]
• [https://catholic-link.org/why-do-catholics-make-the-sign-of-the-cross/page/51/?et_blog Why Do Catholics Make The Sign Of The Cross? - Catholic Link]

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